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Cleaning Edges of Tile Floor at Baseboards

13 years ago

It seems that whenever I mop, I end up moving the dirt/grime from my floors over to the corners. Is there supposed to be a gap between the baseboards of a house and the tile? My baseboards come right down to the tile so there is nowhere for the dirt to go and it just accumulates. How do I get it out? Any ways to prevent this from happening in the future? See pics below:

Here is a link that might be useful:

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Comments (6)

graywings123
13 years ago
The first step to making that look better is hand cleaning - hands-and knees on the floor with a bucket of water. I use liquid Mr. Clean in water and microfiber cloths.

From there, I would vacuum the floors before mopping, including cleaning the edges with the round brush attachment on your vacuum. This picks up the loose dirt that otherwise gets pushed into the corners. Vacuuming can sometimes take the place of mopping.

You might want to consider giving up the mop and bucket altogether and switching to steam cleaning your floors. There are several posts here on steam cleaning. It's soooo much easier than mopping.
mike_kaiser_gw
13 years ago
Cleaning it, as previously suggested, with be a hands and knees project. You might want to think about using an old toothbrush as well. Another tool that might be useful is something the car detailers use. It's essentially a round paint brush but the bristles have been cut back to 3/4" or so. Still flexible enough to get into nooks and crannies but stiff enough to pull out dirt. While you can buy them, you can make the same thing out of inexpensive paint brush and trim the bristles a sharp razor blade As also suggested, vacuum well before you mop.

Once you've got things clean, you might want to think about a nice bead of caulk to create a smoother seam.
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It can be done either way, but as the others have said the preferred way is to install the tile first. There are a couple of reasons for this. First, you can leave an open gap around the perimeter of the room that will be covered by the baseboard to allow for seasonal expansion and contraction of the structure. Also, because the edge will be hidden, you also don't have to be quite as exacting with your cuts. Once the baseboard is installed, you have a nice clean look to the installation. If you install the baseboards first, now, everything has to be scribed, and done so very accurately, so as to show a uniform joint all the way around, this includes scribing to all door trim (and in case you think that's no big deal, I've included a picture). Also, once the tile is installed, all grout must be cleaned out of the perimeter joint, and that joint must be caulked to allow for e seasonal movement. So it CAN be done, but it's not really recommended. Don't try this at home, kiddies!
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I just realized that I am always ten steps ahead. I guess that it good because when I actually get to the project I have all my ducks in a row. I am currently laying the tile on my hearth and surround. But that leads to redoing the floors because we ripped up the existing hearth which disrupted existing floor, but we never liked it anyway so out it goes! I have done laminate before so I have that down. I did not have to do tile in prior house so this is new. This is probably the only DIY that we have not done before, literally we have done everything one can do to a house except build it by from the ground up. Maybe that will be the next house??? Nooooooo! What color caulk would you suggest. The baseboards are white and so is quarterround. The tile is slate with grout that will be dark charcoalish. I am thinking the white but wonder if if dark would keep the white line of the base of the quarterround looking straight. If I do white it may give the illusion that the molding is wavy. Or am I doing the caulk under the trim farther back where it will not show?? I am assuming that I put it on the edge and it will show???
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You could simply cut the tiles in half, and use the cut edge down against the floor and the more finished 'factory' edge exposed at the top. That's essentially how I did my kitchen backsplash, and it turned out nice, if I do say so... I think it looks much better to have the grout lines from floor to baseboard aligned in this sort of installation, and remember to leave a gap between the walls and floor that can be filled with calk, NOT grout, to allow for the two surfaces to move relative to each other. Grout simply won't last in this application. The gap can be quite small, though. An edge treatment is possible, but pricey. You'd probably need to have a local stone shop do it for you. Since granite tile is so thin, though, I don't think it would make much of a visual impact.
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I don't have tile baseboards, but my painters finished my wood baseboards by mixing the wall paint into some kind of caulk, which left this wonderful seal on the top of the wood that is easy to clean. I don't know the products used or the method they used (sorry), but maybe some research would lead you to that solution? I found this product through google, not sure if this is it or not: http://www.sashco.com/products/exact-color/
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jannie
13 years ago
What Mike said. Get it nice and clean, let it dry,then apply some caulk.
lilafter
13 years ago
like graywings mentioned, steam clean.

i have a dry vapor steam canister. its kind of bulky, but great for deep cleaning. i pull it out a few times a year and deep clean walls, floors, everything.

just have to make sure to keep it moving or else it will vaporize the paint right off! wipe with shop towels and that's it. clean.
monicakm_gw
13 years ago
Yeah, that's gonna take a lot of scrubbing and toothbrushes. First get out all of the debris that you can. I use a steam cleaner and would never go back to a bucket and mop! But, before I steam clean, I vacuum and if I'm having a "good back day" I'll go over it a microfiber dust mop after I vacuum. The floor is basically clean of all debris and dust at this point. I'd hate to tell you how long it's been since I've used my steam cleaner. With my back problem vacuuming and spot cleaning as I go is having to suffice. But, when I do, steam cleaning makes my porcelain tile feel SO wonderfully velvety smooth that I HAVE to take my shoes off for awhile just to walk on my clean floors (lol) Bissell makes a GREAT little stick vac. I think it's under $20 at Walmart and around Christmas time, they can be as low as $14. I have one at each end of the house.
If you decide to look into steam mops, again, Bissell makes a great product! Whichever route you go, always ALWAYS vacuum first! My kitchen tile is 8.5 years old. Baseboards are only 3 years old. I haven't vacuumed in about 4 days. If you get really industrious, you might even consider a fresh coat of paint on the trim. With the clean edges/corners and fresh paint, it'll look brand new :)
Bissell Stick Vac
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=14320844&findingMethod=rr#Item+Description

Bissell Steam Mop
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Bissell-Steam-Mop-Hard-Floor/6497961
Monica
arizonny
13 years ago
Wow. A good cleaning, painters caulk and new paint are gonna be your best bet. Paint your trim with a good quality enamel for the best cleaning potential.

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