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Ceramic and Porcelain Tile cleaning Expert Answers Grout Haze Ink Jet Glazed Tile Maintenance Repairs
Why do my Plank Floor Tiles have a Haze or have Lost its Color?
QUESTION
I have a newly constructed home with plank floor tiles throughout. When we first occupied the home, we noticed a hazy look to the tiles in several ares, most evident near moisture, bath room, in front of patio doors, etc. We had the floors looked at by a professional tile and grout cleaning service. He took one look and said it was grout haze, "I see it all the time in new construction". He said I can clean this no problem and after doing a test spot re iterated it was grout haze. We had the entire home (2000 sq. ft.) professionally cleaned. We now have a floor that looks worse than before. Seems the cleaning process took the color out of the tile. Everyone (builder, cleaning service, professionals I've talked to) seem to be in agreement the process he used should not have taken the color out of the tile. Is this possible and is there a fix. I have pictures if you want to see them.ANSWER
ANSWER - Tiles should not lose their color from cleaning. There are a lot of variables to consider. First what kind of tile is it and how was it manufactured. I will assume it is a wood-looking inkjet porcelain glazed floor tile or throughbody porcelain floor tile.When there is a haze on the tile after installation it is normally a grout or thin-set haze. If it is a cement type of haze it can normally be removed with a weak acid like sulfamic acid or one that is sold for that purpose. Never use muriatic/hydrochloric acid. If it is a latex/polymer based grout or thin-set it can leave a latex haze that isn't removed with an acid. You need a latex remover that is sold by many tile distributors or home centers.
The questions needing answered about the professional cleaning is what products and process did they use. Did they use a corrosive chemical? Did they use an abrasive scrubber or ... Something caused the tile to look worst.
I have seen some inkjet produced wood-looking plank tiles that have worn in an unusual manner. The question is what type of tile is it and has the surface of the tile been chemically or abrasively compromised or is there some sort of coating that can be removed.
Forensically we can determine the answer to all of these questions, but it might not be practical to spend that kind of money figuring it out. Otherwise you have to go through a trial and error process to determine if it is cleanable or if it has been irreparably damaged.
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We moved into our new home and have Crossville- Feel, White 24×48 porcelain tile. We have lived here 3 months and the tile continues to look dirty. Finally we contacted the builder and they said it was likely the haze that wasn’t cleaned properly and they came and used a non-cement grout haze remover. It didn’t work so they rented a floor cleaner machine and it also didn’t work. We live in Texas and I believe they laid the tile and immediately covered with paper during the rest of construction so it sat for several months in the summer heat and wasn’t cleaned until move-in. We now have what looks like dirt collecting on all edges (about 2”) around the tile edges and about 1/4” at the walls. It is faint, but still looks dirty. More visible in low light vs bright sunlight. You can’t feel anything to the touch and even the grout is already looking worn in high traffic areas after only living here for 3 months. Anything else we can do? I am frustrated that it looks like I don’t clean my floors.
Without see and testing the floor it is hard to say what condition you actually have. White tiles will always show more dirt than darker color tiles. If a sealer was used on it, it could have applied too much sealer and it is tacky to some degree and picking up dirt. If the tile wasn’t sealed, then sometimes applying a penetrating sealer over the impervious tile surface and then immediately buffing it dry with a link free cloth can help prevent the floor from tending to pick up dirt from use.
It maybe that this tile has some inherit variation within it that is inherent in the product.
You have to do a trial by error. Make sure whatever you try that you do it first on a single tile out of the way to make sure you are satisfied with it before applying it to the entire floor.
There is a condition called optical haze that is only known on polished porcelain. This does not seem to be a polished porcelain. How they cleaned the floor with want products, equipment and how they used the equipment can affect the cleaning results.
If there is a cementitious haze residue then a diluted solution of vinegar should remove it. It is a latex haze then something like goof off might remove it. I