Cleaning Grout

The house that we moved into is 99 years old. Based on the stains in the grout, I'm venturing that it probably hasn't been cleaned in 30 years or so. The grout was disgusting. It was foul. It was a number of things that I can't write here because my tender-eared parents read this blog. So, while grout cleaning is certainly not the most glamorous post I could have written for a Saturday morning, I was amazed at the results so I thought I would pass it along. First, let's start with the 'before' picture.



Frankly, this picture does not do the gnarliness justice. With white tiles, you simply cannot have dirty grout. It makes the bathroom look dirty regardless of how sparkly the white tiles are. So, after some online research, I decided to tackle the grout using baking soda because it's cheap, it's natural and a number of people swore by it.

First, I added just enough water to the bowl of baking soda to make a paste. Then, I bought a thin scrub brush from Walmart for 96 cents (but an old toothbrush would work just as well). And then I went to work.



With minimal work, the dirt just lifted up. The baking soda was absorbing the dirt while leaving the original color of the grout behind. After doing a 2' by 2' square, I mopped that space with plain water to pick up the dirty baking soda. The difference is amazing.



It took me about 30 minutes to get the entire the floor done, but it was worth the effort. One tip that I also need to share is that about an hour after you're done and the floor is dry, any baking soda that didn't get picked up by the mop will have turned back to it's powder form so you'll need to either sweep or vacuum it up. And that's it. So, next time you're grossed out by your grout, just whip out the baking soda.