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How to Clean Tile Grout without Chemicals

Thank you HomeRight for sponsoring this post and giving us the ability to clean our grout without chemicals!

A couple weeks ago my friend called me and asked if I had any ideas for cleaning really dirty tile grout. They were getting ready to move into a new-to-them house and the floors were so gross, like greasy, sticky, grimy gross, you wouldn’t even believe it! I thought about my bleach pen method but on a large scale, like over 1000 sq.ft., I thought that would be more work than it was worth. I told her I’d bring over my HomeRight SteamMachine Plus because it is an awesome cleaner and can clean all sorts of things! I’d never used it on grout before but I was sure it would work fabulously, and boy oh boy it did!!!

The easiest way to clean grout without chemicals

Materials needed:

I want to show you this little video of it “in action” and then I’ll break it down for you in pictures.

The giddy excitement in the video is my friend Beckie, she’s like me and loves to clean, and she was beyond excited when she saw how well the SteamMachine Plus was blowing the black grime right out of the grout.

Here are some before and after pictures that will blow your mind, especially if you have extremely dirty grout in your home!

This is in the kitchen dining room area.

How to clean tile grout without chemicals - Ask Anna

This is the master bathroom. She said she could tell it was deep cleaning because there were all kinds of awful smells coming up from the grout. Gross!! 🙁

How to clean grout without chemicals - Ask Anna

This is the transition from the kitchen to the hallway. Isn’t that amazing!?

How to clean tile grout without chemicals - Ask Anna

This is the range hood. The entire thing was covered with grease and food particles, it only took me a few minutes to make it look new again!

Cleaning a range hood, before and after cleaning it with the steam machine - Ask Anna

If your jaw is on the floor and you’re wondering where you can get a SteamMachine Plus, don’t worry, you can get one on Amazon and have it shipped right to your door! 🙂 Just a few more things we wanted to tell you –

  • “This thing is amazing and everyone needs one!” (Beckie’s mother-in-law and sister-in-law went home and bought one after she showed them how well it worked) 🙂
  • For cleaning grout this is the fastest method and it saves you from having to get down on your hands and knees to scrub.
  • It not only cleans the grout but it sanitizes it too. The 205 degree temperature kills 99.9 percent of germs and bacteria including e-coli, salmonella, and staph.
  • The tube that sucks the water up, has a metal ball on the end of it, so whether your cleaning the floor, or holding it upright to clean the range hood, you get the same amount of steam and pressure! (Those guys at HomeRight are so smart).
  • Make sure once the grout is clean that you seal it so that it stays clean. You should reseal the grout at least once a year.
  • Here’s a tip she wanted to share for how to hold the SteamMachine Plus, when you’re cleaning grout. At first she was using it like this (as you saw in the video), because it was a very natural way to hold it.

How to clean tile grout without chemicals - Ask Anna

  • But what she found was that it was easier and more efficient to hold it like this. See how much more of the brush is in the grout line? It’s way faster to do it this way.

How to clean tile grout without chemicals - Ask Anna

When you’re done cleaning and sanitizing the grout the handheld part of the SteamMachine Plus pops back into the upright frame and you can steam clean the rest of the floors quickly and easily! This is what I use to clean the floors in our house and I love it. The mop is easy to maneuver and because of the shape of the mop head, it gets into corners and around furniture really easily.

Here are some other uses for the SteamMachine Plus from my fellow HomeRight ambassadors –

HomeRight Brand Ambassador

This post contains some affiliate links, for your convenience. Click here to read my full disclosure policy.

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About Anna

"Hi, I'm Anna! Wife, mother, child of God, and the founder of Ask Anna. I have always enjoyed cleaning, organizing, decorating and helping people, so I've put that all together on the pages of this blog. I truly hope my tips help you in your home and make sure to contact me if you have a question!"

Comments

  4. Samantha Barker says

    This looks like an awesome cleaning tool! I can’t believe how great your tile grout looks after using it!

  6. Sonya says

    This is something I struggle with regularly. And this solution is so easy and a lot less back-breaking than others. Count me in! Fingers crossed.

  7. Jennie Miller says

    I would totally use this in my bathroom first. The tile on the floor and the walls needs a good deep cleaning!

  10. Cheryl says

    The first room I would tackle would be my kitchen and the tile floor. Then I would head into the bathroom and attack those tiles and grout lines. Wow I can’t believe steam did all of that!!!!

  11. Cynthia says

    Looks wonderful! On the amazon web site someone said it works great on glass showers. Did you try it yet in your shower?

  12. Kathy says

    I would definitely try this on my bathroom floor tile. My lab loves to be with me wherever I am. The grout where he lays is awful! Can’t believe how great this seemed to work.

  13. Susanne says

    I really really need one of these since my kitchen is loaded with tile, and with four kiddos in the household my grout is pretty dark on a regular basis, yuk!

  17. lesley says

    for SERIOUS the tile floors…..i have been putting it off bc i don’t want to be on my hands and knees with a toothpaste

  18. Barbara Brannon says

    WOW! I seriously need one of these! My bathroom tile looks just like the ‘before’ picture above! Sure hope I win – thanks for the giveaway!
    Barbara in TN
    [email protected]

  21. tammigirl says

    A few days ago I was cleaning something and thought to myself how much easier it would be if I could steam clean it – what was it??? Oh gosh, so much could be steam cleaned. I wonder if I could use it to clean that seal in the door of the washing machine!? I hate these new style of washers. Ewww.

    I know I need to re-seal my grout, so I’d love to be able to steam and seal it all again. Could you use it in the oven and on the oven door? That would be great, too. I can think of a lot of places I would like to use it. We’re a big family with a good sized house. It would probably get worn out!

  22. Aida says

    I would clean my kitchen floor – exciting to know something would make them look fabulous again!

  25. Shalyse says

    This is so awesome! I’ve been doing it with cleaners that don’t work as good and take way longer! This is so exciting!

  30. Shawnda says

    I think I would try it first on the kitchen floor. Then the tile entry by the garage. Then the bathroom. And the laundry sink…

  32. Shanell says

    I have many grout lines that look just like this. I tried the toilet bowl cleaner with bleach — and while it worked great, my respiratory system took a huge hit, and I had to stop (or die ha! ha!) I want clean grout!

  33. adina says

    Definitely would tackle our bathrooms first! With 5 boys using them….I feel like, clean has become a subjective term!!!

  39. Arlene Simpson says

    Haven’t tried this steamer yet, I’ve gone through 4 different brands so far. Could use a deep cleaning on my tile floors.

  43. Lorie Underwood says

    I just realized how used to dirty grout I have gotten. Ugh! Time to work on the kitchen/dinning area/office. That’s a lot of grout to clean

  45. Lindsay says

    I would love to use it in my kitchen, bathrooms, and entryway…especially with 2 very little boys!

  50. Minta says

    I can’t wait to tackle the (awful) Mexican tile on our first floor when I win (how positive is THAT?!), where we come in from the beach & dog walks. It’s never been steam-cleaned since we moved in 4 yrs. ago, & w/1″-wide grout (who puts in grout that wide?!), it NEEDS it! I’m always grossed out thinking what may live in there (I DO wash it!☺️ Just haven’t steam-cleaned it). Someday, we may have the funds to swap out the tile, but for now, deep-cleaning it with steam will do quite well.

  54. Heather says

    I so need this to tackle my bathrooms!! With 2 little boys and 1 big one, my bathrooms are so gross!!!

  57. Erica H. says

    Omg I wish I had this whIle I was scrubbing the filthy grout of the rental I live in! But we’really buying our first house now and this would be amazing to have!

  59. Jenifer Lim says

    Oh my goodness! I would so take this into my bathroom first thing and see what wonders this thing is capable first hand, lol!

  60. Kindra says

    Awesome. I would get to work in my bathroom first.
    I have laminate wood floors in my kitchen – can the steamer be used on laminate?

    • Anna says

      You’d have to check with the manufacture of your laminate. I steamed the laminate in our old house but I know some you’re not supposed to.

  63. Veronica says

    Oh boy do I want to WIN the steam cleaner. I have some yucky grout from previous owners I’d like to get cleaned!!!

  70. Tracy Hoover says

    Definitely my range hood. I can’t find anything to cut through the sticky grease and grime

  73. Trisha B. says

    I’d definitely tackle our ceramic tile flooring in our kitchen and bathroom first. It looks just like how your first picture did before.

  74. AmyB says

    ACK! I wish I would have seen this just a few days earlier! I have someone coming to clean my grout next week! My kitchen tile would be my first stop! 4 kids and a dog that slobbers…you can only imagine!

  76. Debi says

    Awesome! Grout would be my first tackle! Who wouldn’t just love this?! Thanks for sharing 🙂

  78. Alison C says

    I would love to win this to tackle the range hood above my stove top! It is really needing a good steaming. Thanks for the chance to win!

  85. Betsy Barnes says

    If I won, my bathroom, especially the shower, would be the first place I tackle using the SteamMachine Plus. 🙂

  86. Pat says

    I have been trying to clean bathroom grout by hand and it is very hard. This machine would be a great help!

  92. Lyndee says

    We close on our home in one week. I would love to deep clean it before moving in! I’d start with the entry way.

  94. dee says

    Thank you for the opportunity! I would tackle the toilet first (actually the entire bathroom)….

  95. Bethany says

    I would LOVE to have this, and will probably buy it if i dont win it. I would clean my grout that looks just as bad as this!

  101. Christina says

    I would use this in our downstairs entryway, hall, kitchen, and half bath! I get so tired of scrubbing at the grout with a toothbrush!!

  103. Elton Parrish says

    I could really use the steamer by my back door where my kids and dogs have stained my tile floor and door.

  107. Margaret Best says

    I am in DESPERATE need of something other than my Shark steam mop to clean my travertine floors and grout!!! I am ready for a REAL steam cleaner!!! Thank you for sharing your tips!

  115. Maria says

    I would go over my sticky floors and finally get them good and clean. It seems like no matter how I clean them there is always something I missed.

  117. Shelby says

    For sure, I would use this on the wide grout lines on my kitchen floor. We scrubbed for hours and hours when we moved into our new house and could never get them quite white again. I’m still struggling to keep them clean. This tool would be a lifesaver. My little one just started crawling and I’ve been wracking my brain to figure out a fast easy way to keep the floors clean and sanitized. Also, I was wondering if the steam machine is safe for use on hardwood?

  121. Jennifer says

    Oh my! We just finished remodeling our kitchen but our tile floor grout looks exactly like the pictures on your blog! I NEED THAT MACHINE! Thanks for the chance!

  122. Christine J says

    We are cleaning a house that has had the same owner since the 60s. It’s pretty clean, but this would do wonders with the areas that were too difficult for them to clean in their later years. Thanks for the chance to win.

  129. Nina says

    I kid you not when I say my entire house (except for the bedrooms) is Spanish Tile. I need this in my life.

  138. Linda Bundrick says

    My mudroom takes the most abuse with 4 kids and a dog the tiles get grungy , so that would be me first room to tackle.

  139. Megan Nelson says

    What part of your house will you tackle first with the SteamMachine Plus? THE BATHROOM. Because if it can tackle that terror anything else will be a breeze.

  141. Aundrea says

    I definitely want to tackle the grout in my entryway. It’s looking extremely dingy and dirty!

  145. Ellen says

    A family member was trying to figure out how best to clean the tile in a bathroom in her new home, and I was just about to recommend a steamer. However, a little research turned up the fact that most warranties will not cover damage resulting from steamers, and apparently grout is easily damaged by repeated use of a steamer. So, it might be a good idea to look into that just to be sure, especially if your tile is relatively new.

  146. Lauren says

    Looks very clean! You did a great job. That master bathroom went through an awesome transformation. Thanks for sharing!

  148. Jane says

    Too bad that the handle isn’t longer so you wouldn’t have to bend over to clean the grout…that is time consuming