Like any type of flooring, tiles need to be taken care of and maintained in order for you to get your value for money.
Unlike carpet or laminate, a quick vacuum or mop doesn’t quite cut it with tiled flooring – here are some tips allowing you to properly care for your tiles.
Tiles can accumulate dirt, especially if they are textured, so they do require regular sweeping. You can also vacuum them, but ensure that the vacuum is on the right setting for hard surfaces so you don’t scratch the top layer of the tiles. Vacuum cleaner attachments are great to get into textured areas, in between tiles or hard-to-reach areas.
It may be advisable to buy a doormat, so there is less dirt being trampled across tiles and dulling their surface.
For an overall clean, a damp mop with some industry recommended tile cleaner usually does the trick (if the instructions recommend it, you can leave it on for 5 minutes or so for a deeper clean).
For a more specific clean, you can use a damp sponge with some tile cleaner and spot clean the surface. Alternatively, you could make a homemade mixture of baking soda and water, which works for the overall surface and it’s great for grout too – ensure you use the correct dilution.
A trick for cleaning grout is using a pencil eraser to remove marks, or you could do the old favourite and get an old toothbrush with the baking soda mixture and scrub away!
If you clean your floors with a mild detergent, be sure to rinse it with warm water afterwards to wipe away any residue and dry it with a clean towel.
If you do leave any residue of detergent on the floor, it can form a coating, trapping dirt and making it hard to clean off.
In order to prevent stains on your grout, clean up spills as quickly as possible because, even if your tiles don’t stain, light-coloured grout in between will.
Avoid using abrasive cleaners or scouring pads to clean tiles and use bleach sparingly, because this can ruin the surface and discolour the grout.
The best tip to keeping tiles looking brand new is maintenance, maintenance, maintenance. It’s always better to clean little by little than letting dirt build up and doing a huge deep clean – too many deep cleans could ruin your tiles.
Rebecca recently purchased some floor tiles from http://www.fitcreative.co.uk/, who offered her some great aftercare hints and tips.