Tips for completing do-it-yourself maintenance and repair projects from syndicated columnist Gene Austin follow.
Q. The bathroom grout in one of my apartments has become stained, and I haven’t been able to clean it with various products, including bleach. How do I restore the color?
A. Bathroom grout can pick up several difficult-to-remove types of stain, including minerals from hard water, mildew, mold and soap scum. Grout cleaners generally help, but the method used to clean them is often as important as what cleaner is used. It often helps to spray on the cleaner, let it work for several minutes, then scrub with a soft brush. Regular household cleaners such as Mr. Clean or Simple Green sometimes work well. Some tile cleaners swear by oxygen-type bleach, not chlorine bleach. Others prefer special tile cleaners such as Tilex or Kaboom. When cleaning just doesn’t work, a good option is to dye the grout, restoring either its original color or picking a new color. You can find grout dyes at some ceramic-tile dealers, and the Internet has many sources. A grout-coloring kit ($43) that includes a pre-treatment, colorant, an applicator brush, gloves and other materials is available at www.groutrevive.com. Available colors include white, several shades of gray and black. Cleaned or newly colored grout will stay that way longer, and be easier to clean, if the grout is coated with a sealer. Grout sealers are also available from tile dealers or the Internet.
Quick Tip. Drafty spots on doors and windows often aren’t noticed until a cold snap arrives, and that is a poor time to repair them with typical weather-stripping, which usually requires keeping the door or window open while the work is done. Gaps can be closed temporarily by applying a strip of 3M’s No-Residue Scotch Tough Duct Tape, sold at home centers. When the cold snap ends, owners can weather-strip properly, carefully pulling off the tape, which won’t leave a residue.
Questions and comments? E-mail Gene Austin at gaus17@aol.com.