You just looked at the tile in your kitchen and bathrooms. Gross. They need a good scrubbing. You go into the cabinets and pull out a bunch of cleaning supplies. You get your mop and sponge out and start scrubbing away. You scrub, you scrub, and you scrub. The tile doesn’t look shiny and the grout is still dirty. How can this be happening?

Well, you’re probably not using the right grout and tile cleaner. In fact, you may be using chemicals that actually harm your tile and grout lines. At Grout Shield, we make quality grout cleaners and grout sealers, so we wanted to share with you how not to clean your grout. The following are some chemicals/cleaners that can be wreaking havoc on your tile and grout.

• Homemade cleaners with baking soda and hydrogen peroxide can help clean your tile and grout, but they won’t work well at lifting deep stains or dark discolorations.
• Chemical-filled grout and tile cleaners can damage the tile and flooring in your home. Cleaners with ammonia can damage the finish on tiles and grout
• Bleach, although it can remove stains and mold from grout, it also can destroy your grout by causing it to crack and crumble. Bleach gets rid of the color of the mold, but not the mold itself, so you’re not actually cleaning your grout with bleach.
• Acidic cleaners, like vinegar, will take the shine and finish off the tile and grout. Vinegar and other acidic cleaners can also discolor the grout lines and tile.
• You should never scrub your grout. If you scrub your grout, you’re wearing away the top layers of the grout and weakening it, which can cause it to crack or break.

Grout Shield sells a Grout Shield Maintenance Cleaner and a Grout & Tile Deep Cleaner – both products are great at lifting stains and dirt from the pores in the grout.

Use Real Grout Cleaner 

Stop wrecking your grout and tile with the wrong cleaning supplies. It’s time to invest in a quality grout cleaner. You don’t’ want to wreck your whole floor and have to replace it just because you used the wrong cleaner! Use Grout Shield products that actually lift stains and clean grout. You don’t ant to use a product that just makes the problem.

Grout Shield’s cleaners are easy to use.

To learn more about grout cleaner, click our grout cleaner page or call 239-768-6809 or call toll free at 1-800-631-0716 with any questions.

The post Use Real Grout Cleaner and Not Regular Household Cleaners appeared first on Grout Shield | Grout Restoration System | Grout Cleaner.

Many people don’t know that grout and caulk are different things. Many people think you can use grout or caulk for projects, but they are not the same thing and they are not used for the same process. Caulk is not another word for grout and vice versa.

Grout is made up of cement, sand, and sometimes tint. Grout is used to fill in spaces and lines in between tiles. Grout helps keeps tiles from moving, cracking or chipping. Grout is porous and should be sealed after it is applied to keep it protected from spills, dirt, liquids, mold, etc.

Grout can be sanded (cement-based grout but sand is added), non-sanded, and epoxy grout, which is the most durable grout.

To keep your grout clean and protected throughout the year, you need to use a grout cleaner and sealer, not just any cleaner.

Grout Shield’s Grout & Tile Deep Cleaner help lifts deep stains your grout. This product is great if you haven’t cleaned your grout in a long time. Grout Shield’s Maintenance Cleaner will help you clean the grout on a regular basis throughout the year. Grout Shield’s cleaners are pH balanced and do not harm the grout. After cleaning the grout and letting it dry, you can apply Grout Shield Color Sealer or Clear Sealer, which will protect the grout from absorbing things it comes in contact with.

Unlike grout, caulk is soft, rubbery, and flexible. It is applied along seams and edges where two different surfaces meet. The purpose of caulk is to act as a sealant and to keep water leakage from occurring. Caulk can be used to fill in gaps, cracks, and breaks in tiles, windows, baseboards, doors, and more. Caulk can dry out or shrink so it cannot be used in place of grout. Caulk can be latex, silicone, specialty, and siliconized acrylic latex.

Before you caulk something in the bathroom, make sure you should be using caulk and not fixing or restoring your grout instead.

If you’re looking to restore your dirty and/or dull grout lines, consider Grout Shield. Our products will “wow” you!

Grout Shield’s grout products can clean and restore your floors and other tile and grout services and have them shining again. Our color sealer can even change the color of your grout to give your room and home a whole different look.

For more information on Grout Shield products, click our grout cleaner page, or call toll free at 1-800-631-0716.

The post Are Grout and Caulk the Same Thing? appeared first on Grout Shield | Grout Restoration System | Grout Cleaner.

How much do you know about grout? Chances are…probably not a lot, right? That’s fine! You’ve come to the right place. We know grout! We know how to clean it and protect it! We wanted to share some facts and information about grout with you, so you know what kind of grout to use and how to care for it.

If you’re tiling a room or area, you don’t just think about tile, you need to think about the grout. There’s different kinds of grout to consider.

• Epoxy grout is the most durable and the most resistant to stain and water damage. If your grout will be near a lot of water and/or food, epoxy grout is a great choice. Epoxy grout can be tricky to apply, so it’s best to hire a professional. Epoxy grout is the most expensive grout, but it also doesn’t need a sealer.
• Sanded and non-sanded grouts are the most used and popular grouts.
• Sanded grout is a cement-based grout with sand added, which makes it more resistant to cracking and shrinking. Sanded grout sets slower than epoxy.
• Non-sanded grout is cement based and used for smaller grout joints and good to use on vertical walls.
• You should always seal your grout, unless you have epoxy grout. Sealing grout protects it from absorbing many different things like dirt, mold, and mildew.
• With grout sealers, you can change the color of your grout, if you so choose.
• Keep in mind that dark grout can hide stains but fade easier and lighter grout colors show stains and are harder to keep clean.
• You can either march the grout to the tile (if you want the tile to stand out), contrast the grout and tile (for a bold look), or choose a neutral grout color for a safer, subtle look.

Ready to restore, clean, or seal your grout? Great! Time to use quality grout products by Grout Shield. To purchase or for more information, click our grout cleaner  or grout sealer page or call toll free at 1-800-631-0716.

The post Some Things to Know About Your Grout appeared first on Grout Shield | Grout Restoration System | Grout Cleaner.