This article contains the best tips that will help you clean the tiles. How to clean tiles and what to look out for!
Tiles are often overlooked when it comes to cleaning. No wonder, cleaning can be time-consuming and annoying.
Nobody likes to scrub the tiles in the bathroom or kitchen. Before I get down to this work, I can think of a thousand other things that are more important.
But it does not help. In between, you need to clean tiles, at the latest when they are visibly dirty.
Fortunately, a few tools that facilitate the work and make it more pleasant.
Today you'll find out what they are and what you need to pay attention to when cleaning tiles.
Table of contents
Tile cleaning - The most important at a glance
Here are a few things to keep in mind when cleaning your tiles.
- Change your rags often so they don't get too dirty.
- Don't use aggressive cleaners, there are great home remedies for lime and grease stains
- Clean the grout lines around the tiles with a toothbrush
- Wipe your tile floors with a soft cloth
- If you don't know what to do, ask someone who knows about the topic
Different materials and stains require different cleaners - the best cleaner for your tiles depends on what you want to get rid of.
In the bathroom, it's shampoo residue and limescale. In the kitchen, grease splashes and coffee stains. What you have to pay attention to when cleaning tiles depends on which stains and which materials are involved.
Basically, however, floor and wall tiles are tough. Even acidic cleaning agents and hot water do not affect them. Exceptions are: Natural stone tiles made of marble, slate or sandstone. They are very sensitive, do not use vinegar, Citric acid* or similar. Try using soft soap.
There are maintenance-containing cleaning agents for wooden floors. You should never use these! They contain wax or plastics that act like a protective layer on the wood. On the tile, they cause the floor to become slippery.
It is very important that you change the mop water regularly. Otherwise, you will work the loosened dirt into the joints, which are even harder to clean than tiles.
That's why you should clean windows with rinse aid!
Cleaning or just a quick refresh?
The first thing you should always do is: check if the tiles are really dirty or just need a refresh.
Tiles with minor stains and/or dirt can be wiped with soapy water without much effort. If that doesn't work, apply more soap or use a degreaser.
For more severe stains, it is sometimes better to try home remedies first before using chemical products. Vinegar and Baking powder* (1 teaspoon per 1 cup of water) is often a successful cleaning agent for stubborn water deposits, coffee or tea stains or sticky stains on tiled floors.
Important:
Stainless steel sponges are not the best choice for cleaning tiles as they can leave scratches. Use a soft cloth or sponge without a rough surface.
The secret weapon against dirty tiles: The steam cleaner
It is easier and more efficient to clean tiles with a steam cleaner. This saves a lot of time and effort.
How to clean tiles with a steam cleaner
- Grab a microfiber cloth and wipe away the gross dirt.
- First, take care of the joints. It is best to use an extension rod for this purpose.
- After that, take care of the tiles.
- Wipe tiles and grout dry afterwards and decide if you need any additional cleaning products.
How to clean tiles in the bathroom
Let's start with the bathroom. Most likely, you're standing in front of the shower and wondering what to use to clean the tiles. Here comes everything you need to know about cleaning tiles in the bathroom.
How often should I clean my bathroom tiles?
To prevent mold and reduce lime deposits, it is especially important to wipe the bathroom tiles after each shower. You can use a normal towel for this purpose.
Do not forget to clean the joints. This is where water particularly likes to collect. Joints and corners are very susceptible to mold and other fungi.
A weekly cleaning is ideal, but realistically you should clean your tiles more like every two weeks.
What you should use to clean tiles in the bathroom
The glass cleaner: One way to clean your tiles quickly is to use glass cleaner.
Clean your bathroom tiles by spraying glass cleaner into lukewarm water. A cloth dipped in the water and rub your tiles clean. Then polish them dry with another cloth.
The lemon peel: Lemons help with limescale stains in the shower or bathtub. Cut them in half and rub the inside over the calcified areas. Let the lemon juice soak for half an hour. Rinse it off with the shower spray and rub off the limescale residue with a cloth. By the way, this also works with oranges.
VinegarVinegar is a proven household remedy against lime deposits. When cleaning your tiles, however, you should use vinegar sparingly so as not to remove the grout from the joints as well.
To clean your bathroom tiles, add a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar to 1 liter of cleaning water and soak your cleaning cloth in it.
Wring out the rag well and use it to wipe the dirt from the tiles. Clean out the grout.
For easy cleaning of the tiles try the
- Cover your bathroom tiles with the vinegar mixture for at least half an hour.
- Clean the tiles with a second cloth and some dishwashing liquid. Done!
By the way, these are also all great tricks when you want to remove label adhesive from jars.
What matters when cleaning floor tiles
You have a tile floor in the bathroom or kitchen? It, too, wants to be cleaned regularly.
Here's how you do it:
Sweep up loose dirt with a broom or use the vacuum cleaner. Especially practical: a vacuum cleaner robot.
Pour warm water into a bucket, add a little dishwashing liquid, all-purpose cleaner or floor cleaner.
Treat stubborn stains with the cleaning water and a soft brush. Leave the cleaning agent to act for a few minutes.
Now mop the floor with the cleaning water and a mop.
How to clean tiles in the kitchen
Different rules apply in the kitchen than in the bathroom. The challenge is not limescale, but grease. Sometimes it's coffee or tea stains, ketchup, sauces and the like.
What you should use to clean tiles in the kitchen
Dishwashing detergent: Grease splashed on the tiles while cooking? Dilute a little detergent in warm water and wipe it away with a soft dish towel. Rinse well, then dry with another dish towel.
Curd soap*: When scrubbing tiles for a stubborn stain, treat the soiled area with Curd soap* and a soft brush. Clean dried encrustations with a scraper.
DetergentBy the way, a good helper when cleaning tiles is detergent. You can use liquid or powder. A few drops of detergent in warm water are enough. Then wipe the kitchen tiles with clean water. They will shine!
8 unusual ways to use coffee grounds!
Clean tiles and make them shine
After you have cleaned the tiles, you can polish the surface a little with a soft cloth (e.g. linen).
This will help floor and wall tiles to shine and look better. Be very careful not to scratch the surface by applying too much pressure. Use only as much force as necessary, otherwise you can damage the shine of your beautiful tile floor.
If these tips don't help you clean your tiles, there must be another explanation for the problem - so try asking an expert or someone who knows about cleaning tile floors or tiles in general if something seems odd to you.
Clean joints and get them clean
If you want to clean tiles, of course, the grout joints are part of it. Clean grout lines are a very important part of the overall tile cleaning process. The grout fills the space between the tiles. If it gets dirty, it can make the tiles look bad.
The best way to clean the joints is to use a suitable tool such as a sponge or toothbrush.
Can I clean grout with baking soda?
You can create joints with Baking soda* and water, but use the paste sparingly.
Baking powder* you should not use. It contains starch and is a good breeding ground for mold. With Baking soda* you don't have this problem.
Clean joints with toothbrush and toothpaste
If you want to clean tiles, it's best to start at the grout lines.
Use a white toothpaste for stubborn stains and old toothbrushes to get between the cracks of your tile floor or the grout lines in your bathroom or kitchen. Then rinse with water.
Also try using an electric toothbrush. It's much less tiring!
Our conclusion
Cleaning tiles is anything but difficult if you use the right home remedies. However, so that cleaning tiles does not become a very tedious process, you should scrub them regularly. This will save a lot of trouble and time.
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