A Homeowner in Berwyn, PA Witnessed How Her Messy Floor Became a Spotless Tile Surface after a Professional Grout Cleaning

July 25, 2017

Home improvement and maintenance is important if you want to preserve your home's appearance for longer. However, renovation is a delicate matter in several homes. Most homeowners want their home to look like new, but they don't add restoration to their budget. That was the case of this Berwyn resident in Pennsylvania. She usually hosted her in-laws at her home for a few days in the summer and this year was no exception. The woman always wanted her home to look perfect, however, her tile floors could not be described as such. The surface was dirty and aged and she wanted to refresh them. The whole problem began when she started thinking that she could restore them on her own. The result of the applied DIY technique made the floors appear far worse than before. After the disastrous outcome, she finally understood she needed to hire a professional Berwyn Grout Cleaning service to rejuvenate them.


Client's background
The owner had begun to notice her floor's deterioration some time ago. She had seen how it had gone from fresh and clean to worn down and dingy with grimy and stained grout lines. The woman felt frustrated watching how every cleaning technique and product seemed to worsen the state of the surface. Desperate, she went online to look for DIY solutions and found grout recoloring as a method that could solve her problem. She got excited and decided to buy the recommended products. As soon as she returned home, she followed the procedure she had seen in hopes of successfully restoring her floor. Not knowing anything about the hard surface restoration industry, the result was predictable –a messy floor.

Getting in touch with Sir Grout of Greater Chester County
The owner was horrified by the disastrous outcome: the tiles were stained, the color of the sealant didn't match the tiles, and the whole surface looked unkempt and neglected. In that moment, the woman understood she had to put the situation in professional hands. Therefore, she went online and looked for Berwyn Grout cleaning services and found Sir Grout of Greater Chester County among the top results. After visiting our website, the owner decided to schedule a free in-home consultation.

Our Team's evaluation of the floor
On the set date, our team of specialists arrived at the owner's home to evaluate the situation and design a restoration plan. As soon as we saw the surface, we determined the causes of the current appearance and how to fix it. We told our client it was necessary to remove all the sealant she had applied, clean the surface properly, and seal it again with the correct product and technique. The owner was worried about all the mess and the time we would take doing so. We explained to her that the process would be a little tedious, but it would be finished before her in-laws arrived. The owner agreed and we established a convenient date for the job.


Grout: Characteristics and importance
Grout is a fluid mixture similar to mortar used to fill in the space between tiles. For this reason, it is indispensable in tile surface installation. Grout's composition is highly porous. This porosity allows grime and liquids to permeate, which can stain and damage grout lines. In this particular case, our client had tried to cover the dirt with a layer of sealant. However, it is crucial to find the cause of that grime buildup to be able to prevent it from forming again in the future. In our experience, the most common cause of grime accumulation in grout lines is following an incorrect cleaning routine. This owner told us that she used to regularly apply a soap-based cleaner and use steel wool scrubbers when cleaning. The consequence of using soapy cleaners is a grimy layer buildup. This is due to a film left by the cleaner that attracts dirt to the grout lines. Also, abrasive scrubbers like steel wool ones can damage the grout sealant and chip and scratch the grout line.

The first step to take after installing a tile surface is sealing. A good layer of high-quality, grout sealant can preserve grout for a long time. Grout sealant closes the natural pores of grout, blocking any possible permeation of grime or liquid. This prevents cracking, chipping, staining, and even crumbling.

Importance of grout cleaning
In this case, the homeowner skipped an extremely important step: the grout lines must be completely clean when applying the sealant. Even though she tried to clean them, it was necessary to remove any residue of soap buildup, oil, and soil that might have leaked into the grout. Also, grout sealing is one of the hard surface restoration stages that needs the most precision. The sealant should be applied only on the grout line and the excess needs to be immediately removed before the tiles absorb the product and leave a stain, just like on our client's floor.

Restoration procedure: cleaning stage
As agreed with the client, we showed up on the marked day to carry out the multi-stage procedure. The owner wanted us to do the kitchen and the entryway of the house. We started off with the kitchen floor. Our technicians began by stripping off the incorrectly applied sealant, keeping the mess minimal. Only when the sealant was completely eliminated from the surface and the dirty grout lines were visible again, we began the thorough cleaning. We combined an appropriate cleaning product with the use of a high-speed, yet gentle scrubber to remove all the grime from the surface. After, we used vapor steam cleaning for the most stubborn areas.

Restoration procedure: Color sealing
Once the surface was clean again, it was time to apply ColorSeal –Sir Grout's proprietary sealant. This modern product is especially designed to seal up the surface of grout lines. It creates a shield that protects the grout lines against oil, water, stains, dirt buildup, and mold and mildew growth. Another benefit of ColorSeal is that it makes your grout lines easier to clean as dirt and spills bead on the surface as opposed to being absorbed. ColorSeal can last as long as grout itself if well maintained. Also, this state-of-the-art sealant comes in different colors, which allows homeowners to choose their preferred shade to match their tiles.

Overall results
When the surface was restored, we called the owner in to show her the results. She was thrilled to see how clean and fresh it looked. She said she couldn't thank us enough for reviving her floors. She also said that she would recommend our work to everyone she knew.

Care and maintenance tips
Before leaving, we gave the owner some tips and suggestions on care and maintenance tips to preserve the floor. We explained that tile surfaces need to be kept as dry as possible. We then suggested using a damp mop to clean the floor instead of washing it. Likewise, removing spills shortly after occurring can help preserve the surface. We recommended cleaning the floor on a regular basis to prevent walking on dirt, which might scratch the tiles and the sealant.

If your home's tile surfaces have dingy grout lines, Sir Grout of Greater Chester County is the right choice for you. We are a leading, innovative company that offers prime hard surface restoration at a fair price, saving you from costly and annoying renovations. For further information, fill out the "Request a Quote" form on this page or call us at (215) 609-4868.

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