Tile floor cleaners explained!
Once your tile floors are installed, cleaning them on a daily and weekly basis is simple!
Take a look at how to clean tile floors every day!
As explained in this previous post, pH neutral cleaners are your best bet for the daily cleaning of tile floors. Why?
It’s simple: pH neutral floor cleaners (with a pH of 7 on the pH scale), are safe for all surfaces.
They’re perfect for removing the dirt that inevitably accomulates in the daily grind.
FILA suggests CLEANALL Neutral All Surface Floor Cleaner for porcelain and ceramic tiles. Just dilute it 1:200 – that’s one capful of product per gallon of water for a no-rinse application. For larger areas, like office buildings or retail areas, CLEANALL can also be used in the tank of floor cleaning machines.
Here’s a quick video on how to use CLEANALL.
So what’s the best method to clean tile floors?
Let’s look at these 2 floor cleaning tips:
Use a microfiber mop. Microfiber mops are preferred to cotton mops, because they absorb less dirt, bacteria, etc.
Use the two-bucket system. Use one bucket to hold clean water and another bucket to strain dirty mop water. This will prevent dirty mop water from contaminating the clean water used for rinsing.
What about removing stains from tile floors?
Dirt, oil and stains can layer on ceramic and porcelain tile floors, becoming difficult to remove with pH neutral cleaners. But before you rush off to find any ol’ tile cleaner, you first have to know what type of stain you’re trying to remove.
FILA’s stain removing experts categorize stains into two groups: organic stains and inorganic stains.
What’s an organic stain?
If a stain is carbon based, it is considered an organic stain. Examples of organic stains include: coffee, hair dye, ink, glue, chewing gum, adhesive tape residue, tire marks, thinset, pencil marks, and Sharpie marker.
What’s the best floor cleaner for organic stains?
Alkaline cleaners (with a pH of 8 to 14) are formulated to remove organic stains.
PS87 Heavy Duty Cleaner is FILA’s best floor tile cleaner for organic stains. It degreases tile floors and removes tough, layered dirt.
Here’s a step by step video on how to remove food stains (ketchup, oil and coffee).
How to remove food stains from porcelain and ceramic tile floors:
Step 1:
Dilute PS87 1:5 (one part product in 5 parts water).
Step 2:
Pour the solution on the tile.
Step 3:
Let sit for 10-15 minutes.
Step 4:
Scrub with an abrasive pad.
Step 5:
Rinse thoroughly with water.
What’s an inorganic stain?
If a stain is NOT carbon based, it is considered an inorganic stain. Cementitious grout haze, white grid on top of porcelain tile, water stains, limescale, paint, graffiti, concrete, rust and sheetrock dust are examples of inorganic stains.
What’s the best floor cleaner for inorganic stains?
Inorganic stains are treated with acid cleaners (cleaners with a pH of 1 to 5).
DETERDEK is FILA’s best floor tile cleaner for inorganic stains. It removes cementitious grout haze, efflorescence, lime deposits and hard water stains from porcelain, ceramic, acid resistant stone and terracotta surfaces.
Here’s a step by step video on how to remove all types of inorganic stains.
How to remove inorganic stains from porcelain and ceramic tile floors:
STEP 1:
Wet the tile and grout with water.
STEP 2:
Dilute DETERDEK 1:5 (one part product in 5 parts water).
STEP 3:
Apply to a few square feet at a time.
STEP 4:
Let sit a few minutes.
STEP 5:
Scrub with an abrasive pad or brush.
STEP 6:
Remove residue with a microfiber cloth or wet vac.
STEP 7:
Rinse well.
(Caution: Acids CANNOT be applied to acid sensitive stone (e.g. marble, limestone, travertine). If an acid is applied to an acid sensitive stone, the material will etch.)
CERAMIC TILE CLEANING TAKEAWAYS:
- Use a pH neutral cleaner for everyday cleaning.
- Use a microfiber mop and the two-bucket system.
- Remove organic stains (food stains) with an alkaline cleaner.
- Remove inorganic stains (grout haze, construction dirt in general, limescale) with an acid based cleaner.
To find out more about tile maintenance, go to filasolutions.com.
Have more questions? Just write to us at [email protected].
One Reply to “How to Clean Tile Floors: Which Tile Cleaner to Use”
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