Dark tile flooring is very popular nowadays. Dark brown, gray or charcoal porcelain tiles are very common for new kitchen flooring. Wood look tiles that come in various size planks are among the most popular of all tile floor types today. Generally dark grout to blend with the dark tiles is installed. However fairly common to the dismay of the homeowner is a discoloration or lightening of the grout color. This can really change the look of the floor tiles for the worse. There are a number of reasons why the grout color is not correct. In this article we will focus on one of the most common reasons which is construction dust. White dust that comes from construction like sheet rock can accumulate in the air and on the floor during construction. Since generally grout is absorbent especially sanded grout the color from the white dust can bleed in to the grout and ruin the dark color. Especially new grout that is wet can absorb light colored dust from construction. When a color actually bleeds in to the grout it is nearly impossible to clean it out. Grout Works of Central NJ in addition to specializing in cleaning grout has a unique technique to actually ensure that all the grout has a uniform color and that the color matches the tile as it was supposed to. Not only that, even if you mistakenly chose the wrong grout color we can generally change and customize the grout colors to exactly the color you wish. So whether you chose the wrong color grout or it was stained lighter by construction dust we...
Why does grout get so dirty and black and generally the tiles are clean? Grout lines are generally lower than the tiles. Due to this dirt can get stuck in it. While washing a tile floor in your kitchen, foyer or bathroom you may not even clean the grout at all. Even worse, you may be pushing the dirt from the tile floor into the grout lines. But it really goes further than that. Once dirt collects on the grout it will not remain on the surface. Grout is porous and will absorb the dirt and filth fairly quickly. Then you are left with stained grout. It is much more difficult to clean stained grout and it loses that clean fresh new look. The solution is two fold. First of all if you seal your grout properly it will not stain as easily or as bad. with a Grout Works Color Seal it will not stain at all. Second of all you must clean the tile floor in a proper fashion. In future posts we will discuss the proper method for cleaning tile and grout properly. Click here to check out our gallery. Grout Works of Central NJ is a local professional tile and grout cleaning service company. Grout Works of Central NJ is proud to serve Monmouth County NJ residents including Shrewsbury, Little Silver, Lincroft, Red Bank, Middletown, Rumson and Oceanport...
In recent years many breakthroughs in the concrete flooring industry have surfaced. With improved concrete materials bonding has improved and can set faster allowing businesses to minimize down time. Grout Works of Central NJ is always keeping up with the latest technology and trends in the concrete industry. We have found cutting edge materials that can bond to almost any surface and has more durability than standard concrete. In fact it will not crack and rivals epoxy and quartz flooring in terms of durability. It actually exceeds epoxy in a number of ways. It does not turn yellow from sunlight like epoxy flooring. It bonds to many materials that epoxy flooring will not bond to. This allows tremendous savings in that there is no need for floor demolition or removal. This also reduces the total work time and minimizes lost time of use for businesses and for residences. Concrete, quartz and epoxy flooring are sought out for a number of reasons. 1. Appearance: The look and design of concrete flooring can be customized and handcrafted. The texture can be shiny, polished and smooth or textured and slip resistant or anywhere in between. 2. Maintenance: Concrete, epoxy and quartz flooring is seamless without any grout lines that trap dirt making the maintenance much easier. They are also very durable so they require much less maintenance than natural stone like marble or terrazzo or wood flooring. 3. Durability: Concrete, epoxy and quartz flooring can take abuse from warehousing and heat and grease in industrial kitchens that others floors cannot. Urethane Concrete is one well known material among others that can be used directly under...
Marble, Travertine & Limestone as well as other natural stones require proper maintenance. Usage of cleaning products that are compatible with natural stone is very important. Just because a product is all natural or “green” does not mean it is suitable for marble, limestone or travertine. In fact vinegar is extremely harmful for use on calcite stones such as marble, limestone and travertine They also require professional refinishing occasionally by a Professional Natural Stone Restoration company since these stones are soft and scratch easily. The first step in professional restoration is to hone the stone with diamonds to remove scratches and marks. After that the stone could be polished with polishing compounds just like the factory to produce a shine from the stone itself. Some stones look nicer unpolished with a more natural matted look which is called a “honed finish” Stones like travertine and limestone and sometimes marble as well will be in a honed finish as opposed to a polish finish. We offer to polish or hone the stone as well as various customized finishes like a muted polish or a high hone where there is a subtle shine. Many of our customers ask to have their stone sealed. However generally they do not realize the limitations of a sealer. In fact a sealer only helps prevent colored stains on stone not the more common etches from improper cleaning products or scratches. We do offer to seal marble, travertine and limestone when necessary but educate our customers on the benefits and limitations of sealers and sealing natural stone. Many times we get phone calls to clean marble or travertine. Usually the issue is...
Marble, Travertine & Limestone as well as other natural stones require proper maintenance. Usage of cleaning products that are compatible with natural stone is very important. Just because a product is all natural or “green” does not mean it is suitable for marble, limestone or travertine. In fact vinegar is extremely harmful for use on calcite stones such as marble, limestone and travertine They also require professional refinishing occasionally by a Professional Natural Stone Restoration company since these stones are soft and scratch easily. The first step in professional restoration is to hone the stone with diamonds to remove scratches and marks. After that the stone could be polished with polishing compounds just like the factory to produce a shine from the stone itself. Some stones look nicer unpolished with a more natural matted look which is called a “honed finish” Stones like travertine and limestone and sometimes marble as well will be in a honed finish as opposed to a polish finish. We offer to polish or hone the stone as well as various customized finishes like a muted polish or a high hone where there is a subtle shine. Many of our customers ask to have their stone sealed. However generally they do not realize the limitations of a sealer. In fact a sealer only helps prevent colored stains on stone not the more common etches from improper cleaning products or scratches. We do offer to seal marble, travertine and limestone when necessary but educate our customers on the benefits and limitations of sealers and sealing natural stone. Many times we get phone calls to clean marble or travertine. Usually the issue is...
Marble due to its softness can scratch much more easily than other floor surfaces like porcelain and ceramic. The good news is that although marble can get scratches, marks, dull spots and overall lose its shine there is a way to restore the marble to its ideal finish. At Grout Works of Central NJ we use diamonds to hone the marble which removes all marks and imperfections in the stone. Afterward we can polish the stone to a high shine just like the factory. In case of deep staining we use special compounds to create a poultice to remove the embedded stain from the marble. In addition to marble we also refinish many other stones like limestone, travertine, onyx and more. We can finish a stone to numerous types of finishes from a natural “honed” finish to a high polished finish as well as may finishes in between. We service many areas of NJ including Monmouth, Middlesex and Morris counties as well as other surrounding areas. Call today for more...