How to Care for Your Grout and Tile This Winter

Winter is a harsh season as many states in the United Stated deal with frigid temperatures, ice, and snow. To protect ourselves from the elements, we wear heavy boots and clothing. Unfortunately, we, or guests in our homes, can drag a lot of unwanted things into our home like salt, mud, water, and snow. The salt, dirt, and water can easily seep into our grout lines and under our tiles, which can compromise or break them. The excess moisture can cause tile and grout to move, crack, or become dirty. And that’s just your inside tile! Outdoor tile and grout have to face the elements consistently.

It’s in your best interest to protect your grout and tile (inside and out) so you don’t have to spend a lot of money to replace a floor, path, or patio once the winter is over. The best way you can protect your grout lines and tile is to take care of them throughout the year. With the proper grout cleaner and sealer, your grout and tile will have a protected shield on them to keep liquids and other dirt from seeping through. A grout and tile sealer can help protect from excess moisture that causes cracks, breaks, and movement.

Some other preventative measures you can take are:

• Wipe off/kick of snow from your shoes on a mat before entering the house. Ask your guests to do this, as well.
• Keep your shoes, boots, socks, and outwear in one room only, so you’re only getting a smaller area wet.
• Sweep, vacuum, and mop your floors regularly during the winter to pick up dirt, sand, and salt that gets dragged around the house.
• Dry off your pet as soon as they get in the door.

To protect your tile and grout, you need a real grout sealer. Grout Shield offers a variety of sealers that can help keep water from seeping into the tile and grout lines.

Grout Shield Clear Sealer – This clear-colored sealer protects tile and grout from becoming stained, dirty, and discolored.

Grout Shield Color Sealer – This sealer revitalizes and restores color to the grout. This sealer colors and seals in one product. You can choose any color in the world! Changing the color of your grout can change the entire look of a room!

 Grout Shield Enhancer Seal – The enhancer seal is used for ceramic, slate, or Mexican tile floor to make the tiles look vibrant and new again.

Before you seal your grout, you want to clean it thoroughly with a grout cleaner. Grout Shield Grout & Tile Deep Cleaner and Grout Shield Maintenance Cleaner will help you get deep stains out. These are also great to use to clean your tile and grout throughout and after the winter to keep germs and dirt from spreading.

Looking to protect your tile and grout this winter? It’s never to late to start taking care of these things! Let our Grout Shield team help you choose a product that will best work for your space and tile type For more information on Grout Shield products, click our grout sealer page, or call toll free at 1-800-631-0716.