Getting that floor tile grout - WHITE again

[Frugal Nurse]

A friend of mine- Ms. Spendthrift, took the day out of work to meet with the floor washing men.

"Floor washing men?" Whatever for?

She was paying these men $1200 to wash her grout and paint it white then seal it.

Thanks for the tip- my friend!


I went to the hardware store, picked up some 'tile grout paint' for $5.44. I had an old thin paint brush from the art supply stash. I had some left over sealer from when we put the tiles in.

Two days ago- I scrubbed the floor with warm water and Borax/Vinegar- used a bit of elbow grease - VOILA! Clean.

I proceeding to imitate an artist by painting the grout lines. It was actually fun! Tried left handed- now right handed.

I didn't have to worry about staying within the lines, because it washes right off the tile (as long as it's not a porous surface- which mine wasn't).

I did two coats that day.

Yesterday, I sealed it. Another two coats.

WOW!!!!! What a difference!!!!

And saved $1194.16.
Well- I don't really know how much I saved- since the square footage might be vastly different. But it looks great anyway!


She told me what the floor washing guy told her.

To keep the grout looking white;
- After washing it- run a dry towel over the floor. Just walk with it under your feet.
It's the wet dirty water that sits right in the grout that makes it 1) break down 2) get dirty

[cab54]

WAIT, Wait...........let me see if I understand you right.............there are MEN who wash floors?? I might chip in 10 bucks if she'd let me 'see' this amazing thing!! LOL!

You've got the right idea. That is an exorbitant price for something so simple. Wow. My SIL pays dog poop picker-uppers to do her yard. It takes me about 10 minutes with a couple of plastic grocery bags.

[cab54]

BTW--congrats on your beautiful grout! Must feel satisfying having accomplished it yourself. And cheaper!

[Frugal Nurse]

WAIT, Wait...........let me see if I understand you right.............there are MEN who wash floors?? I might chip in 10 bucks if she'd let me 'see' this amazing thing!! LOL!

That is soooo funny!!! That never occurred to me!
I think they come in with a 'power washing tool'

But it would be GREAT to sit, have tea... and watch!

[guest002]

I did the same thing but with white tile and white grout. Used a tooth brush and a Tide w/ Bleach pen. It was the only thing that got it white again, but it's so pretty.

[cheriede]

I have used the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser to clean the tile grout and it worked out great.

[perSue]

I just saw on tv yesterday about BAM! with Bleach (clorox).

Now, here's my take on BAM.
We moved into our place and the bathroom floors were disgusting.
There are those tiny tiles on the floor (1 inch tiles).

They were BROWN!!!

So, we tried everything but bleach (as son is very sensitive to it, so we never buy it).

We ended up finding BAM at a dollar store at the time.
Heck, nothing else was working!

We used BAM and it was WHITE!!
(took some elbow grease, but WELL worth it!)

I'd recommend using the new BAM with Bleach on the grout.
Less elbow grease too!

[Ceashels]

I've been told that bleach helps the grout decay?!? I've stopped using bleach on my clients floor because of this. But I always towel dry the floors which make her happy.