How To Make Dull Ceramic Tile Shine? [6 Easy Steps]

People choose ceramic tile flooring because ceramic tiles come in a vast range of colors and designs. From matte to a shiny finish, you will easily find the ceramic of your choice. But even the ceramic tiles can get dirty and lose their shine over time. That’s why it is essential to know how to make dull ceramic tile shine.

You can make the dull ceramic tile shine by applying a mix of baking soda, dish soap, and warm water. You can also purchase a ceramic tile cleaning solution that you can apply to the tiles to restore the lost gloss. Using lemon spray or vinegar can also help eliminate dullness from the tiles.

But what are the right ways to use these solutions to ensure you are doing everything currently? Well, I have explained everything here in this article, including the process of cleaning and maintaining ceramic tiles to stay shiny as new.

Is It Possible To Restore Dull Ceramic Tiles?

Just because the ceramic tiles have lost shine does not mean they cannot be restored unless, of course, something has damaged the tile surface already. But what are the ways to restore dull ceramic tiles?

1. Regular Maintenance

Regular care and maintenance are essential to make the shine of ceramic tiles last longer. Besides, regular cleaning should be a part of our daily routine whether we have ceramic tiles or not.

Whenever you clean the tiles, you can add a bit of cleaning solution to a gallon of warm water to ensure the shine does not fade away. And even if the tiles have already lost the glow, you can restore them by maintaining them regularly.

2. Natural Solutions

Natural solutions are what you use without using any chemical solution or spending a lot of money. And there are plenty of natural tile shine restoration options available.

The easiest solution is to sprinkle baking soda on the tiles and scrub them before cleaning. And if the area is heavily soiled, you can mix multiple things, such as baking soda, vinegar, detergent, or soapy water.

3. Maintaining The Grouts

You may restore the shine of the tiles with different things. But what about the grouts? Everything will look more out of place if the tiles are all shiny, but the grouts are dirty.

The best thing to do is clean the grouts as you clean the tiles. But you must avoid using strong solutions over the grouts because it can make them wear off. Scrubbing over the grouts with toothpaste or lemon juice is the best way to keep them clean.

4. Treatments

If the tiled area is wet most of the time, like the bathroom tiles, it can suffer from mineral accumulation. It can leave ugly marks all over the tiles and be pretty challenging to remove.

You will need some stronger solutions to treat the stains. There are plenty of treatments in store for such issues. But you need to handle them carefully not to damage the tiles.

5. Heavy-Duty Shine

If the light shine is not working out for you, you can try something else to restore a heavy-duty shine. In that case, you will need lemon oil or furniture polish to apply to the tile surfaces.

Once the polish buffs away, you will get shinier tiles. But it is best not to apply such polishes on wet tiles, such as bathroom tiles, because it can make the surface dangerously slippery.

Related :Best Mop for Ceramic Tile Floors

What Makes Ceramic Tile Floors Dull?

It is not always time that makes the ceramic tile floor dull. Yes, tiles can lose their shine as it gets older, but what about other things that can be responsible for that?

There are several reasons why your ceramic tile floor is looking duller these days. Here are some of the common reasons for that.

The Tiles Are Old

Of course, this should be the first and most common reason why those floor tiles are no longer shiny. If the flooring is old, years of use are the reason behind it.

You can not finish counting how many people walked over those and how many furniture, appliances, and other things have been dragged and kept over them. The dirt and dust the tiles go through make them lose their shine and glossiness, appearing dull.

Not Cleaning Or Maintaining Regularly

Now, not all of us are hygiene freaks or have germ phobia. But even if you do not have them, it is essential to clean the floor regularly and mop them at least once a week.

All types of floors go through daily dust and dirt. And even if you think just cleaning them with a broom will do the job, you are wrong. The unseen and remaining dust will keep accumulating on the ceramic tiles if you do not clean or maintain them properly. And at one point, the gathered dust makes the tiled floors appear dull.

Footwear Dust

I think we have discussed a similar issue twice already. Walking on ceramic tiles wearing footwear, especially uncleaned or dusty ones often can also be responsible for why the tiles are getting dull.

Heavy-traffic areas, or where people frequently walk with shoes, leave footwear dust. If not cleaned regularly, this dust will leave a film over the ceramic tile. So even if you have glazed tile flooring, it will no longer appear shiny.

Acidic Substances

Watch out for what you are handling or carrying around. If you are dropping acidic substances on ceramic tiles all the time, it will make the shine wear off.

Depending on the type, acidic substances can even damage ceramic tiles. This is why experts will always suggest people avoid using acid-based cleaners on ceramic tiles.

How To Make Dull Ceramic Tile Shine?

You can shine dull ceramic tiles using a few things you will find at your home. These are cost-effective and also less harmful than other chemical cleaning substances. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to make dull ceramic tile shine.

Things You Will Need

• Gloves
• Soft bristle scrub brush
• Spray bottle
• Baking soda
• White vinegar
• Mixing container
• Rag/Mop

Step 1: Get Everything You Need

As you can see, everything you need to shine the ceramic tiles is easy to find. You may find almost all of them at your home. If not, a short run to the nearest store may help you get the rest. Make sure you have everything you need before you begin scrubbing those tiles.

Step 2: Clean The Tiles

Since everything you will use will have some kind of chemical reaction on the tiles, you never know what it will do to other particles residing on them. So it is best to clean the tile surface properly with a broom before moving to the next steps.

Step 3: Wear Protective Gloves

Handling baking soda, vinegar, and the other things you will use are not exactly harmful. But it is better to take safety measures since you will mix them to make the cleaning solutions. Wear a pair of latex gloves before you mix them.

Step 4: Mix Everything

You need to mix two different solutions to clean the tiles. First, take an equal amount of vinegar and warm water to mix and pour them into a spray bottle. Then make another mixture where you need to add baking soda in white vinegar to create a paste in a container.

Step 6: Apply The Solutions And Clean

First, spray the vinegar and warm water mix using the spray bottle. Then apply the vinegar and baking soda paste you made onto the tiles and grouts. Wait for some minutes before using a rag or mop to clean the spray and paste solutions. Remember to rinse the rag or mop after every swap.

Tip: If the first batch of cleaning solutions begins to get too dirty, you need to prepare another batch so that the tiles appear shiny.

Precautions

Restoring the lost shine of ceramic tiles works in various ways and requires different types of solutions. Some even contain chemical substances, making them harmful to exposed skin. Here are a few things you need to keep in mind while handling ceramic tile shining solutions.

• If you are using acidic or chemical solutions, wear gloves so that your skin does not come in direct contact with it.
• If the solution contains a strong odor, wear a protective mask and gloves.
• Avoid cleaning the grouts vigorously with ceramic tile shining solutions because they need light cleaning substances.
• Make sure to rinse the cleaning fabric or mop now and then so that the dust you are removing does not leave any film over the tiles.

Ways To Shine Ceramic Tile Floor Naturally

One of the most effective ways to shine ceramic tiles is to wax them. But waxing can be expensive and time-consuming.

So the best thing to do would be to use natural or homemade solutions to shine the dull tiles. Here are a few such options to shine dull ceramic tiles naturally.

Soapy Water

This is the simplest natural solution to restore tile shine. You can also use warm detergent water to clean the tiles using a mop. However, it works on tiles only if the layer of dirt or the dullness is thin.

Vinegar Spray

Vinegar is known for having several cleaning properties. From light stains to tough greasy marks and mineral deposits, vinegar can eliminate almost everything. Adding white vinegar to warm water and spraying it over the tiles can do the magic trick.

Baking Soda

Like vinegar, baking soda is also helpful and effective in removing dullness from ceramic tiles and restoring their shine. It works best with vinegar if you get the measurements right. The best way to apply it on the tiles is like a paste and scrub the tiles using a sponge to clean them.

Using Lemon

Lemon is slightly acidic, making it an excellent natural remedy to remove dullness from tiles. Just spray lemon juice on the tiles, wait for around 10 minutes and clean the floor using a sponge until they appear glossy.

FAQs

Q. Is It Possible To Make Tile Floors Shine Without Wax?

There are several ways to make ceramic tile floors shine without using wax. The most common method is to mix baking soda, dish soap, and warm water and apply it on the floor. Wait for around ten minutes before scrubbing it off.

Other than this, you can also try using only soapy water. Then there is the method of using lemon spray and scrubbing the floor to restore its shine.

Q. Will Vinegar Damage Ceramic Tiles?

Vinegar does not damage ceramic tiles per se. However, one has to be very careful when cleaning the tile floor.

Vinegar is a low-cost solution for cleaning ceramic tiles, and it is also effective as a disinfectant. But exposing the floor to vinegar for too long can damage the shine of tiled floors and make them appear unattractive.

Q. Can You Use Pine-Sol On Ceramic Tiles?

Yes, Pine-Sol is safe to use on surfaces, such as wood and ceramics. The process to clean the floor with it is pretty simple.

• Take a gallon or 4-liter of water and add one-fourth cup of Pine-Sol in it.
• Mix it and use a cloth or mop to apply it on the floor.
• Wipe the floor you want to clean but be sure to rinse the mop with water now and then.
• If you are cleaning a dirtier floor, you may need to drain the first batch of Pine-Sol mix and make another mix. If not, it can leave a dirt layer on the floor and in the grouts.

EndNote

Dirty or dull tiles can make everything else appear more lifeless and uncared. So the best thing to do is to know how to make dull ceramic tile shine, in case you ever need to handle such situations. Besides, learning the methods can help you with regular tile cleaning and maintenance.

Nevertheless, always make sure you have all the necessary items before getting ready to clean tiles. It would be best if you also made a schedule to clean ceramic tile because it will take a while to get everything done.