Polished porcelain / haze / etching

[Katherine-too-trusting]

18" rectified polished porcelain, laid with 1/8" grout line. Efflourescence, some areas are off and on, others are stone cold white. The grout is not right color where there isn't hazing, blah-diddy-blah you have heard this song and dance before.

It is over a week old now, HD polyblend unsanded. Tried a 50% vinegar solution, a toothbrush / multiple applications did seem to get results but I am paranoid because some vinegar slopped without me knowing, I don't know if tile absorbed it and that's the issue, at first I thought it was etched. Anyway, I now have fear of further damaging the tile since I spent hours trying to clean the blotches up.

1) Can I use straight vinegar with toothbrush and clean it up within a minute or will that dull/damage tile? I have a grout haze remover from a job I'd done myself a while back but it says not to use on marble, I don't know if polished porcelain (rated 5) is comparable to that, am afraid to try.

2) Should I just give up and use something like grout renew that stains and seals or would it be uneven with the mix of regular and hazed grout areas? My bones are talking to me from all the kneeling/laying on floor.

3) Assuming someday this grout is fixed and I can get a life again, should I seal the polished porcelain as well? I have been given mixed info.

I would like to personally thank you for taking the time to provide very valuable advice. I read previous posts and you folks are very helpful and caring. Thank you, regardless of whether you can help or not.

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[Stone Dude]

the vinegar should not damage the tile. it may have dried and been diffiicult to get off, but I have never had an issue with porcelain and vinegar.

you do NOT want to seal the tile, there is not need and will only cause further frustration.

there is a product made by Aquamix called EFF-EX. it is made specifically for efflorescence.

I am not familiar with grout renew specifically, but a color-seal, or grout colorant made for that application would have the best outcome. the color will come out dead even regardless of the blotchiness of the grout itself.

HOWEVER, the grout coloring application is not a quick and easy thing. It can be, but takes much practice to get there.

[Davestone]

Actually, tile manuf recommend sealing polished porcelain tile,before grouting is even better,just use an impregnating sealer,but don't seal it if there is a grout haze, remove that first.

[SABoyt]

Katherine, some of our confussion may come from what people call the particular tile they have. Some are very accurate in the name and some are not. We might be giving you different ideas because of this. Glazed porcelain and polished porcelain could both be described the same way - they aren't.

Just do an absorbency test on the tile to determine if it can be sealed instead of guessing. Put a couple of drops of water on the tile. Let them sit for 5-10 minutes then wipe away the first drop. See if the tile is a different color where the water drop was. If so, you have your answer, you can seal it. If not wait another 10 minutes and wipe away the second drop, check again for color change of the tile. If this one changed and the first one didn't, you can still seal it, but i would recommend only a solvent based sealer because the solids (carrier) are much smaller and will penetrate a more dense stone better. If neither one changed color - don't waste your time and money on a tile sealer.

As for the grout haze cleaner: take a piece of the leftover tile if possible, (if not do this in an inconspicuous place) and spill some vinegar or acid cleaner on it. Let it sit for about a minute and wipe it away. Wash with water and check to see if the surface was affected. This will tell you if the surface is acid sensitive or not.

[Stone Dude]

Davestone, thats a new one to me. I have heard of guys sealing before grouting so it acts as a realease for cleaning up grout, but not for actually sealing the porcelain. But I HAVE seen guys sealing porcelain toilets and stuff, so you never know.

[Katherine-too-trusting]

I am half moved into the house and only just got my system up so I could get phone numbers (only had hubby's laptop before). I want to thank you all for your replies!

The vinegar did come up, after I spoke with rep who sold me tile I was bolder and used a magic eraser and that took it right up. This is grade 5 seriously impervious porcelain, thank the Lord. I am going to try removing the haze according to your recommendations shortly (am a bit overwhelmed).

I appreciate your help; there were several problems with this installation and I needed a bit of direction for fear of making a challenging situation worse.

God bless you, Katherine

[Davestone]

Cam,eron look at almost any tile manuf. websites and it will advise sealing polished porcelain.The polishing opens the face of the tile allowing it to absorb particulates.