Spring cleaning continues and you’re giving your rental its glow back. Although tiles on the floor may be easy to clean, the joints between the tiles are not. Indeed, over time, the joints become tarnished. Conventional household products cause them to become greyish, even blackened at times, stained by mould. Maintenance is essential, not only for the hygiene of the house and the image that you give your guests, but above all to prevent them from cracking and allowing the water to seep in, which would cause the floor tiles to lift. To get your tile joints back to their original colour as well as give them a boost of clean, there are several simple and effective cleaning methods...

 

Some tips before you start...

- Cleaning the joints will be impossible if the tiles themselves are not clean. It is therefore essential to thoroughly clean the tiles before applying the product to tile joints.

- Take care not to use the steam cleaner too often, repeated passages can damage the joint seals causing the tiles to lift off.

- If your floor has cracked or hollowed joints, it is necessary to change these joints. This will take time and energy, but is necessary to prevent the entire tiled floor from being damaged.

- Avoid products that are too corrosive such as hydrochloric acid which could attack both the tiles and joints.

Spray cleaning floor tile joints©Wiki How

 

Home-made recipes for cleaning floor tile joints

The methods differ depending on how dirty the joints are.

  • Slightly soiled joints: Toothpaste is often recommended, but when dealing with a large surface a toothbrush can quickly become a tedious way to clean the whole floor! One alternative is to prepare a mixture that you can spray. In a spray bottle, mix 1 cup of lukewarm water, ½ cup of hydrogen peroxide, 2 tablespoons of baking soda and 1 tablespoon of dishwashing liquid. Spray and leave for a quarter of an hour. Then wipe down with a damp sponge.
  • Medium-soiled joints: In a bowl, pour 7 glasses of lukewarm water, ½ glass of baking soda, ¼ glass of white vinegar and 1/3 of lemon juice. Rub the joints with a couch grass brush, rinse thoroughly with clean water and dry.
  • Heavily soiled joints: When the dirt is really encrusted, it’s necessary to up the game and turn to the big boys; diluted ammonia. However, before you start playing with ammonia, protect your hands with household gloves, put a mask or scarf over your mouth and ventilate the interior by opening the windows to evacuate the vapours that the product releases. In a container, pour slightly diluted ammonia, a little laundry detergent and lemon juice. Apply the mixture to joints and let sit for two hours. Rub with a couch grass brush, then rinse the soil with clear water, and allow to dry.

The last little trick is to regularly maintain the joints: every two weeks, pour Perrier water on a clean floor, let it act for ten minutes and rinse. Simple yet effective!

 

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