Can white grout actually stay white? Also b4-after PIP!

[lolc]

When we moved in we thought the grout in our kitchen and dinette area was dark. It turns out, it wasn't dark at all. It was just years and years of accumulated dirt and ickiness. I finally decided to tackle the kitchen grout. (and unrelated to grout, but I felt it was worth noting we just bought a new SS stove and microwave... so little updates to the kitchen)

This was the day we moved in (June 27, 2012)





"During" (taken about 3 days ago) - the dark colored grout is AFTER I scrubbed it repeatedly with a grout brush, warm white vinegar and baking soda.  The white grout is a product called "grout renew - all in one colorant and sealer"



After taken 3/7 (today)


What are your thoughts?

And do you think it's possible to keep white grout white in a place like the kitchen? With 3 little kids?

[munkii]

That is amazing and disgusting at the same time. Those people were gross, and you, my friend, are a miracle worker.

[lolc]

Mar 7, 2013 17:54:10 GMT -5 munkii said:

That is amazing and disgusting at the same time. Those people were gross, and you, my friend, are a miracle worker.

It's been bugging me for awhile now. I know that build up is years and years old because I found a listing tour from 2003 (really neat to see how the house looked 10 years ago!) and that dark-dirty grout was the same then, too! I think the previous owners just selectively ignored the fact that the grout wasn't supposed to really be that dark, because overall they left the place pretty clean.

[pickel]

OMG, that is amazing!! It looks like a whole new floor!

[TBM]

The main reason that grout doesn't stay white is that people reseal it often enough. The sealer wears off with use and cleaners.

[FoxInFiji]

Yup you need to clean and reseal every 6 months or so in high traffic areas. Some sealers are better than others.

If you're starting from scratch yes you can get white grout that stays white. It's called epoxy grout and it's a totally different animal than cementious grout because it's not porous.  It never needs to be resealed and it doesn't stain.  We used the color called bright white in our master bathroom because it looked best with the white tiles and we used epoxy grout partially for that reason.

[stephm0188]

I've been meaning to post about this stuff. Was it easy to apply? Ours isn't dirty really, just dated. I'd like to freshen it up.

[lolc]

Mar 7, 2013 19:31:09 GMT -5 stephm0188 said:

I've been meaning to post about this stuff. Was it easy to apply? Ours isn't dirty really, just dated. I'd like to freshen it up.

It is easy to apply. It's just time consuming. And since I am doing areas that get heavy traffic, I had to do it in sections (and I still have a lot more to do - the pantry, laundry room, breakfast nook.... oy!!) I recommend going to the dollar store and getting child size (soft bristle) toothbrushes. I've been using that and it has worked great. The only annoying part for me is wiping up the excess on the sides. Still, not hard to do at all.

We got the product at home depot in the tile section. The following URL takes you directly to it:

Home Depot Poly Blend Grout Renew

[SusanBAnthony]

As amazing as it looks, the thought of all that scrubbing, and then having to reclean and reapply sealer every 6 months, makes me want to cry.

I swear I am not a dirty slob, but I will stick with dirty grout if I have to do all that.

[TBM]

Mar 7, 2013 20:35:30 GMT -5 SusanBAnthony said:

As amazing as it looks, the thought of all that scrubbing, and then having to reclean and reapply sealer every 6 months, makes me want to cry.

I swear I am not a dirty slob, but I will stick with dirty grout if I have to do all that.

If you do it right, you don't wait until the sealer is completely worn off, so the grout isn't bad and it isn't a huge cleaning job. 

Regular sealer is actually pretty easy to apply, and wouldn't be the kind of big job that applying the grout paint/sealer stuff is.

[pitterwoo]

amazing! I'm impressed and it really makes your floors look new.

[IIOY]

Mar 7, 2013 20:35:30 GMT -5 SusanBAnthony said:

As amazing as it looks, the thought of all that scrubbing, and then having to reclean and reapply sealer every 6 months, makes me want to cry.

I swear I am not a dirty slob, but I will stick with dirty grout if I have to do all that.

Yes. Our kitchen is large and whenever I make the effort to really clean our grout and tiles, it becomes a huge project. I'm loathe to do it once a year, let alone twice a year, and I say this as someone who is a compulsive cleaner and leaps up to clean whenever I spot a smidge of dirt somewhere.

[crispnclean]

Wow! It took years off of that floor. Looks great!

[ellipsis]

What if you put down some rugs?