Cleaning grout - ?

ILoveRedVino

I've seen two ideas on Pinterest and was wondering if anyone had thoughts/advice.

Idea 1 - use a can of coke in the grout.  The same way that Coke tears away enamel on your teeth, it'll do for dirty grout.

Idea 2 - a Clorox bleach pen.

Or... if you have any other suggestions, I'd appreciate it!

KPSimon

Well...what works for me is a grout brush.  I got it Target.  It's has really stiff bristles and does a fantastic job for me with just some reg liquid cleaner (Mr Clean, Spic & Span etc).  

If you're dealing with mold/mildew...you could use a little bit of bleach first. 

juno

I've read Oxyclean works well.  My mother used bleach on her counters, and it eventually caused the grout to cumble.  My solution was to use gray grout.  Now you just can't see the dirt

doeie04

I like using my vinegar and water with a scrub brush. (1:1 ratio) Or using 409. It works well for us.

 Edit: This is for the shower walls.

sempre_staccato

If your grout is stained, no amount of cleaning is going to get it back to it's original colour. This is a big pain but there is a product called grout colourant - found at Home Depot in the grout/tile aisle - that will stain the grout back to the colour you want. I used it on grout that had been yellowed, we think from the previous owners smoking in our house (yech). I just wiped it down with bleach to clean it, smeared the colourant on, and wiped it off. The bathroom looks MUCH better.

LittleLady77

To clean it I use vinegar, baking soda, a good grout brush and some elbow grease.  In my hall bath I have bright white grout (which is evil) and I use white colourant on it regularly.

mriandra

I just finished cleaning the grout in a house we are putting up for sale.  I used the cheap Home Depot brand Zep Industrial Cleaner and sprayed it on the tile, let it sit for about a minute and scrubbed off all the dirt that was lifted away with the cleaner.  It worked wonders on my really dirty 6 years old caked in brown/black grout that is now back to its original gray grout color!  It looks like I just had retiled the whole house!  Hopefully it sells soon!

mrsddurand

I actually just cleaned the grout in my kitchen two weeks ago and what worked really well was white vinegar and water with a toothbrush. (dilute the vinegar)  I had two bowls; one for plain water that I would rinse the toothbrush off in and the other with the vinegar and water. You should change the rinse off water every so often because then you'll just be putting the dirt back on the grout. 

This worked extremely well and got 90% of the dirt out.

 

 

AnnieAnnieBoBannie

I wouldn't recommend this for everyday cleaning (will destroy grout) but for a deep cleaning we use oven cleaner!! I got the idea from Martha Stewart!

 

It is amazing. Just spray it on, let it sit, then wipe it off...it is amazing. Just make sure you are in a well ventilated area!

bethanyturon

Soft Scrub with Bleach and a toothbrush work very effectively.