How to Clean Different Types of Porcelain Tile
How to Clean Porcelain Tile Floors
One of the biggest advantages of porcelain til𝚎 is that it’s one of the easiest flooring materials to clean. To keep it looking tidy, your tile floor can be easily swept or vacuumed twice a week. You can clean porcelain til𝚎 with a damp sponge mop and a solution of 1/4 cup of white vinegar to 2 gallons of water.
Although it is by definition impervious (having an absorption rate of .5% or less), it is still possible for its surface to stain. You may choose, instead, a cleaner specifically formulated for porcelain til𝚎. However, unglazed surfaces sometimes assume the color of the cleaning solution. For these and other important issues, here are steps to clean porcelain til𝚎 surfaces.
Clean Unpolished Porcelain Tile
Following is a simple procedure to clean unpolished/unglazed tile flooring with a moderate soil load.
- Remove loose dirt. Sweep or vacuum the dirt from the floor.
- Wash. Saturate the floor with cleaning solutions and hot water, stir and allow it to stand on the floor for 5 – 10 minutes. Do not allow cleaning solutions to dry. Also, for this procedure, do it on small areas at a time.
- Scrub. For more difficult stains, scrub the cleaning solution with a floor machine equipped with an abrasive pad or stiff nylon-bristle brush. For residential applications and small areas, use a scrub brush.
- Wide down. Wipe away the dirty cleaning solution and rinse the surface of the porcelain til𝚎 with clean, clear water with a mop or a wet vacuum.
- Air dry. Allow time for drying.
- Note: You might have to use a more aggressive cleaning method if the unpolished porcelain til𝚎 is heavily stained.
Polished Porcelain Tile
For polished or glazed tiles, these instructions should be followed for general cleaning:
- Remove loose dirt. Sweep or vacuum loose dirt and dust from the floor. Use an untreated, dry dust mop instead of a broom.
- Wash. Mop the floor with a mild cleaning solution. The concentration of the detergent should be 50% less than the amount used on an unpolished porcelain til𝚎 floor.
- Rinse clean. Rinse the porcelain til𝚎 floor with clean and clear water thoroughly.
- Wipe dry. Dry carefully to increase the shine and to prevent water spots.
Textured Wood-Look Porcelain Tile
A textured tile surface, like wood-look porcelain, requires some additional cleaning procedures. Just a standard wet-mopping will not effectively clean this type of surface. It requires you to clean it more frequently and do it in a specified manner. For cleaning textured surfaces, follow these instructions:
- Remove loose dirt. Sweep or vacuum dust and debris from the floor. For sweeping, use a soft-bristle broom and sweep in two directions. First follow the direction of the tile, and then sweep diagonally to ensure complete cleaning of all foreign material that might be residing in the texture.
- Wash. Saturate the surface with a neutral cleaning solution stirred into hot water. Allow the cleaning solution to remain on the floor for five to ten minutes. Scrub the floor with a brush, again using a two-direction method.
- Rinse clean. Rinse the floor with clean, clear water to remove the cleaning solution.
- Occasional scrub. For high traffic locations, it is recommended to scrub the floor once a day and wet mop at regular intervals.
Damage Prevention and Safety Measures
To keep your porcelain til𝚎 floors in tip top shape, also follow these tips:
- Do not clean porcelain tile flooring with ammonia or with cleaners that contain any bleach and/or acid for cleaning. Acid and ammonia based cleaners may alter grout color.
- Do not use any oil-based detergents, wax cleaners, or sealants.
- Do not use agents that contain any dyes or colors on unglazed porcelain til𝚎.
- Use rugs at outdoor entrances to prevent grit from being tracked onto the tile flooring.
- Do not use steel wool pads, because the loose steel particles may cause rust stains in the grout.
Susan Manning
Hi, We just purchased a home with VRD08 Retro Bianca Porcelain floor tiles 24 x 24. The surface is textured, not smooth and I don’t know if these tile are sealed or glazed. There is very little grout lines. Do you know how do I clean the floors, any recommendations for specific products? Thank you!
JoAnne Sykes
I have a porcelain tile floor that resembles a Tuscany finish. It gets dirt in the many tiny grooves and indentations in the surface. I have a Hoover electric cleaner for flat floors. It scrubs and then sucks the dirty water up. There’s plenty of dirt but those indentations stay dark and dirty. The grout is sealed and cleans up but the tile is another story. Any suggestions that won’t consume my entire day once a week? Thanks.
Sandy Gardner
I recently had my entire floor surface, except bedrooms covered with textured porcelain tile planks that resemble old, weathered barnwood. I love the floors but am having difficulty finding a mop that doesn’t bind and stick on the texture. Any suggestions? Thank you.
BuildDirect Product Expert Team
Hi Sandy,
Thank you for your inquiry! I would suggest trying a microfiber cloth mop, this usually helps with the mop sticking to the texture on the tile. You can also try a steam cleaner if you want a more thorough clean. Please let us know if you have any other questions!
Jill Lazaroff
Hi I first want to say that I purchased a textured porcelain tile from y’all that looks like real wood and my experience was amazing g I love you guys!! My question is related to cleaning the tile since it is very textured and I have the tile throughout the entire house cleaning could be time consuming Oreck has an electric cleaner that has a brush to clean and a soft attachment to clean up the water after do you think that would be OK to use it certainly would save me time.
BuildDirect Product Expert Team
Hi Jill,
Thank you for getting in touch, I’m glad you had such a great experience with us! I don’t have personal experience using that cleaner but it should be fine. You may want to try in a smaller area in a back room first to ensure it doesn’t scratch the tile. Please let us know if you have any other questions!
Eloise Bruce
Thank You for the Tips! 🙂