How can I clean bath tile that is horribly stained?
by
Lisa Rogers
+6
I've inherited a home with a bath enclosure that is horribly stained. I'm not sure if it's porcelain or ceramic but it's supposed to be white tile. I have tried Greased Lightening, straight up bleach, Ajax with bleach, 5 in 1 Scrubbing Bubbles with bleach and the yellowing will not budge. I've been able to scrape off the grout to remove the brownish stain and bring it back to white. I believe cigarettes and soap scum built up over years of no proper cleaning have caused the problem. HELP!!!
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Try a mixture of vinegar and Dawn dish soap in a spray bottle. Spray it on and let it sit & work. After it sits, give it a scrub with a plastic scrubbie.
Hi Lisa,
Here's a link to determine if you have glazed or unglazed porcelain tiles:
https://www.familyhandyman.com/tiling/cleaning-unglazed-porcelain-tile/
This link talks about floor tiles, and they can be a mess, maybe it will help guide you in what cleaner to use, especially in the first paragraph:
https://www.ehow.com/how_5602462_clean-badly-stained-tile-floors.html
Best to you.
Home Depot carries a special tile and grout cleaner in the tile section. My grout was so bad with 1/2" wide seams and 3 different colors. There is grout paint as well. Cleaning it with tile cleaner first then painting the seams looks terrific. It is a year old and looks terrific.
Purchase a spin scrubber. It will help you quite a bit to boost the product you use. I would go with Lysol Lime & Rust Remover Toilet Bowl cleaner, comes in a black squirt bottle. I know that seems funny but it's a great "nasty" cleaner.
Try painting it. Use an oil based paint
I use Dollar Tree Awesome Orange in the half gallon to clean gross shower enclosures for my clients who have build up..... I literally pour it down the sides and it melts off the buildup.... then followup with a good brush and rinse. Usually takes 1-2 treatments. If the floor is really built up use Easy Off Fume-Free oven cleaner in the blue can only, and a magic eraser.
They make special pens that can be used to pain the grout so it looks fresh again
Get a electric scrubber it sound like you need to soak them is there a way to make a towel soaked with bleach cleaner to stay on tile or you could use paper towels soaked in tile cleaner then spray them on the wall tape them up let sit over night
Hi Lisa - This is the shower cleaner that we use to help keep grout and tiles clean and minimize the mildew - it works on kitchen grout too. I've also included a great article about mold if it's gone that far. Hope this helps! Hugs, Holly
https://pinkfortitude.com/shower-cleaner-diy/
https://pinkfortitude.com/mold-in-the-shower/
PS - We have a FREE eBook with recipes for all of my homemade and all-natural cleaners. You can download it here --> https://pinkfortitude.com/thank#GreenClean