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How do you remove grout from porous terracotta tiles?
QUESTION
How to Clean Grout Haze off Terracotta Tiles - How do you remove grout (with polymer)from terracotta porous tiles?ANSWER
ANSWER - What you use to remove the grout residue from a porous terracotta tile that was not removed during the installation process as it should depends on what kind of grout was used. A standard cement based grout can normally be wet with a sponge and then apply some vinegar or sulphamic acid (never use muriatic acid) and scrub it off. Afterwards it is important to rinse the floor thoroughly and pick it up with a wet and dry vacuum.If the grout is a polymer or latex modified cement grout it can leave a latex residue that needs a special cleaner like Custom Building Product's TileLab Heavy Duty Cleaner and Stripper or Hydroment's Remove. Visit our website at www.CTaSC.com and go to Expert Answers for Resources and then to Installation Products and the Cleaner and Sealers pages to get to the links of manufacturers of these types of products.
You have to be very careful with whatever you use on a tile surface because it can cause potential damage. An acidic cleaner will remove cement residue, but it can cause damage to the surface if the acid is too corrosive. Good Luck.
16 thoughts on “How do you remove grout from porous terracotta tiles?”
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We just had pre-sealed Saltillo tile installed and it looks dirty like they didn’t get all the grout off. They are having a hard time getting the tile to look clean. It has not been sealed yet as we are not happy with how it looks. Is it salvageable?
Normally if you pre-seal the Saltillo Tiles it will act as a bond breaker to make it easier to clean the tiles after grouting.
If they grouted with a standard cementitous grout you might be able to use an acidic cleaner made my a company specifically for cleaning grout haze off of tiles. If the grout was a polymer modified grout, then you might need to use a latex grout remover to clean it.
Whatever you do, test one out of the way piece to make sure you will get the results that you want.
What’s the best solution for cleaning grout off off tile that has been sealed but spots where it hasn’t been sealed but penetrated into it therefore the grout stained it thanks
So assume that you sealed part of the tile grout, but other parts you did not seal. The unsealed grout has stained. To remove stains depends on what caused the stain. It could be an petroleum based stain, or an organic stain from food or plants, or a liquid such as wine or whatever.
First always try cleaning the stained grout with a neutral based detergent in water with a scrub brush. Let the liquid detergent solution wet the grout joint so it absorbs deep into it. Let it set for about 10 minutes staying wet. Scrub it and then use a wet vacuum to pick up the dirty water. Rinse with clean water. Vacuum the water off. If that doesn’t work you can try buying a poultice at the tile stone or at a home center to draw the stain out. You have to experiment to see what poultice composition will work best depending on what caused the stain.
I need a solution to clean grout off of pourous tile terracotta saltio Mexican pavers . It stained some areas where the sealer soaked in and didn’t leave a glaze looking look.
Saltillo tiles are very porous and are considered non-vitreous tiles.
If the grout pigment was able to penetrate deep into the tile you might not be able to remove it. Any cementitious grout residue on the surface of the tile can be removed with a diluted acidic cleaner purchased at a tile store or home center. Don’t try using any pool muriatic acid or it can burn in the stain.
If you can’t remove the stain, you might consider applying an enhancer sealer that darkens the tile and that might cause the stain to blend in with the reset of the tile. You have to experiment with different products to see what works, before you try treating the entire area of tiles.
Hi, I have Saltillo tile floors throughout my house. The grout was stained to a type of white. Over the years, the stain has started to disappear showing a dark grey grout. I’d like to clean and restain the grout. The tile has been sealed. Do you have recommendations?
Not sure what the grout would have been stained with. That is not a normal process done with grout. There are grout colorants for staining grout that are epoxy based, but they are tendinous to apply and can be difficult to get it to look good particularly on a very porous tile like Saltillo Tiles.
My worker completely covered my saltillo tile with grout. We’ve been working on scraping, rubbing and scrubbing. Please, can you give me any advice? 1 tile takes 20 minutes or more to clean. Will the sealed saltillo be damaged? How can we safely remove it?
Whenever installing grout over a porous tile like Saltillo tile or if you are using a contrasting grout color, you should seal the tile first to try to prevent the grout from staining the tile. Some people intentionally don’t seal the tile because they want to alter the look of the tile by using a contrasting color that stains the tile.
We would normally recommend using a grout bag to grout the tile because that way the installer doesn’t have to smear the grout over the face of the tile. They bag/fill the joints with grout. Let the grout start to stiffen (finger print soft) then tool the excess grout off flush or slightly concave and then slightly sponge the joint to smooth it out with a damp sponge.
It might not be possible to remove the stain in the grout. If it is cementitious then maybe a highly diluted acid might help, but if the acid is too corrosive it could burn it in. Use a diluted sulfuric or phosphoric acid that is packaged for this use. Test a small spot first to make sure it works to your satisfaction before applying it to the entire floor.
Should I use the vinegar straight or diluted to remove the cement grout left from installation?
The vinegar should be diluted 1:1. This will remove cement haze, but not a solid piece of grout. There are some glazed tiles that are acid sensitive so be sure to test it out in small spot first to make sure you will be satisfied with the results.
Hi,
I have Rustico hand made tiles, which needs the grout to be cleaned, after 15yrs .I can scrub it with soapy water & it comes out light grey, not keen on srubbing it out by hand as there is 160mtrs to clean .!! What is the best way to remove dirty grout
To clean dirty grout use a neutral based detergent in water with a scrub brush on an extended handle. Let the liquid detergent solution wet the grout joint so it absorbs deep into it. Let it set for about 10 minutes staying wet. Scrub it and then use a wet vacuum to pick up the dirty water. Rinse with clean water. Vacuum the water off. After the grout is dry, the apply a penetrating sealer to the grout and maybe the tile to seal it so it will be easier to clean.
I had my tile installed with custom satillo grout. I hate it, and hate how it makes the grout lines look dirty and part of the grout was on the tiles. I was more interested in a light grey grout color. Is it possible to get this regrouted?
Saltillo grout is normally used when there grout joints wider than 1/2″.
If the tile was grouted properly there should not be any grout left on the tile.
Cementitious grout will get dirty if it isn’t sealed and cleaned properly.
Regrouting is possible but a tedious process that likely will result in some chipping of tile edges. There are grout colorants that are epoxy based where you can paint it over the grout to change the color to a matching grout color that also seals the grout. It too is a tedious process.