Cleaning tile floors

**captlynhall** · 02-24-2013, 04:05 PM

Originally Posted by Dingle

I bought a house a few months ago that has quite a bit of tile in it. I use a stick vac to sweep it and then have mopped it. It doesn't seem very clean to me. If I wet a paper towel and wipe the floor you can see what was left behind. I have tried the Shark steam mop, but that didn't work very well either. I do live in the desert but it's not the dust that bothers me, it's the dirt. I was thinking about getting one of those Hoover hard floor cleaners. Does anyone have one, and what do you think? Those of you who have tile, how do you get it clean? This is the first time I have had tile so not sure what to do.

Thanks

I have a Hoover hard floor cleaner and love it. My kitchen and entry are ceramic, but are textured like real stone, so could not find a mop that wouldn't shred. I use to use a broom and Mr. Clean to scrub the floor and then would suck up the left over water with my shop vac and then dry with towels. Needless to say, my back paid the price.

The thing I love best about the Hoover, is that I can go over an area as many times as I want and squirt as much cleaning solution as I want, then the Hoover sucks up the dirty water. I am shocked every time I use it as to how much dirt is on the floor. Prior to buying the machine, I had started to notice a musty odor when I came into the house. After using the Hoover, that smell has gone away. I figure it was the nasty kitchen flloor. I knew I didn't scrub it as often as needed, because it was such a job. No big deal now. My friend had one for several years and kept telling me I needed to buy one, but I didn't want to spend the money. Now I could kick myself for waiting.

**cr12cats** · 02-24-2013, 06:17 PM

we had creame marbled ceramic tiles in our kitchens (we had 2) when we lived in the high desert of ca. just used hot water and vinegar. the other parts of the house where there was linoleum the same. when i was in a real hurry when company was coming at the last minute took a dry towel that fit my swifer mop and sprayed with windex for a quick fix. the gout was brown so the floor was real easy to take care of.

**nightquilter** · 02-24-2013, 06:43 PM

Dow bathroom cleaner(scrubbing bubbles) is what I use in all the homes I clean.This stuff is great on tile floors. I also use it at my home for the grout ,I scrub with a small brush and rinse well.Then use the shark steam mop.

**Dingle** · 02-24-2013, 06:51 PM

Thanks for all the replies. Lots to try. I'm not really worried about the grout, it's the same color as the tile, brownish. It's the tile I can't seem to get clean enough. On my hands and knees is out of the question. (back surgery) Still kicking around getting the Hoover.

Thanks again

**ayellowrose** · 02-24-2013, 07:28 PM

When all else fails......If it's more than you can stand to look at you can always cut away the grout ( no you don't have to get all the way to the subfloor but you do have to remove all the grout from the top edges of the tile ) and regrout. I would suggest you do it a shade darker than what is already there. Its a lengthy job but well worth it to not have to look at someone else's dirt.

My husband and I installed tile/ wood for about 10 years. He still does it but my body won't take the work anymore. Therefore I quilt.

**Grandma Nancy** · 02-25-2013, 10:58 AM

I do have one of the Hoover hard floor cleaners that I use on my ceramic tile floors. It works pretty good, but I carry a rag along with me and stop and spot clean some of the grout lines (those that aren't getting clean with the cleaner) as I go. It does a good job on the floor, just not all of the grout lines. They make a special cleaning solution for it, but I just use Mr. Clean or something like that. I also have one of those steam cleaners, but it just doesn't seem to get the grout lines very well.

**marla** · 02-25-2013, 02:23 PM

I went through the Swifter, the steamer, the mop. Now back to the mop and Mr. Clean--reviews say this is the best of the cleaners out there. I have heard mention of Quick & Shine so if Mr. Clean doesn't work, will try that one.

**My time** · 02-26-2013, 08:31 PM

Originally Posted by Moonglow

Add 1/2 cup of brown vinegar + 1/2 cup of methylated spirits to warm water and mop with this. Works a treat.

What do you refer to as brown vinegar?

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