Scrub Away

I usually wash the ceramic-tiled kitchen floor with a solution of vinegar water, but the past few times I've done it it still hasn't looked clean. I told myself 'in the fall' I would give it the thorough cleaning it deserved.  Yesterday wasn't exactly fall-like (with temperatures in the mid-80s we're still running the air conditioner) but I couldn't stand it any more and declared it was Tile Cleaning Day.

Last week when I was at the hardware store I looked into buying commercial tile cleaner, but they cost more than I wanted to spend. After a little internet research I made my own solution, which worked great.  It used 1/2 cup of washing soda (a new-to-me ingredient, which wikipedia told me could be used to remove grease, oil, and wine stains), 1/2 cup of vinegar, 1 tablespoon of liquid dish detergent, and 2 gallons of water.

Dirty vs clean.  What a difference!

Because we have a large kitchen with attached laundry room, the job took me most of the afternoon. I sloshed the solution on one small section of floor at a time, let it set for a few minutes, then came back and rubbed each tile vigorously with a rag. I rinsed the section, and rinsed it again.  Since the floor was so dirty there was a lot of crud to rinse off, and the water quickly got dirty. I changed the water in the bucket on a regular basis, but not often enough; when the tile dried there was still a film of soap. After dinner Hubby Tony helped out and mopped the floor with vinegar water, which took care of it.

Five years ago today: Without A Paddle