Color sealing grout is a great way to restore even the most stained and damaged grout and make it look like new again.

 

Grout is a cement based substance that can look dirty and ugly over time. Ugly grout can ruin the look of a tile installation even though the tiles may be in perfectly good condition. In many cases the grout is permanently stained and there is no way to remove these stains from the grout.

Grout can also look ugly for other reasons besides being dirty and stained.  Sometimes grout is not properly installed and the color can look blotchy and uneven. In other cases a grout color was chosen that does not match the tiles and this can also ruin the look of a tile installation.  A color sealer can correct these problems and restore the look of your grout.

Another big advantage to having your grout color sealed is that the color sealer will also seal and protect your grout better than any type of clear sealer. Grout color sealers permanently and completely seal the grout so that no dirt or contaminates can get into the porous grout and stain it. Cleaning color sealed grout is much easier than cleaning grout that has not been color sealed.  A mop and bucket of water or a soft scrub brush is all that is needed to clean color sealed grout. There will never be the need to aggressively scrub dirty grout lines with abrasive scrub pads and harsh cleaning chemicals to get the grout clean.

 

 

Color sealing grout is more time consuming and costly than clear sealing grout.  Most people find the advantages of having your grout color sealed far outweigh the increased cost and time of labor.  When you finally have new looking, easy to clean and maintain grout the time and money you spent color sealing your grout will soon be forgotten. Also the ease of cleaning and never having to seal your grout again will actually save you time and money in the long run.  You can choose from a variety of colors to color seal your grout with.  It does not really matter what color the original grout is.  The new color of the grout is going to be the color you choose to have your grout color sealed with.

In this example we choose an off white color seal color called antique white.  You can choose from a variety of colors to color seal your grout with and you are not restricted to only white when color sealing grout.

 

 

Many people with new tile installations and perfectly looking grout will choose to color seal their grout rather than just clear sealing their grout.  The reason people color seal perfectly new looking grout is that they realize that it is only a matter of time before their new grout starts to get dirty and stained and then their grout will need to be cleaned and clear sealed again. By color sealing your grout in the first place you avoid having to ever go through the backbreaking task of scrubbing your grout lines to deep clean your grout.  Also there will never be a need to reseal your grout since the color seal is a permanent type of grout sealer.

It is important to thoroughly clean your grout before you color seal it.  It is not necessary to remove the permanent stains in the grout but the grout must be thoroughly cleaned so that the color sealer can properly bond with the grout.  Also it helps to acid clean the grout to open up the pores of the grout so that the color sealer will form a better bond with the grout.  You can read more information about properly cleaning grout here.

When applying the color sealer to the grout you want to try and apply a nice thin bead of color sealer to the grout line. You should only apply the color sealer to small sections of grout at a time. You do not want the color sealer to dry on the surface of the tiles and be difficult to clean up and remove. It is not extremely important to apply a perfect bead of color sealer to the grout lines since we will be brushing the color sealer into the grout lines later.  It is important to work quickly when color sealing grout so quickly apply a bead of caulk to a section of grout and then move on to the next grout line.  Also do not worry if some of the color sealer gets on the surface of the tiles since we will be cleaning the excess color sealer off the tile surfaces later.  You only want to apply the color sealer to a small section of the grout at a time.  You want to be able to clean the excess color sealer off of the surface of the tiles before the color sealer dries on the tile surfaces.

 

 

After you apply a bead of color sealer to a section of tiles then you will need to brush the grout into the grout lines to ensure that the grout lines are completely coated with the color sealer. Many colors seal manufactures will supply you with an applicator brush but a small toothbrush works just as well to fully coat the grout lines with the color seal. You need to work quickly when coating the grout lines with the applicator brush. There will definitely be color sealer getting on the surface of the tiles but do not worry about the color sealer getting on the tile surfaces. Use the applicator brush to fully coat all the grout lines in a quick manner without trying to get the color sealer only in the grout lines and not on the surface of the tiles.

 

 

The next step in the color sealing procedure is to use a chamois cloth to wipe the excess color seal off the surface of the tiles. You should have a clean bucket of water on hand to use to clean out the chamois cloth.  Wring out as much water as possible from the chamois and fold the chamois so you will only be using small sections of the chamois cloth at a time. Wipe an area of the tile surfaces clean of the color sealer and then flip the chamois cloth over to use a clean section of the chamois to clean another area of the tiles.

 

 

The color sealer should easily wipe clean off of the tile surfaces.  If you need to scrub the tiles to remove the color sealer then you have waited too long to remove the color sealer.  It is important to remove all traces of the color sealer from the tile surfaces. The longer the color sealer dries on the tile surfaces the more difficult it will be to remove later. Make sure that you thoroughly inspect the tiles to ensure that there is no color sealer left on the tile surfaces before applying color sealer to the next section of tiles. A haze will form on the surface of the tiles from the color sealer.  You can clean up the color sealer haze after you have finished color sealing all of the grout.

The final step in the color sealing procedure is to remove the color sealer haze from the surface of the tiles. To remove the color sealer haze you need to first wet the tile surfaces with a totally clean and damp chamois. Do not overly wet down the tiles. You only need the tiles to be wet enough so that you can loosen up the color sealer haze on the tile surfaces.

 

 

After you wet the tiles then you can use a clean dry cotton towel to remove the haze on the tile surfaces. Simply wipe the tiles dry with the clean cotton towel and the haze should be easy to clean up and remove.

 

 

If you have stubborn color sealer haze that can not easily be removed then you can use a little bit of an alkaline cleaning solution to loosen up the color sealer haze.  A normal type of household alkaline cleaner like Mr. Clean in a spray bottle works great to help loosen up the haze so that it can be removed.  When using an alkaline cleaning solution you want to thoroughly dilute the cleaning solution with water and only apply a small amount of the diluted alkaline cleaning solution to the tiles. This should help loosen up the grout haze without damaging the already color sealed grout. Then wipe the alkaline cleaning solution with a clean dry towel and the color sealer haze should also be removed.

 

 

After you are done color sealing your grout then you should wait at least 4 hours before walking on the tile tile and grout surface. You should also wait at least 48 hours before you get any water of liquids on the color sealed grout. After that you can use your tile floor just like you did before only now you will have new looking stain free grout.

 

 

Color sealing grout can take some time and skill to get the color sealer applied perfectly. 

You may want to hire a grout restoration contractor to color seal your grout for you.  You can read some valuable information on how to hire a professional grout restoration contractor here.