How to Use Sugar to Clean Excess Grout Off Ceramic Tile
Laying ceramic tile is not a job for the faint of heart, and few things are worse than breathing a sigh of relief at a job well done only to realize you have spilled grout. The most common type of grout is actually made of Portland cement, so if you have spilled grout, it is a race against time to clean it up. Portland cement takes a few days to reach its full bonding power, so you will have only a small window of time to work with. Fortunately, you can make the job much sweeter with a simple solution from your own kitchen pantry.
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Remove the largest clumps of grout with the wooden tools using an underhand chipping method. Grasp the handle of the tool with your wrist facing upwards, and place the flat end of the tool against the grout. Chip at the grout to loosen the bigger pieces.
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Fill the gallon jug with water.
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Pour the cup of sugar into the jug, cover and shake until the sugar dissolves.
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Pour the sugar solution onto the remaining grout, and cover with a trash bag.
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Wait two hours, remove the trash bags and scrub with the nylon scouring pads until clean.
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Proceed to mop the floor as you normally would to clean up any remaining sugar solution.
References
Resources
Tips
- It may take more than one application to completely remove the grout.
- Leave the solution on overnight if necessary.
Warnings
- Be very careful when working with water on ceramic tile as it is very slippery. Give special consideration when working on white or lighter colored tile as it is very hard to tell when it is wet, and slipping and falling could cause you to injure yourself.
- Never use metal scraping tools or putty knives or you may run the risk of cracking the tile.
Writer Bio
Heather Warren is a recently retired pet groomer with 14 years of experience behind her. She began writing professionally in 2010 for Examiner.com as the NW Houston Pets Examiner, and has since gone on to be published on eHow, Answerbag and Triond.com. Warren attended the Jobpops School of Fine Grooming in Houston, Texas.
Photo Credits
- granulated sugar.. image by Stepanov from Fotolia.com
- small trade of little wooden things image by Yury Shirokov from Fotolia.com
- water jug image by Wayne Abraham from Fotolia.com
- mauer image by Emanuel Kluge from Fotolia.com
- scrubber image by Adkok from Fotolia.com
- mop head image by green308 from Fotolia.com
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