Why are many homeowners installing tile floors instead of other wood floorings? Well, for one, tile floors are easy to clean and are durable.
With the right care, your tile floor can withstand almost anything. However, floor tiles can trap dirt and odors due to their porous nature, especially when they’re not properly cared for.
We are quite certain that most homeowners are interested in how to remove odor from tile floors. Rubbing alcohol and the use of disinfectants are effective ways to get rid of odors from tile floors.
Let’s get started, shall we?
Read: Homemade tile floor cleaner for mopping
Why your Tile Floor Smells Musty
Table of Contents
Before we get started on how to remove odor from tile floor, we should start with reasons why your tile floor smells musty. Once you know some of these reasons, you can take preventive measures to avoid a reoccurrence. Below are some of these reasons:
1. The Water Under the Tile is Deteriorated and Stinking
Sometimes floor tiles have a musty smell because the water under the tile has deteriorated. Sometimes, if the water permeates under the brick from the joint of the brick, it results in a strong smell on the tiles.
Even if the floor is waterproof, the water accumulates under the tile, deteriorating and stinking, resulting in an odor smell.
This accumulation of water usually happens in places like the kitchen and bathroom because of the frequent use of water in these areas.
Read: How to dry water under wood floor
2. Dirty and Moldy Ceramic Tile Joints
Sometimes, musty floor tiles result from when the tile grout sealing is not done well. It’s common to see the grout turn from white to black and turns moldy.
Bacteria are hidden between these grouts, resulting in a musty smell on the floor tile.
If your floor tiles are ridden with cracks or crevices, an accumulation of bacteria, mold, sewage, and dirt may be the source of the musty smell.
3. Low-Quality Tiles
There is a need for you to get only high-quality tiles. Low-quality tiles are known for having a sulfide smell which has a strong and terrible odor.
The production of tiles involves firing sulphides such as hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide, and magnesium. These gases included in the tiles can easily result in a musty smell when it comes in contact with water.
4. Using a Dirty and Humid Mop
Sometimes, the musty smell from your floor tiles is not from the tile itself but from the mop used in mopping it. There is a need to dry your mop after use.
Failure to do this will result in a mop filled with microorganisms and bacteria. Using this type of mop to clean your floors will result in a musty smell sticking to your floor tiles.
Read: How to clean a mop
8. When the Tiles are Not Properly Glazed
Unglazed floor tiles need to be sealed properly with a good sealant. If you have a floor tile that is not properly glazed, it is easy for the insufficient glaze material (oil) to mix with water used on the tiles. This will easily result in the tile’s deterioration and a musty smell.
How to Remove Odor from Tile Floor
Various methods can be effective in getting rid of odor on your floor tiles. Remember that there is no hard and fast rule here. You can combine the methods outlined here until the smell is completely eradicated.
1. Mop the Floor with Medical Alcohol
A bottle of medical alcohol might just be what you need to give your floor tiles a clean and fresh smell.
To use the alcohol, dip your mop into a bucket of water, then squeeze out the water. Pour the alcohol on the mop and wash it again before using it to mop the floor. Repeat the process until you are done mopping.
Read: How to get alcohol smell out of carpet
2. Treat Your Floor Tiles With Disinfectant
As mentioned, sometimes your floor tiles have a bad odor due to a build-up of microorganisms and bacteria. In such a case, you need a bottle of strong disinfectant to get rid of these bacteria and microorganisms.
Simply mix the disinfectant with water and mop your floor tiles with it. If you are sensitive to the smell of disinfectant, you can alternate it with lemonade. Although, note that the disinfectant might be more effective in getting rid of bacteria and microorganisms.
3. Grow Green Plants
Sometimes harmful indoor gases can give your floor tiles give a bad smell. Growing green plants in the room, such as Chlorophytum, green pineapple, which have air purification qualities, can get rid of bad smells.
Read: How to protect floor from potted plants
4. Make Sure That the Room Is Properly Ventilated
It is necessary to keep the windows open, especially after mopping the house. This is to ensure that the house is properly ventilated.
5. Use Vinegar to Clean The Tiles
Vinegar is a known cleaning agent that can properly absorb bad smells. Dilute vinegar in a bucket of warm water and mop the floor with the mixture.
How to Remove Dog Urine Odor from Tile Floors
Your favorite pet can make a mess around the house, and when this happens, you need to find a way to take the mess off before the situation gets worse.
Dog urine should be clean ASAP to prevent the liquid from permeating into your floor tiles. Follow the steps outlined below to get rid of dog urine odor.
1. The first step is removing the urine from the tiles using folded paper towels. Blot up as much of the urine as possible until no more liquid comes up. This step should be skipped if the urine has dried up.
2. Next, mix a tablespoon of white vinegar and liquid dish soap into 2 cups of lukewarm water in a bowl or bucket.
3. Dip a rag into the vinegar and liquid dish soap solution and wipe the area of the spill, starting from the edges toward the center.
4. Use clean water to rinse the floor. Dip a different rag into clean water and wipe the affected area starting from the outside edges toward the center. This is to remove any residue of the vinegar and liquid dish soap solution left behind.
6, Give the floor time to dry, or you can hasten up the process by turning on a ceiling fan or using a portable fan pointed toward the wet area.
7. If you still perceive some slight odor, sprinkle the cleaned area with baking soda and vacuum the carpet after 30 minutes to remove the powder. You may have to keep on repeating this process until the smell is completely gone.
Read: How to remove urine stain from hardwood floor
Conclusion
It is normal to deal with musty floor tiles. Fortunately, there are effective ways of getting rid of these smells.
Note that sometimes the smell might result from the accumulation of water under the tiles; if such is the case, you might need a professional to deal with it.
We hope this post on how to remove odor from tile floor has answered all questions you may have on odor removal from floor tiles.