Using Porcelain and Ceramic Tile Floors is fairly easy to maintain & keep the same new look after a long time. We preferred to use tiles in the wet area of our home. Like the kitchen, washroom, laundry room & others. To use these types of tiles on the floor have so many benefits like – tiles are more durable than other materials. Low maintenance cost, low maintenance hassle, water-resistant, eco-friendly, resale value, air quality, shininess, and others. So to enjoy these benefits, you should use Porcelain or Ceramic Tile for Flooring.
Difference Between Porcelain and Ceramic Tile
Some users or customers think like that;Porcelain & ceramic tiles are the same category or same format. But there are so many significant differences. As an example, you can think or suppose that Porcelain and Ceramic are cousins, but they are not twins. Porcelain and Ceramic have a little more advantages than each other. Let’s talk about the differences between Porcelain and Ceramic.
The primary way to find out Porcelain and Ceramic is water absorption. Porcelain will absorb 0.5% or less water of its total weight. On the other hand, Non – Porcelain or Ceramic will drink more than 0.5% water. For this observation, you can take a test. The American_society took this test for Testing & Materials. Weigh the fired tile first, boil it for 5 hours then leave it in water for 24 hours. Now recheck the weight. If you find one percent of less weight than the previous weight, you can consider it like a porcelain tile. This is the result of water observation.
The construction of Ceramic is softer & less dense than porcelain. Ceramic is easy to use with more latest intricate designs available. Porcelain absorbs less water than Ceramic. Cold weather is prone to Ceramic. Porcelain has less & plain design. So these are the fundamental difference between Porcelain and Ceramic Tile, along with manufacturing ingredients.
Materials we Need –
- Broom or vacuum
- Mop
- Mop bucket
- Dish soap
- Vinegar
- Baking soda
- Acrylic stone sealer – Unglazed
How To Clean Porcelain Tile Floors
Homeowners always like to use durable glazy things. Porcelain Floor Tiling is one kind of that. You don’t need to waste much time on the maintenance of your flooring. However, the ceramic tiles are shinier than porcelain tiles because of herder baked & glazed by the protective coating. However, follow these ways to take extra care of your porcelain tiles flooring.
Unglazed Porcelain Cleaning
Make sure that you have collected all the cleaning material nears to hand. Now start cleaning the Unglazed Porcelain flooring in these ways –
Damp Mop
After completing our daily activity, we should clean our porcelain tile floor regularly. You should add this to the list of your daily routine work. With a gallon of warm water, take a few drops of mild dish liquid. Should not saturate this on the floor. This tile is comparatively more prone to water; after completing mopping with that solution, dry with a clean, soft towel.
Spills removed promptly
Naturally, it will be dirty at the end of the day on the floor to do our daily activities. To remove spills promptly, you can use the spill kits. Wet type floors can make any stain, so first, keep this in mind.
Sealing treatment
For this purpose, you can use an Acrylic stone sealer to clean your floor. The top unglazed base improves the surface pores—mix 1:3 sealer & water to continue this cleaning treatment.
Glazed Porcelain Cleaning
We can see the surface of porcelain tile for maximum cases is more glazy just because of a thin protection layer. This layer is impervious to water access. So this helps us to have a durable tiles service. This protective layer also helps to protect from stains. For daily or fewer maintenance purposes, you can follow these below steps.
Sweep or Vacuum
Vacuum cleaner or sweep is the best option for regular cleaning & prevents gradual Damage. Remove all the debris with the help of these cleaning tools.
Mop
The mopping procedure can be applied in the following two ways. You can generally mod the floor with a warm water mix with dish soap or a chemical solution. However, the chemical mixture has a practical cleaning possibility. So to keep glazy, you should apply a chemical mixture. If there are any soil particles on the floor, you can use a soft nylon brush to pool them. Warm water with vinegar or other cleaning chemicals, or you can follow the cleaning instruction guide from the manufacturer’s guide.
Prevent & Clean Stains
To prevent any stain, if you press cloth or other sweeping materials, it can also make a slight shade on that glazed porcelain tile. So you should remove the stain as soon as you can. Use commercial title vinegar cleaner to clean that stain. Spray the liquid cleaner on the floor, leave for a moment to lose the stain from the floor tile.
Avoid Damage
never use any steel or bristle brush to clean Porcelain surfaces. This will damage your tile. It can make cracks on the surface.
For deep cleaning, you can use a mixture of vinegar, warm water, essential oil. After a long time, we all should clean our floor deeply. Mop thoroughly with the solution, rinse with plain water, then sprinkle with baking soda. Flush the floor to remove residue. This helps us to have a new look of tile like the early age of your floor tiling. This cleaning process can occasionally be or half-yearly or monthly. Do as you like at your convenient time.
How To Clean Ceramic Tile Floors
Cleaning porcelain or ceramic tile floors is straightforward. With some easy processing, you can keep the same sparkle as the first time using. Though both types of tile flooring have some different issues, you can follow the same cleaning steps. You just need to follow the regular cleaning method. This will make your floor tiling glazy, durable & stain free.
Loose Debris Cleaning
Try to maintain regular sweeping or use a vacuum cleaner to clean all loose debris. If the debris or sand or grit is set on the ceramic tiles, it will look dull.
Floor Mopping in the Right Way
Don’t try to mop with the warm water randomly .use a mild detergent & chamois type mop then follow nonstop running mopping way. Don’t forget to change the dirty water. Mopping with dirty water can make a spot on your tiles. Continue frequent mopping with changing clean water.
Find Out Tile Stains
If you find any discoloration on the ceramic tile, it is necessary to know why this changing color or stain. This will help you to choose the perfect cleaning materials. So to see the type of substance is essential.
Soap Residue
Sometimes, we can see that the cleaning soap stays on the floor & makes a spot. Or the soap cleaner leaves a hazy look after cleaning your ceramic tile. This is not the fault of your tile, but the type of soap you are using. In this case, the better way will be cleaning with all kinds of cleaner like commercial cleaners. Also, it can apply a homemade cleaner with fresh lemon juice, which is a mild acid. Never try this lemon juice on stone tiles.
Make it Dry
Don’t try to dry your tile flooring with running air. Till then, the stop water can make a spot on the surface. So you have to dry it manually after mopping. So take this immediate action after the washing procedure.
Final Verdict
To keep things well to do, we need to take regular cleaning & polishing method with soft microfibre. This will ensure the same shininess as the first time experience. With a well-cleaning method, you can use your tiles year after year. Proper maintenance & regular right way cleaning after every use can shine as the new look.