Best Shower Grout Cleaner

When Kevin and I bought our house (April 2013), one thing that always bugged me was that the master shower was dirty. The shower (just a stand-up, no tub) is completely tile. The walls are large tiles, with a couple smaller decorative ones near the top, but the floor is tiny 1" tiles. The grout between these little tiles was practically black, and cleaning it didn't help. It always grossed me out because one, it's black/dirty looking, but two, it was there before we moved in, meaning a lot of it was created by someone else's grime (dead skin cells...ewww). It's pretty sad to feel dirty while taking a shower.

Anyway, I didn't know how to fix this gross problem and it's not something you regularly discuss with friends. "Oh hey, my shower is growing black stuff that I can't get off with regular cleaner; any suggestions?" Anyway, Kevin had our friend Dan (Mr. Fix-it) check something in our bathroom one day, and while he was in there, he mentioned that they had the same black growth in their newly purchased house and his wife (Simone) got it off with a "special mixture" she made. When Kevin told me this, I immediately needed to find out from Simone what she used. 

I only needed baking soda (or any gritty type cleaner; she used Comet) and bleach. She told me to mix it together until I had a paste, rub it on the grout, and leave it for several hours. The only catch was to make sure it stayed moist during the waiting time, and the best way to do this was to cover it with plastic wrap. After hours had passed, simply pour water over it, and all black yuckiness would be gone. Sounds way too good to be true right? See for yourself through my pictures and step-by-step instructions. 

Step 1: Gather necessary supplies. You will need a good amount of baking soda (don't be intimidated by my huge bag, you don't need THAT much) to make sure the mixture is a paste. Also, be sure to use rubber gloves, so your hands don't disintegrate from the bleach. You'll need something to mix the paste in -- I used a paper bowl...I do NOT recommend this as it started to fall apart after making several batches. You may want to have a toothbrush if there are especially dark places to give a little extra scrub. This is optional though. Lastly, WEAR A MASK!!! The fumes are very strong. A bandana would work fine (that's what my friend Simone wore), but please wear something over your nose and mouth! I also recommend turning on the bathroom fan and opening a window, if possible. 

Step 2: Make the paste. I started by pouring a pile of baking soda into the bowl and then added bleach until it was thin enough to spread, but thick enough to consider a paste. There's no exact combination, but you'll get the hang of it as you're working with it. I had to make several batches since my bowl was small, so each batch was slightly different. Too thick was hard to spread around, but too watery didn't seem to "stick" to the grout. All batches seemed to work overall though, so don't stress on this step. 

Step 3: Spread on grout and cover with plastic wrap. I just used my gloved finger to apply the paste. It was kind of like finger-painting. I put my plastic wrap down in between each batch, but you could probably cover all the grout with paste and then sprinkle/mist with water (to make sure it stays wet) before applying the plastic to everything at once. Whichever appeals to you more.

Step 4: Let sit for several hours. I only did two hours because I wanted to finish before Gideon's bed time. (No, Gideon wasn't near this, as the fumes are quite strong.) I would recommend waiting two to three hours.

Step 5: Remove plastic wrap and rinse with water. (Scrub tough places with toothbrush, if necessary.) I just used a plastic cup and refilled it a million times until all the bleach/baking soda paste was gone. I recommend something larger, like a bucket, so it wouldn't take as many refills to rinse the whole shower. If you have a showerhead that detaches, that could work too. I was afraid to turn on the showerhead since I removed the curtain for easier access and didn't want to get soaked.

Step 6: Admire super clean shower. I LOVE that the yucky black stuff is GONE! Actually feeling clean in the shower is a nice change. I'm a bit embarrassed it took me this long to find something that worked, but I am beyond glad I finally I did. (Thank you Simone!) I didn't take a before picture to show the difference, but I promise, it wasn't pleasant before and it's beautiful now.
(I actually did this back in early February and still no black has returned!)


Grout Cleaner "Recipe"

Ingredients: 
-bleach
-baking soda (or other gritty cleaner, such as Comet)
-bowl or some type of container to mix paste in
-plastic wrap
-rubber gloves
-mask or bandana
-cup or bucket to use for washing away paste
-toothbrush (optional) 

1. Gather necessary supplies.
2. Make the paste.
3. Spread on grout and cover with plastic wrap.
4. Let sit for several hours.
5. Remove plastic wrap and rinse with water.
6. Admire super clean shower.