best way to remove grout on tile

Sign up or log in to customize your list. Here's how it works: Anybody can ask a question The best answers are voted up and rise to the top How do you remove dry grout on tile. We have tried everything from vinegar to tile cleaner, but nothing is working. Your options at this point are scraping it off or dissolving it. My first suggestion would be contacting the tile manufacturer. They would have the best idea of what your tile can handle as far as physical abuse or acid. Scraping is attractive as a primary option because you can go slowly and start in a small inconspicuous area to see if it will damage the tile. There's no perfect tool for this as far as I know. I'd start with an abrasive sponge (you might get lucky), steel wool (good for streaks) and then lightly attack clumps with a razor, painter's tool or small sharp chisel. To limit damage to the tile, you want the tool to be as horizontal as you can make it and still work safely with it. You should quickly determine how much abuse your tile can handle and if a few scrapes ruins your floor.
Most likely it will be a slow and painful process. Sulfumic acid will work if the grout is not too thick, the main concern is what it will do to the tile underneath. Again, find a small spot to test first. Etching is usually caused because the tile absorbs the acid. To limit this, I would wet the tile pretty thoroughly with clean water first. Gloves, mask, and good ventilation are a must when working with the acid. If the grout is pretty thick, this may loosen it up enough that you can scrub it away with a scraping method. Follow the instructions and don't let it sit long enough that it eats through the top layer of tile. I wouldn't overlook replacement as a possibility, depending on how many tiles are an issue. It's entirely possible you will damage the tile trying to remove the grout anyway. I'm assuming you did the tile work (or you should be calling the contractor to fix this), so you should be able to replace a tile, just break it, scrape up the surrounding grout and install a new one.
If it's old work (and you can find tile that matches), it might be worth a few calls to find what a tile mechanic might charge for a small job. Is it on glazed tile, or something like unglazed spanish tiles? If they are glazed, I would try a razor blade scraper or a wallpaper scraper. Try wetting it first. I have heard of people using acid, but I see some forums where people say never to use it because it can etch the tile. If its only been a couple of days it should come off glazed tile. You could also post a picture. My wife dropped a full bottle of Balsamic vinegar on our kitchen floor. It immediately attacked the white tile grout and by the time the mess was cleaned up most of the tile grout was gone. The Balsamic vinegar was a blackish colour and the white tiles were not affected at all. Thank you for your interest in this question. Because it has attracted low-quality or spam answers that had to be removed, posting an answer now requires 10 reputation on this site (the association bonus does not count).
Would you like to answer one of these unanswered questions instead? Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged tile grout or ask your own question.I would start with just wet moping to get the majority of it up. Then mop it again with a 50/50 mix of vinegar and water. rogers pool cleaningThis should neutralize the urine odor. aqua pool cleaningIf it still appears dirty, mop it again with a 50/50 mix of bleach and water. bosch vacuum cleaner best buyRepeat this until the tile looks clean. carpet cleaning for sale californiaIf the grout still doesn’t look good enough, get some 20 Mule Team Borax and add enough vinegar to make a thin paste, apply it to the grout and let it soak in until it is dry. best way to clean non slip floor tiles
I would finish with mopping with plain water.Be careful not to have any contact between bleach and the urine unless you are in an extremely well ventilated area. The fumes can be toxic.How To Remove Cement Based Grout Haze From Tile Surfaces Grout Haze Removal Tips Grout haze is the cement based haze that is left on the tiles after grouting them. best vacuum cleaner carpet stairsGrout haze should be removed as soon as possible after grouting the tiles. If removed in a timely manner then a simple cheese cloth or paper towel can be used to remove the grout haze. When the grout haze is allowed to sit and dry on the tiles for a longer period of time then it can be more difficult to remove. There are many other factors that affect how difficult a grout haze will be to remove.  the type of grout used, how the grout was mixed, how long the grout haze has set on the tiles and the type of tiles that are installed.
Removing grout haze off of smooth ceramic and porcelain tiles is easier than removing the grout haze off of rough stone tiles. cleaners can be used to remove the grout haze off of ceramic and porcelain tiles which makes removing the grout haze relatively easy. Stone tiles can not be exposed to acidic cleaners so specialized grout haze removers must be used which are not as effective as acidic cleanersAlso stone tiles with rough surfaces like slate can be extremely difficult to remove the grout haze from. When removing the grout haze right after grouting you want to allow the grout to slightly firm up before removing the grout haze. Many times people believe that they can grout the tiles one day and come back the next day or later to clean up the grout haze. technique may work for extremely smooth glazed ceramic or porcelainIf the tiles are coarse or you are trying to remove grout haze off of stone tiles then the grout haze can start to become hard
and difficult to remove if it has set overnight. It is always best to use the least aggressive grout haze removal techniques first.  If you find that the grout haze is not being removed with the less aggressive will need to advance to the more aggressive grout haze removalThe grout haze will not fade away over time or come off when just cleaning the tiles. Many people have a grout haze on the surface of their tiles for years and just believe that this is how the tiles areIt is only when the grout haze has finally been removed that people realize how much better their tiles look withoug a grout haze clouding up and distorting the natural appearance of their tiles. The easiest and least aggressive technique for removing grout haze is to use a dry cheese cloth designed for removing grout haze. Cheese clothes are specially designed for cleaning up and removingCheese cloths work best for removing grout haze that has not set a
long period of time. Cheese clothes are specially designed to use dry for removing grout haze without damaging the still setting grout in the grout lines. When using a cheese cloth for removing grout haze you simply rub the tile surfaces with the dry cheese cloth to remove the grout haze.  The grout haze will easily and quickly become cleaned up and removed revealing the natural look of the iles. Ordinary paper towels also work well for removing grout haze that has not had a chance to harden on the tiles. In many cases a hardened grout haze can not simply be removed with a cheese cloth. Cheese cloths are not aggressive enough to remove a grout haze that has been allowed to harden for a long period of time and more aggressive products must be used. more aggressive grout haze removal technique is to use a damp terry towel to scrub away and remove the grout haze. water in a terry towel will reactivate the grout haze so that it can
be easily wiped up and removed. Reactivating the grout haze with a wet terry towel works for grout that has not set for more than a fewIf the grout haze has set for a long period of time then the water in the terry towel will not reactivate the grout and allow it to be wiped away. When removing grout haze with a wet terry towel you should wring as much water out of the terry towel as possible before trying to clean up the grout haze.  Excess water in the grout lines can be detrimental to grout that has not finished setting. If the grout has set for over 48 hours then you can use more water on the terry towels without damaging the grout lines. the grout lines before 48 hours with too much water while the grout is setting then the grout can become weak or the grout can lose some of its color When using a terry towel you should simply wipe the tile surfaces with the damp terry towel to reactivate the grout haze. the tile surface is still wet you can use a dry terry towel to wipe
away the grout haze off of the tiles. Often times grout haze has been allowed to set for a long time to the point where it has hardened over time.  cases of hardened grout haze a cheese cloth or wet terry towel will not begin to remove the hardened grout haze. on ceramic or porcelain tiles will require an acidic cleaner and a scrubbing pad to remove the grout haze. Do not use this acidic cleaner on any types of acid sensitive tiles like marble,Removing the grout haze off of stone tiles will require using a non acidic grout haze remover product. In most cases of hardened grout haze the grout has been allowed to totally set so the acidic cleaner will not damage the grout in theYou should only use a mild acidic cleaner with a urea acid in it like Stonetech's Restore acidic cleaner. You should start by diluting the acidic cleaner with half water and spraying the cleaning solution directly on the tile surfaces. many cases you will be able to see a fizzing effect on the tile
surfaces as the acidic cleaner reacts with grout haze. soft white scrub pad will often be necessary to additionally agitate the grout haze and loosen it up from the tile surface. can use a normal terry towel or mop and bucket to clean up the excess acidic cleaner and the grout haze from the tile surfaces. to remove grout haze from stone tiles you should use a non acidic grout haze remover like Aquamix's grout haze remover.  grout haze remover is non acidic solution that will not damage or etch the surface of stone tiles. You can use Aquamix's grout haze remover just like the acidic cleaner when cleaning up and removing the grout haze. haze remover will not be as effective at removing grout haze as anFor acid resistant tiles like ceramic and porcelain tiles an acidic cleaner will be more effective at cleaning up and For extremely hard and difficult to remove grout haze an even more aggressive procedure will need to be used. 
these cases the acidic cleaner can be applied at full strength to soften up the grout haze. Also more aggressive scrub pads will need to be used to loosen up the extremely hard to remove grout haze. An aggressive green pad is often extremely effective at scrubbing away and removing grout haze.  It is important to understand that aggressive scrub pads can scratch or dull the surface of stone tiles. In most cases you will be required to polish the stone tiles to remove any scratches or scuff marks caused by aggressive scrub pads. Ceramic and porcelain tiles are usually much harder than stone tiles and they will not be scratched or scuffed when aggressive scrub pads are used on them. In some cases cleaning grout haze is next to impossible. Many times people are actually trying to remove hardened grout off the surface of their tiles as opposed to just removing grout haze. Also trying to remove non cement based grout haze can truly be a