Making the switch to natural cleaners for tile and grout is incredibly easy and very inexpensive. You likely already have all the things you need, and they are more effective, in my opinion, than store-bought alternatives. You also don’t have to worry about your kids bathing in a chemical cocktail after you clean the tub, or a toddler crawling around on a floor covered in carcinogens.
I’m a big fan of homemade cleaning recipes and these were born out of necessity for me. A few years ago, we moved in to our first home (that we ever owned). It needed a lot of work and we remodeled most of it ourselves. One thing we left was the vintage tile in the hall bathroom. Thankfully, it was a light blue color and not a horrible yellow or bright pink as many other 1970s bathrooms.
Unfortunately, this bathroom came with complimentary mold in the grout and tile and I had to figure out how to get rid of it. I read that bleach doesn’t actually kill mold but just bleaches it so you can’t see it so I didn’t want to go that direction. (Plus, with toddlers in the house, bleach wasn’t something we kept around anyway). These natural tile and grout cleaner recipes were created in response to our mold-decorations in the bathroom and they cleaned them right up. 🙂
Natural Tile and Grout Cleaner Recipes
Light cleaning of water spots or dirt- Get a damp sponge, dip in a bowl of regular baking soda and wipe down tub or tiles. Rinse with warm water.
Tough stains or set in dirt- Use a damp sponge in full strength white vinegar to wipe down entire surface. Immediately scour with baking soda and a brush or sponge.
Really tough stains and spots– Mix 1/2 cup baking soda with 2 TBSP of washing soda and 2 TBSP of borax. Add 3 TBSP of Liquid Castille soap and stir (if you don’t have liquid castille soap, you can use liquid dish soap). Pre-wipe with full strength white vinegar and scrub with baking soda mixture. For tubs, wipe with white vinegar, sprinkle with mixture and let sit for 15 minutes. Scrub with heavy-duty brush and rinse.
Moldy Grout Stains- For mold on grout make a mixture of 1 part Hydrogen Peroxide (3%) and 1 part water in a spray bottle. Spray on grout until saturated. Wait 45 minutes and wipe down with sponge and rinse well.
Have you ever made homemade tile or grout cleaner? How did it work?
This is great information. Thanks for posting this. I’m making a list right now of the ingredients I’ll need to switch to homemade cleaners. :]
I hope this works, we just re-tiled our kitchen countertop recently, and I didn’t realize it was going to be so hard to keep the little stains like coffee and tomato sauce from staining the grout.
This saved my sanity! We moved into a house 3 years ago with dirty grout in our kitchen tiles. With plans to remodel eventually, we never really bothered with it, but it was really starting to bug me. So I was dealing with VERY old, VERY stubborn stains. Pretty much solid brown grout that should be white. I was going to break down and try a chemical cleaner, but thought I would give this a try first. I used the “really tough stains and spots” directions. I did add more water to the baking powder mix to create more of a paste. It did take lots of elbow grease, probably about 30 passes with a scrubber in each spot, but my grout is now magically sparkling white! I wish I could show you the before and after. I am SO pleased with the way my grout looks now!! Thanks for sharing this!
Can”t wait to try these recipes!
I am so glad that it is becoming more and more popular to do cleaning with green, natural products. It should become much less of a stress on the environment. Every surface presents its own challenges: my particular struggle is with bathroom grout. It seems that I will never be able to get rid of all of that gray color darkening my bathroom. I’ve already had some grout replaced so as to avoid further water damage and I’m sure it will improve the situation.
Daelin
Thank you, Katie, for posting these natural ways for cleaning grout. When we first moved in to our current house, I cleaned my son’s bathroom with chemical concoctions. Since then, with the help of your blog and others, I have been ridding my home of chemicals and using natural cleaners and soaps. When it came time to tackle the master bathroom floor, I decided to try your method. I started with the baking soda and vinegar method, figuring that if I had any tough stains left over, I could work my way up to the stronger methods. The baking soda and vinegar has worked wonderfully. My 6-year-old son has really enjoyed being able to help me scrub the grout, and being able to watch and listen to the “fizzies” from the reaction.
tile.jpg
I tried to attach a picture of the “during” picture, to show how well it was working, but the picture doesn’t seem to be working.
I was wondering if you could tell us more about how you use branch basics? Do you usually by the big set? Aloe do you just survive all purpose cleaner on everything ? How do you use it in the ways you have mentioned- for hair, cleaning , oven , hand sanitizer etc? I’ve been using the Kotex clothes with just water and recently started adding a little soap nuts but have been trying to find a safe hand sanitizer to use while on the go since we are planning on trying for another baby soon one that is pregnancy safe since it seems option become limiting with diy home and beauty care when you prego. And my soon to be husband has a need for scent and a more soap like fee and has been wanting me to try something different then just water even though it works so I was looking into norwex to use branch basics in all the different articles that you side mention it. Thanks!!!
Are these natural cleaners ok for marble?
I don’t have marble so I haven’t tried it out, but check with the cleaning instructions that came with your marble to see if there are ingredients you shouldn’t use.
Hi Wellness Mama
For grout with mood, do I use the hydrogen peroxide spray and then the grout cleaner for the Vicky stains or are you saying the spray does it all?? Wishful thinking 🙂
You’re not supposed to use vinegar on marble bc of its acidity
Great ideas…I’m going to try them tomorrow lol…ty
Any recipes for toilet stains?
Sure! https://wellnessmama.com/23600/toilet-cleaning-fizzies/
Yes, get a scouring stick from your local target, Walmart. Its like a pumice stone & is safe for porcelain. Just make sure you wear a glove because you’ll have to put your hand in the toilet. I love these because there’s no harsh chemical smell & it makes the toilet look brand new ?
What is washing soda?
You can make it from baking soda: https://wellnessmama.com/76866/how-to-make-washing-soda/ and here are some uses for it: https://wellnessmama.com/76877/uses-for-washing-soda/
For soap scum in my tub, I use coconut oil on a sponge, magic eraser or paper towel. It comes right off with no soak in time required.
The oil+magic eraser also makes my water-marked brushed nickel bath fixtures sparkle like new.
For tuff water stains in toilet I use sand paper.
Could oil also help loosen and remove mold in grout?
I have colored grout the baking soda will bleach it white? Right now I am using Seventh Generation but want a homemade all natural because of autoimmune disease.
Vinegar is not good to use on grout because of the acidity (like with marble and granite)… maybe using it once to do a thorough clean is ok, but repeated use runs the risk of breaking down your grout, which isn’t fun to replace.
Can I use Oxygen Bleach on the grout between marble tile on a shower floor?
I have tried the 50/50 solution of water and peroxide and I have also tried the baking soda paste with very little improvement. Help!
Floor cleaning is always a tough job; you need to maintain proper method in order to get them cleaned without affecting the quality. The best experience is using the vinegar and water combo, it’s really helpful! I have recommended that to many people. I don’t know about the brands of cleaners that you used but I hope they are as good as the DIY methods.