Ceramic Floor Tiles

jak · Oct 09, 2006 8:12 pm

Hi,

Can anyone help with a couple of problems?

We recently renovated our bathroom and had black ceramic floor tiles laid. One problem we have is that the black grout has dried very patchy in colour it goes from black to light grey.

The other problem is that we can't get the tiles clean, they have a patchy smear on them in places the only product we have used on them is White Knight Tile and Laminate Cleaner but it hasn't helped.

Thanks

Michelle · Oct 09, 2006 8:50 pm

Hate to say but pretty soon the patchy black and grey will be all GREY!

I laid grey tiles with black grout right through my house 20 years ago; I now have a lovely shade of grey all over and have had since we did it. The only grout that has stayed black is in the wall tiles. But since my floor tiles are grey, I really don’t care anymore it blends.

You will never be able to keep the black grout clean on the floor. Too much dust and grim for a product that is so porus.

As for your black tiles, bad colour, they show every thing. Best bet is to get advice from the tile shop you got them from or a tiler on how to clean them, they usually are pretty good at knowing what to use.

I feel for you, it’s a big expense and one you can’t change like paint work.

Maybe someone else on the forum will be able to give you better advice than me, heres hoping for you.

Good luck, maybe you will learn to live it, I did.

Dukekamaya · Oct 09, 2006 10:35 pm

Try wiping the tiles down with metho, it evaporates and won't leave any residual on the tiles.
Sounds like you should have mixed a water-proofing/sealing agent into your grout mix first.

jak · Oct 13, 2006 12:40 pm

Hi All,

Thank you all for your help, We tried numerous products to clean the tiles with no luck until our friends grandmother suggested we try white vinigar.

We thought it was a joke at first but it really worked. We used a soft cloth with straight vinigar and rubbed the tiles lightly then wiped over with a clean damp cloth and then with a dry soft cloth. She also said she uses 1 cup white vinigar to 5 lt warm water to wash her vinyl and tiled floors.

We still haven't had any luck with the grout though. We are trying to get the tiler back to see if it can be grouted again because it really looks terrible.

Thanks again to everyone for your help