A clean home is high on everyone’s list of priorities. Most of the chores we focus on during a week involve cleaning something–making beds, washing dishes, dusting furniture, and so forth.
We probably spend more money and effort cleaning floors than any other part of the home. Floors accumulate more dirt than any other part of the home. Our shoes and pets bring in all kinds of filth from the outdoors. Spills of food and drinks leave their stains behind. Even some cleaning products undermine the beauty of our floors.
The tile is especially challenging to keep clean. The variation in surface materials and heights makes it particularly difficult to keep the tile and grout as clean as possible. There is also a lot of wrong information, along with some products of questionable value. It can be challenging to know just what to do to keep tile floors clean.
There are many ways to get a floor dirty, but there must be simple ways to clean it. These five tips will help you clean tiles of all kinds, including ceramic, stone, vinyl, and other materials. You’ll also get a better idea of how to shop for the best cleaning products and make good use of an excellent online buying guide. Once you know how to do and what to use, cleaning floor tiles will become much more manageable.
Start With Good Basic Cleaning
You can’t get a clean tile floor until you remove the loose dirt. It sounds simple enough, but not every broom is ideal for a tile floor. Before taking on one particular model, you need to spend some time checking on the best brooms for tile floors.
A good broom will have bristles flexible enough to adapt to the changes in floor height but rigid enough to push away heavier dirt particles. You also want to choose one wide enough to complete the job quickly but not so big that it won’t fit into the smaller spaces.
Use The Right Mop With The Right Water
The market is full of costly products designed for use on tile floors. Some are fine, but a simple detergent solution can get the same results. Replace the water frequently; using it for too much area will gradually leave the floor dirtier and dirtier.
Avoid sponge mops. They have a bulldozer-like effect, pushing dirt across the tiles and letting it fall into the grout lines. Once it is there, it is much harder to remove. Instead of a sponge mop, go with a fabric or chamois mop. The material is flexible enough to adjust to the floor.
Monitor For Stains
Most of what you clean from your tile floor will be ordinary dirt, but there will also be more severe stains in some places. Coffee, fruit juices, and ink are frequent offenders.
Watch for areas that seem to refuse to come clean as you mop. After you finish, revisit those trouble spots and use a stain treatment to work harder to clear them up.
Manage Soap Residue
Anything cleaned with soap but not properly rinsed will have a hazy appearance and feel. That goes for cars, clothes, and even skin. Your tile floor is no different.
Most people estimate how much soap to use in their mop water. That is fine as long as you know how much goes into each bucket. If you see soap residue, use a little less. If the floor doesn’t seem clean, use a little more.
Help The Drying Process
Most people think the work is done when the floor has been mopped, but drying should be the final step. Floors that are allowed to dry themselves end up with streaks and spots.
Wiping off the water by hand gives better results. You don’t have to get it completely dry, but clearing up any pooled water will dramatically improve the floor’s appearance. This can be a tough chore for hands and knees on a hard tile floor, so you may want to improvise a drying tool with a mop handle and a lint-free cloth to let you work from a standing position.
A tile floor is a beautiful feature in any home. It looks clean, bright, and classy. Today’s homes incorporate tile materials, including traditional ceramic and improved materials like vinyl, stone, and synthetics.
You need to keep the material used to make your tile floor clean. The proper techniques and tools will make it easier to remove the daily grime and leave your tile floors sparkling and clean.
