renewing old tile

when we moved into our house, i spent hours upon hours scrubbing the tile grout in our entry, bathroom, and laundry room.  thankfully, we had replaced the kitchen tile with wood or i would have clocked in a few more hours no doubt.  i used a combination of toxic chemicals that should probably should never be mixed, but the grout still looked dingy.  within a couple months, the grout was back to the color i started out with even with frequent scrubbing.

i came to the conclusion that the grout was most likely not sealed, or needed to be resealed.  i wasn't sure what the original color was supposed to be, but i knew no matter how hard i scrubbed i would not be satisfied.  i decided to try grout paint with a built in sealer instead.

i purchased my grout paint from menards.  home depot carries a different brand, but i was not able to find a color that worked with my tile.  i assume any home improvement store will carry a version and i suggest looking several places in order to get the exact color you are looking for.

i noticed that different brands came with different instructions.  the paint i purchased suggested applying the paint with a thin brush {i used a toothbrush}, letting it dry for a little while, and then going back with a squirt bottle and scrubbing the dried paint off.  this worked very well and i liked that i didn't have to worry about being accurate with the toothbrush.

the best part was that i was also able to use the paint to hide some of the large cracks that had appeared in a few of our tiles.  it isn't perfect, but it is a lot less noticeable.

after i was finished, the tile looked soooo much better i couldn't believe it.  it was a time consuming process {it took about two hours for each room}, but it was so satisfying to watch the grimy grout freshen up so quickly.  i meant to post this a long time ago, but never got around to it.  therefore, i can honestly say that not only does this make your tile look great right away, it also lasts.  it has been almost a year and it still looks as clean as ever.  the sealant makes wiping muddy paw prints up a breeze.  i highly recommend giving this product a try if you have some grout that is needing new life.  our floors have never looked better!