8 Easy Steps to Clean Your Bathroom Tiles
The bathroom is topping the list of the least favourite room in the house to clean. And, scrubbing the bathroom tiles, to be more specific, is a step that most would rather leave undone. Just think of all the grime, mould and mildew, slime and water marks that you have to scrub and remove. Worst, if you have put up cleaning for very long and the build-up has become so difficult to remove. The small space too that you have to work on makes it all the more daunting and back-breaking.
But having sparkling clean bathroom tiles after all the scrubbing, can be rewarding. So, to help you make sure that this is done right and thorough, here are 8 easy steps:
The Easy Steps
Clear the floor
To get you started, you have to be able to have a free space, no matter how small, to move around. Getting full access to your bathroom space can help you cover all areas and corners that need scrubbing.
Move out the bathroom mats and wash them. Take out the trash bin and while you may not think it is necessary to do, wash it and let it out to dry – you wouldn’t want to bring those germs back to your bathroom. If you have pieces of furniture that you placed in your bathroom as an additional decor, remove them too and dust and wipe the dirt off.
Sweep or vacuum the floor
Don’t get too overly excited in mopping the floor with water. You have to remove the surface dust and dirt first by sweeping the floor. You can also use the vacuum but just ensure that you put it on a setting that allows it to be used on tiles and other hard flooring.
Heat the bathroom and tiles
This may not be too much of a crucial step but this can help. You can turn on the faucet on the highest or the hottest temperature setting and fill your bathtub and sink with just several inches of hot water. You can also dash some hot water on the tile areas that have moulds and mildew.
Leave that for a few minutes while you can simultaneously wipe other surfaces such as the countertops and the bathroom mirror. After several minutes, you can drain the hot water then go about cleaning the area. It is believed that bathroom cleaning agents work effectively when under a hot temperature.
Prepare your cleaning solution
There are many cleaning agents that you can use and are readily available in supermarkets and groceries. But, while others just use a mild detergent, a lot prefer to use cleaning agents to remove water marks and stains.
Fill a bucket with water up to the volume recommended in the product label then add the product. You can test the solution that you made on an area in the bathroom that has the most stains and dirt. You can also put some in a spray bottle and spray it on those areas with tough dirt and stains. Let the solution sit for a while so it can work on removing the stains.
Wipe the tiled surfaces
As a cardinal rule in cleaning the bathroom or any kind of room, you have to start from the top to bottom. The bottom or the floor is a catchment for all the dust and dirt when you clean other tiled surfaces such as the tub surround, bathtub, sink and walls. So it’s best to start wiping down all the grime and stain from other tiled surfaces then do the floor cleaning last.
Wipe the tiled surfaces that you sprayed a cleaning solution on, with a rag cloth. If there are still tough stains that were not removed after wiping with a rag, scrub the area with a non-abrasive brush. Use a scrub with soft-bristles to avoid getting scratches on your tiles.
Mop the floor
After all the tiled surfaces are wiped and scrubbed, you can now head on to mopping the floor. Soak your mop in the cleaning solution that you prepared then wring out the excess water. You can start at the farthest part of the bathroom then work your way through towards the door. You may have to dip the mop then wring out excess water several times, depending on the floor area and the build-up of dirt or residue.
Another thing that you have to remember is to change the cleaning solution while mopping. A trick that others suggest you do to see if it’s time to change the water is to put a quarter in it and when you can’t see the quarter through the water anymore would be the time to change it.
Wipe the tiles dry
Wiping the tiles dry after cleaning isn’t only to prevent anyone who will use the bathroom from slipping. If you leave your wet tiles to air-dry, water marks can form from the water that sits there. Dry the tiled surfaces with an old towel or a lint-free cloth to wipe all residuals off.
You can use different types of rags for a particular surface to avoid cross-contamination of residual germs. Some do color-coding while others put tags to identify the dry rags that will be used for the toilet, the sink, the tub, the bathroom walls and floors.
Do a little daily cleaning every day
To do a deep cleaning of your bathroom daily, while very ideal, may not be necessary. But it would do a great deal of help in keeping your bathroom tiles clean if you do a little sweeping and wiping every day. You get to take pleasure in taking a bath in a clean bathroom.
If you have your own tips and techniques in cleaning bathroom tiles that you can share, do let us know in the comments below.