While epoxy grout is a vital part of tiling, it isn't easy to clean. Due to its porous nature, it is extremely easy for mould, mildew, and stains to take hold. It can seem almost impossible to get them out for the same reason. While preventative measures are always best, they are not always possible in practice.
However, getting the grout clean with a minimum of time, effort, and scrubbing is still possible. What follows should give you all the information you need to successfully get your grout clean and keep it that way for the long run.
Best Way To Clean Epoxy Grout
Epoxy grout is the most resilient type of grout and is mostly resistant to mould and stains. Basic cleaning should easily keep epoxy grout well-maintained, so long as you don’t use bleach on coloured grout. The biggest threat is epoxy grout haze, a layer of epoxy grout that gets stuck on the adjacent tile during installation. The hardness of epoxy grout makes this very difficult to remove if you don’t act shortly after installation.
Cleaning Epoxy Grout
Mould and mildew grow where there is a lot of humidity in the air. The specks of dirt and dust caught in the water provide just the right nutrients for it to thrive. So, to remove the mould and mildew, we need to expose it to things that are not nutritious for it. We can use vinegar, bleach, or an alkaline solution to kill them.
Vinegar Epoxy Grout Remover
Ceramic tile is close to perfectly stain-resistant and cleans up easily. The grout lines aren’t so lucky, however. The roughness could attract a ton of dirt if the installer didn’t do a complete job. In addition, if epoxy residue was left behind, cleaning could be even harder.
Vinegar is the best way to remove grout haze that may be clouding the surface of your tiles. In addition to cleaning epoxy residue, if you encounter mould on your tile or grout, this natural mould cleaner recipe is ideal for taking care of the black spots and sanitising the area, as well.
This epoxy grout remover contains vinegar, which can be somewhat acidic. Try one of our other tips if you see grout falling off the walls or the colour changing. This is a heavy-duty solution that cuts through the worst stains. This vinegar mixture can be your best friend in removing dirt, and it makes a dynamite shower grout cleaner.
Use a scrub pad soaked in the vinegar solution and rub it against all the grout lines, from the ceiling to your bathroom floor. Rinse it off with clean water after about 15 minutes.
The discolouration or the dirt will come off the walls and your bathroom countertops. If you have significant areas of mould, this might not be strong enough to get rid of that. You’ll need natural ways to kill mould instead.
Cleaning Epoxy Grout With Bleach
Cleaning epoxy grout with bleach is another easy option. This grout cleaner will ease the discolouration and dirt from your grout lines. Decant the recipe into a spray bottle. Spray it all over the epoxy resins of your countertops and shower walls to remove grout stains anywhere they show up.
Then, with a circular motion, use a scrub brush on the resin and the surface of the tiles.
Don’t scrub too hard, but put in enough effort to remove the dirt. It’ll work well enough that you can avoid using Aqua Mix and instead use our epoxy grout cleaning tips. Depending on the type of grout you have, this recipe may not be appropriate. Double-check by doing a little research first. You may also have some luck with baking soda. Many people clean grout with baking soda by making a paste and rubbing it onto the grout. Usually, a quick rinse is required, but you can scrub the area with an old toothbrush if needed.
Set Up
Before you do anything, make sure you are wearing clothes that you don't mind getting dirty. If you are wearing clothes you care about, change into clothes you do not mind ruining. Fill your spray bottle with equal amounts of bleach and warm water. Mix them thoroughly until the bleach dissolves. Apply gloves and consider using a mask. Open windows in the area you are working.
Apply Bleach And Water
Before you apply your mixture of bleach and water to your epoxy grout, make sure your spray bottle is set to produce a stream, not a mist. Once you have done this, use your spray bottle to apply bleach and warm water to your epoxy grout. Coat the grout thoroughly. You can hit any hard-to-reach area by squirting a little bit of the solution onto a clean rag and rubbing it on.
This is a good way to get corners or high places where it is not possible to use your spray bottle. Once you have used these techniques to get your bleach solution on every square inch of your epoxy grout, wait 15 minutes.
WARNING: Make sure your work area has proper ventilation, then put on a face mask before you start working with bleach.
Rinse Your Grout
After 15 minutes pass, the bleach should have done its work; however, leaving the bleach on your grout and tile can damage it, so you must remove it immediately. Next, rinse off your grout and tile with water.
If you are cleaning a shower, you can save yourself a lot of time by simply running the shower water on your walls, but you will still need to rinse the spots that your shower cannot reach by hand. Also, if your grout is not located in your shower, you will have to hand rinse the entire thing. Be sure not to miss a single spot, as bleach left on your tile or grout will probably discolour it.
Prevent Future Problems
Unfortunately, the locations where grout and tile are usually especially vulnerable to mould, mildew, and stains, all of which are difficult to remove. In particular, showers are vulnerable to these problems due to the amount of moisture they are exposed to for long periods.
You can save yourself a lot of future cleanings by planning in a bathroom where showering can raise the moisture levels in the air to very high degrees, use a towel on your walls after showering. Also, fill your spray bottle with vinegar and give your grout regular sprayings. Be sure to rinse thoroughly, as vinegar can damage tile and grout.
Cleaning Colored Grout
Make a vinegar cleaning solution. Mix one cup (.23 L) of warm water, one cup (.23 L) vinegar, and one tablespoon of dishwashing liquid. Put the mixture in a spray bottle and shake it up to ensure that it is evenly distributed.
Spray the solution on the grout. Be sure not to miss any spots. You want the cleaner to be able to sit on the grout for a while to sanitise it and remove dirt.
Allow the solution to sit for fifteen minutes. You don’t want the cleaning solution to dry. But step away for a bit to give it some time to work on the dirt. Clean grout with a brush. Use either an old toothbrush or a soft bristle scrub brush.
Get between the cracks and rub with a circular motion. Be mindful not to miss any spots. Rinse with a clean rag. Use a rag or sponge to wipe down the grout. Try to remove excess water and cleaning solution.
Cleaning White Grout
Ventilate the room. Open a window or turn on a fan. Keep doors open. You don’t want to be in a confined space with bleach. Put on gloves. You don’t want your skin to come into direct contact with bleach.
Bleach can cause skin burns.
Make a bleach solution. Mix one cup (.23 L) of bleach with three cups (.7 L) of water and one teaspoon of dishwashing detergent. Mix it in a bucket that you can dip your brush in.
- Bleach is a powerful cleaner, but you shouldn’t use it on coloured grout because it can cause the colour to fade.
- You can also make a paste using water and oxidising bleach powder to scrub the grout.
Use the bleach solution and brush to clean the grout. Dunk a soft-bristle brush into the bleach. Then, rub the grout in a circular motion. Rinse the bleach out with a clean, wet sponge. Use a clean wet sponge to wipe down the surface, removing the bleach. You do not want the bleach to sit on the surface indefinitely.
Cleaning Epoxy Grout Haze
Act within 24 hours of installation. The durability that makes epoxy grout so resilient can haunt you if you allow the haze to settle in on your tile. Try to clean the haze within 12-24 hours of installation.
The longer you wait, the more difficult it will be to remove the haze. Mix grout cleaner in water. There are cleaners specifically designed for picking up grout haze. Purchase them online or at a specialty hardware store. Then, follow the instructions on the box, mixing the cleaner with cool water.
Use a white scrub pad to apply the cleaner.
Dip a white scrub pad in the cleaner and then rub the tile with the pad. Avoid coming into contact with the grout as much as possible. Though it is unlikely that you will need to reapply grout, you don’t want the cleaner to accidentally pick up any of the grout.
Wipe the surface with a sponge. After the cleaner has been applied, use a separate sponge to widen down the surface, picking up the residue. Regularly soak and squeeze the sponge to remove dirt.
Repeat as necessary. Give the tile a few minutes to dry. If the cleaner picked some haze, but more remains, try using it again until all the haze is gone.
Sand the tile when necessary. Using sand can damage the tile but can remove grout haze when other methods fail. Mix silica sand, detergent, and water until they form a paste. Use a sponge or scrub pad to thoroughly scrub the haze off the tile. Rinse the area off after the haze has been removed.
- Mix approximately one part of detergent for every fourteen parts of water. Add enough sand that the solution becomes thick.
- Only use this method when it seems absolutely necessary.
How To Remove Epoxy Grout Residue Or Haze
- Make a solution consisting of 10L warm water to 100ml of Vinegar.
- Apply the solution to your tiles and scrub using a white brush pad to dislodge the epoxy residue from the tiles.
- Clean up the solution and remove the suspended resins using a heavy-duty grout sponge.
How To Clean Epoxy Grout With An Alkaline
An epoxy grout film remover like this one is easy to make. It’ll be a stripper of mildew off of natural stone and porcelain tile as quickly as grout. It is easy to make an alkaline grout joint cleaner at home.
This grout cleaner is valuable because it won’t remove the sealer, but it will remove the epoxy grout haze on your wall and floor tiles. Mix the recipe, and scrub it on the walls with a scrub pad. Make sure to cover all the grout.
After thoroughly doing that, wait 15 minutes for the solution to have the effect you want. Then rinse it off with a clean scrub pad or the showerhead. Presto, clean shower grout! If cleaning epoxy grout isn’t enough to have a beautiful bathroom, you might want to rely on this DIY ceramic tile cleaner.
Pressurised Steam Is The Professional Solution
If you still aren’t satisfied with how clean your tiles are, you might want to use the professional solution – a steam cleaner. You can rent a tile and grout steam cleaner at most hardware stores. But, of course, with this solution, you are using hot water rather than other household supplies to boil off the dirt.
Dirt and stains will come right off the tile grout on the walls and even off your tile floor. Use steam to remove epoxy paint from a fibreglass bathtub, too. Test a small area first, though, to see exactly how the machine works at removing stains. Once you know how to use it effectively and without damaging the urethane surfaces, carefully go over your white grout and stone surfaces.
It should lift off all the dirt with ease. However, using a steam cleaner on a toilet isn’t always the best solution. You may not want to use epoxy grout cleaner on the porcelain. This homemade toilet cleaner is more convenient. To prevent mould, you must follow a few other suggestions.
First, you will have to dehumidify your bathroom, and that means buying a dehumidifier or turning on the fan. A fan pushes the damp air out of the bathroom. If your grout is beyond repair, you may need to tackle removing old dry grout from tiles and replacing it with new epoxy or cement grout. This way, you can start over with fresh, clean grout, and it will be easier to maintain.
Why Is My White Epoxy Grout Turning Yellow?
Sealers and various waxes can contain polymers that can discolour over time and cause yellowing. Numerous grout types are prone to yellowing. For example, white epoxy grouts are notorious for turning yellow. In addition, certain cleaners, especially those containing dyes, can cause grout discolouration.
Additionally, Is Epoxy Grout Easier To Clean?
Epoxy grout is the most resilient type of grout and is mostly resistant to mould and stains. Basic cleaning should easily keep epoxy grout well-maintained, so long as you don't use bleach on coloured grout.
However, the hardness of epoxy grout makes this very difficult to remove if you don't act shortly after installation.
Keeping this in consideration, what removes epoxy grout haze? To remove epoxy grout residue and stains from ceramic and porcelain tile, we recommend using a specifically formulated cleaner like PS87 GEL: a quick, highly effective solution that completely removes grout residue.
Similarly, Is Epoxy Grout Hard To Remove?
Epoxy grout is a durable material that is waterproof, and that resists mildew, but this durability makes it difficult to remove once it dries. The good news is that it is not impossible to remove epoxy grout from your tiles.
Similarly, Is Epoxy Grout Hard To Remove?
Epoxy grout is a durable material that is waterproof and resists mildew, but this durability makes it difficult to remove once it dries. The good news is that it is not impossible to remove epoxy grout from your tiles.
What Should I Use To Clean Spectralock Premium Grout?
Any mould or mildew that may be present on the surface of SPECTRALOCK PRO Premium Grout will not penetrate into the grout. Therefore, it can be topically cleaned with neutral pH soaps and clean water as part of a consistent cleaning regimen. Maintaining a suitable and consistent cleaning regimen will keep the installation looking new for many, many years.
How Do I Get Rid Of Redi Poxy?
How to Remove Epoxy Residue From Ceramic Tile
- Heat the epoxy you want to remove with a heat gun on its highest setting.
- Apply heat until the epoxy appears to soften, at least 30 to 60 seconds.
- Immediately after heating the area, scrape broken-down epoxy with a plastic scraper.
FAQs About Epoxy Grout
How Long Will Epoxy Grout Last?
Yes, epoxy grout is more expensive — as much as $8 per pound, compared with $1 to $2 for cement-based grout — but there is an upside to the cost difference: Powdered Portland cement grouts have a shelf life of only one year. In contrast, if they are not subjected to freezing temperatures, two-part liquid epoxies will last.
Should I Use Epoxy Grout On Shower Floor?
Epoxy grout is the best choice for showers because it is water and stain resistant and requires no sealing. Click to read the full blog post. Its durability makes it ideal for splashbacks, floors, and high-traffic areas. In addition, epoxy grout won't crack, shrink, or discolour, making it ideal for applying in wet areas, such as showers. However, epoxy can discolour porous surfaces, such as natural stone, so these surfaces should be sealed prior to grouting.
Is Epoxy Grout Good For Showers?
Epoxy grout is a great choice for showers and moist environments. Epoxy grout is water-resistant and made from resins and fillers that help it work like a sealing adhesive. In addition, epoxy grout won't crack, stain, or shrink, making it an ideal solution for wet environments.
Does Epoxy Grout Get Mould?
Mould and mildew will grow on the surface of anything, even epoxy shower grout. This is especially true in showers where soap, hot water, and skin oils create a buffet for growth. But there's no chance of the mould penetrating inside the epoxy grout, and there's simply no space within the epoxy matrix for this to happen.
Is Epoxy Grout Waterproof?
This makes it waterproof and almost completely resistant to stains. Its durability makes it ideal for splashbacks, floors, and high-traffic areas. Epoxy grout won’t crack, shrink, or discolour, making it ideal for applying in wet areas, such as showers.
On the other hand, epoxy grout is composed of epoxy resins and filler powder. This renders it waterproof and nearly impervious to stains. Because of its endurance, it is perfect for splashbacks, floors, and high-traffic areas.
Typically, epoxy flooring lasts 2 to 3 years in heavy traffic. Commercial properties—like garages, restaurants, or factory spaces—with lots of daily foot traffic can expect this experience. However, with proper care and maintenance, your epoxy flooring may last much longer.
- Strong Application Fumes. During the epoxy application process, wet epoxy gives off an unpleasant smell. ...
- Long Curing Time. ...
- Slippery When Wet. ...
- Economical Flooring Choice. ...
- Resistant to Damage. ...
- Weather-withstanding. ...
- Aesthetically Pleasing. ...
- Protects and Decreases Wear & Tear.
Extremely safe – Epoxy is a very safe coating for your hard floors. It's slip resistant, shock resistant, and less abrasive than concrete and other types of industrial flooring. ... It can also withstand heat of up to 200 degrees, making it a better choice than most other types of flooring when it comes to fire resistance.