Dull grout haze, pitted into dark Porcelian tile

[pete23m]

Made a big mistake last week, grouted 25m2 of porcelain (matt finish i think) with Bal superflex grey grout without sealing it first. Cleaned it down well but the grout has grabbed into the texture of the tile and will not come out however hard i scrub. There is almost a dull effect to the tiles now! ive been reading the forums and decided that either lithofin cement away or lithofin residue remover is the way to go most say cement away. Will these affect the grout in the joints? Also have people had any problems with these products or do you know of any other 'remover' that will be suited to the job. many thanks.

Ps: The tiles were Gemini Youngstone 600x300 grey.

 

[pete23m]

Apologies, having checked these are infact a glazed tile!!!

 

[jay]

hi if they are glazed the residue should come off what procedure did you do the grouting:8:

 

[pete23m]

Tiles were laid on flexible adhesive and left to cure as per manufacturers instructions. Tiles were then grouted using Bal superflex and excess grout sponged off the surface. Tiles have dried with a dull grout haze over the entire surface. Have cleaned twice to date but still cannot remove all residue. Localised areas have very stubborn pitting that i am struggling to remove. The cleaner of the tiles appear to have lost their factory appearance and look extremely dull / matt???

Any suggestions pls

 

[jay]

you could try lithofin residue remover not sure how thick the residue is when grouting wash of exes grout when firm then let dry until a dry haze appears ( norm about 20 mins) then buff of with dry rag or dry sponge you may need a stronger cleaner depends on amount left on surface i doubt that you have damaged tile surface:8:

 

[pete23m]

As you say, i left grout to firm and then sponged and have rubbed with a dry cloth but the fine 'hessian like texture' of the tile seems to be holding the haze and thus giving a dull effect. No matter how many times you clean the tile, annoyingly it always dries to a matt finish.

 

[jay]

are you sure they are meant to be glossy check with left over tiles:8:

 

[pete23m]

I have already made the comparison and they do appear to be much duller due to the haze on the tile. I think i will try the lithofin residue remover and see what the outcoem is.
Is this product quite gentle, any problems applying, removing etc...

 

[jay]

just follow the instructions you could also try (not sure if you have them over there )white scouring pad like a pot scrubbing pad but its made out of plastic try a tile out of main view use a detergent mixed in water rub scoure over one tile then wash off it all depends on how much residue you have make sure the scoure is plastic hope this helps :8:

 

[doug boardley]

I have already made the comparison and they do appear to be much duller due to the haze on the tile. I think i will try the lithofin residue remover and see what the outcoem is.
Is this product quite gentle, any problems applying, removing etc...

you can dilute it to differing strengths depending on the severity of the haze

 

[donny2pins]

Hello there, what you should have done was seal the tiles before grouting : why you probably ask yourself ? well simple because the porcelain tile has tiny pores on the surface of the tile which will let in any stains or dirt.AND WHEN YOU SEALED IT .BANG THAT IS THE PROBLEM . YOU SEALED OVER THE GROUT MARKS THAT HAVE SUNKEN IN THE PORES.HOPE THIS HELPS.

 

[White Room]

They were glazed porcelain

 

[Terry Cottar]

Hello there, what you should have done was seal the tiles before grouting : why you probably ask yourself ? well simple because the porcelain tile has tiny pores on the surface of the tile which will let in any stains or dirt.AND WHEN YOU SEALED IT .BANG THAT IS THE PROBLEM . YOU SEALED OVER THE GROUT MARKS THAT HAVE SUNKEN IN THE PORES.HOPE THIS HELPS.

What is the point of telling someone what they should have done? Close the stable door after the horse has bolted!!! They need help to solve the problem not tell them what they have done wrong

tel

 

[Terry Cottar]

What has happened in this situation is the tile has been grouted and overwashed after grouting. This has caused all the polymers in the grout to rise to the surface that is why no acidic product is working because it cannot break down the polymers in the grout if you like trying to wash a dirty surface with a sheet of glass laid ion top of it. The correct solution is to clean all the tiles with Aqua Mix Sealing and Coating Remover. Allow the SC&R to dwell for about 15-30 minutes this will break down the polymers in the modified grout that was used. Then you can clean the cemetitious part of the haze off using a combination of a Grout haze cleaner by Aqua Mix or a mild form of Phosphoric Acid.

tel

 

[jay]

What has happened in this situation is the tile has been grouted and overwashed after grouting. This has caused all the polymers in the grout to rise to the surface that is why no acidic product is working because it cannot break down the polymers in the grout if you like trying to wash a dirty surface with a sheet of glass laid ion top of it. The correct solution is to clean all the tiles with Aqua Mix Sealing and Coating Remover. Allow the SC&R to dwell for about 15-30 minutes this will break down the polymers in the modified grout that was used. Then you can clean the cemetitious part of the haze off using a combination of a Grout haze cleaner by Aqua Mix or a mild form of Phosphoric Acid.

tel

check the dates on post :8:

 

[pete23m]

Thanks for all the info guys... I went down the Lithofin route and it seems to have removed the majority of the haze. There are still patches that require further attention but the general appearence of the tile is back to how should be!!! :hurray: