In this blog, we will be discussing as to how you should clean your tiles. If you have marble tiles, then we have a separate blog on how to clean marble floor, you should consider that. Especially since marble is a different material and more delicate when it comes to cleaning. Do not apply the below-mentioned tips to marble tiles. Here, we will discuss the ways to clean tiles at home. It is the norm to vacuum your house daily. Many Indian households prefer brooming as a better alternative. Either of those is a fundamental thing that you must do daily in order to keep your floor clean.
Many Indian households also prefer mopping. It is a great habit if your floor gets mopped every day. If not every day, then at least every alternate day. The water you mop your floor with should contain some sort of phenyl or another cleanser that cleans your floor thoroughly along with eliminating germs. If all this work is too much for you, buy a robotic vacuum.
They are not so famous but for around 60,000 rupees you will get a beautiful, compact piece of machinery. It will not only vacuum daily as prescribed by you, but it will also mop by itself whenever necessary. All you have to do it fit the house boundaries in its program and set the time. It will automatically clean every day as defined by you and will go back to its designated spot and start charging itself. Such robotic vacuum cleaners can be easily bought online on Amazon.
How to clean paint from tiles
If you are going to paint your walls, you better cover your entire floor with plastic wrap or something to avoid double work. However, if you have still been able to get paint on your floor, do not worry we have the right steps so that you can clean your floor.
Mop the floor as you would regularly and then let it dry. Buy a commercial paint cleaner from the market or online. Before cleaning, check on a small part of the floor if it damages your tile. If you get a green signal i.e. if there is no problem, then do as instructed on the bottle. Generally the instructions say that you should put the cleaner on a cloth and then rub it on the paint spot. Then get another clean cloth, dip it in warm water and scrub the paint off. When you are working with commercial paint cleaner, make sure to open the doors and windows so that all the toxic fumes and smell does not harm you. You could also prefer a natural cleaner as mentioned below.
Use citrus based cleaner if you have wooden flooring.
DIY paint remover
If you are not looking forward to buying a paint remover, we have got you covered. To make a DIY paint remover, combine water and vinegar in equal quantity and then bring this mixture to a boil. Remove it from the heat. Dip a clean cloth in it and scrub the paint stain. Remember to keep the vinegar mixture warm while you work with it. After you are done, mop the floor.
How to clean tile joins –
You can buy join cleaners online according to your tile type and then do as instructed.
DIY cleaner
Warning – check if the following materials will be harmful for your tile’s material. For example, it is harmful for marble tiles.
Ingredients
Baking soda, vinegar, lemon juice, toothbrush.
The most basic thing you could do is to sprinkle enough baking soda on the joins, then dip your toothbrush in either lemon juice or in vinegar and then scrub the area.
You can make a mixture or baking soda and vinegar and then scrub with it. You could mix baking soda and lemon juice too and clean by scrubbing with a toothbrush. You can go grand and mix all three and scrub away. These three ingredients perform an amazing task of cleaning. In our kitchen cleaning blog also, they have huge popularity.
How to clean tiles after construction –
After construction, the main enemy is dust and dirt. If you can successfully get rid of that, then most of the problems are eliminated. Firstly, let us consider how to get rid of the dust.
Before dust, get rid of the debris. Pick up all the big pieces that you can spot and throw them in the garbage. Pick up the dust pan and brush and get rid of the bigger pieces.
Clean any latex or paint spills by the procedure mentioned above.
Before other things, dress for the occasion. Put up a mask and goggles. Put up gloves also if you need to. A good thing will be to attach an exhaust fan that pulls air towards the other side which is, outside your house. This will be highly helpful because when you will start cleaning, the dust is ought to fly in the air and pollute the room. The exhaust fan will make sure that the dust goes out instead of recycling into the room.
Vacuum the floor once but thoroughly. This is obviously the first round. There are more to go. If you do not have a vacuum, thorough brooming will do too. You can also rent vacuum cleaners.
The next step should be to wipe the walls and appliances once. Appliances include the TV, oven, tables, chairs, shelves etc but especially wipe the fan blades and lights.
You need another round of vacuuming. Make more number of rounds if you still are not satisfied with the results. Once you reach a stage where you cannot feel the dust on the floor, then is the time to mop. Do the first round of mopping with general water. Adding phenyl is optional. The second round should have a good concentration of phenyl though.
Naturally cleaning tiles
We have mentioned the methods above, but here we will include some more methods.
Baking soda, vinegar and lemon juice should be your main ingredients. You can clean any surface with a mixture of any of these two. You can mix all of the three of them too.
Now for the cleaner, we have mentioned a DIY cleaner in the blog where we have talked about how you can clean your kitchen. The following instructions need to be followed
Take any regular bottle of 1 litre. Add distilled water to it but do not fill it yet. This is because we will be adding more ingredients. Add a few camphor balls to this water. You can get them from any nearby departmental store. Its job is to act as a disinfectant. It keeps mosquitoes and flies away. You may crush and add the camphor balls. They might not completely dissolve which is not a problem. Just shake the bottle before using every time. Then add 3-4 tablespoons of salt. This also works as a disinfectant and keeps insects away. Then you need to add alum. It cleans the water. It is optional, but you may add essential oils. They will add fragrance to the mixture. Leave the mixture overnight. You may use it even if the camphor and alum are not fully dissolved. Add around 500 ml in 2-3 litre water when mopping the floor. It is not necessary to add the essential oil right now too. You may add the oil directly in the bucket depending on whichever fragrance you have the mood of that day
You need to make sure that you keep this away from children. Keep it safely labelled in a place where your children can not access it.
DIY number 2 –
In a bottle, put 2 cups of hot water. Then boil white vinegar on a pan, let it cool and then add half a cup of it to it. Then add a quarter of a cup of isopropyl rubbing alcohol. Add a drop of liquid dish soap. Then add the essential oil whose fragrance you wish to smell. This is optional though.
DIY number 3 –
( only eligible for wooden floors )
In one litre of water, add 1 teaspoon of olive oil and 2 teaspoons of lemon juice.
DIY number 4 –
Add 1 teaspoon borax in 1-litre water.
DIY number 5 –
In one litre water, add 1 teaspoon vinegar, 1 tablespoon of baking soda and 1 tablespoon ammonia.
How to clean using harpic
This is one of the most advertised brands in India, let’s talk about how you can efficiently use it to clean tiles. There is a specific product called harpic bathroom cleaner meant for cleaning tiles. You may follow the instructions at the back of the bottle.
How to clean using hydrogen peroxide
Mix two cups of baking soda with one cup hydrogen peroxide. This makes a powerful paste. You may dilute it, or use the powerful mixture to difficult areas.
Another method of utilizing hydrogen peroxide is to use 1 cup of baking soda with half cup hydrogen peroxide and 2 teaspoons of dish washing liquid.
you may also use the process where you will need one gallon of warm water, 1/4 cup of hydrogen peroxide, half cup white vinegar, drops essential oils ( which is optional. You may add this if you want it to smell a particular fragrance.
How to clean tiles with bleach
We do recommend that you test bleach on a small area of your floor first and check for any reactions. Bleach should be used in a much-diluted form and you should make sure that your floor is not made of marble or similar surfaces which are porous. It does depend on how concentrated the bleach you are buying is. But half a cup in one gallon of water will work perfectly. If you are wanting to kill all the germs and bacteria, then let the bleach sit for at least 5 minutes, but before applying bleach, make sure you have washed the tiles thoroughly. After the five minutes are over, you may wash it again. Be careful to not get the bleach on your body. This will not be needed if your tiles are already good to look at. However, it will be amazing in cleaning any kind of grout and making your tiles shine again. Make sure to buy a good quality bleach.
How to clean tiles with methylated spirits
One regular homemade solution for using methylated spirits would be to add a little amount of them in warm water to mop the floor.
How to clean tiles with methylated spirits
One regular home made solution for using methylated spirits would be to add a little amount of them in warm water to mop the floor.
Cleaning a wooden floor
We have specifically mentioned a DIY cleanser for wooden flooring. You may check that out in the section Naturally cleaning tiles, it is DIY number 3.
Another version of cleaning it would be to boil water with 2 tea bags inside. There is a tanning acid in the tea bags that will create a good shine on the floor. You will need to mop again with normal water to get the tea off the tiles.
Start with vacuuming or brooming. You should deep clean once in a month depending on other factors like weather, you may do it earlier than that. Mop the floor as you would generally, with phenyl in the water. Keep switching the water regularly so that the floor is cleaned well. As the mop gets dirty, you should squeeze it too In the water regularly. You should prefer using microfiber cloth for mopping. Microfibre will not only pick up all the dust, but it will also shine the surface.
It would be good to know what kind is your hardwood and then consult an expert as to how you should clean it.
You could buy a personalized floor cleaner meant for wooden floors.
You can also condition your tiles with wood conditioner when they start losing their charm. Wood conditioners can be easily bought in the market or online as you wish.
Olive oil is a great ingredient to nourish the wood. In a clean spray bottle, add a quarter of a cup of olive oil. Then you need four tablespoons of distilled white vinegar. Then it is optional to add the essential oil or you could just add some teaspoons of lemon juice. Shake well and store in dark and cool space. People also get their wooden tiles stained after they become dull.