Maintenance and Care
Proper care and maintenance can keep tile looking beautiful for decades. The amount of attention an installation needs depends upon the materials used. Our helpful guide suggests the best methods and products for caring for your tile and grout:
Regular cleaning for Tile and Stone:
Sweep or vacuum the floor free of all loose dirt. Use a mop or sponge to apply a mixture of mild cleaning solution and hot water, and allow it to dwell for a few minutes, but not dry on the surface. Mop or sponge up dirty cleaning solution and rinse surface with warm water. Buff with a dry towel as needed.
Recommended Cleaning Products:
- AquaMix Concentrated Tile & Stone Cleaner
- Intercare by Marblelife
Sealing:
Sealers are designed to provide stain resistance. Performance is best described in “reaction time”. Reaction time is the time that a sealer will repel a liquid contaminant before the contaminant starts to penetrate the surface and create a sub-surface stain. Premium sealers provide longer reaction
time than economical sealers.
Porcelain and Ceramic
Most porcelain and ceramic tiles do not need to be sealed. A few exceptions are tiles with a crackled or crazed finish and some polished porcelains. In most cases, even those materials only need to be sealed once with a penetrating sealer.
Grout
Unless epoxy grout was used, all grout joints need to be sealed. Find out from your tile installer if your grout was sealed at installation. Sealers can be painted on with a craft paintbrush or sponge applicator. Spray sealers are also available. Wipe sealer off the tile as you go to avoid a residue. Most cement grout joints require at least two coats of sealer.
Natural Stone
All natural stones need to be sealed regardless of the finish. Find out from your tile installer if your stone was sealed at installation. Sealers can be applied with a sponge, brush, clean towel or sprayer. Any sealer that pools, or remains on the surface of the tile after 5 minutes should be wiped off to avoid a residue. The grout and stone can be sealed at the same time, using the same sealer. Most stone installations require at least two coats of sealer.
Recommended Sealers:
- AquaMix Sealer’s Choice Gold (premium, 15 year stone and grout sealer)
- AquaMix Penetrating Sealer (economical, 3-5 year stone and grout sealer)
- AquaMix Enrich’N’Seal (premium, 15 year enhancing stone and grout sealer)
- AquaMix Grout Sealer (economical, 3-5 year grout sealer)
- AquaMix SameDay Grout Sealer (economical, aerosol 1-2 year grout sealer)
