Tile floors – a beautiful and popular flooring choice for many homes. Trust me, the tile floors gives a gorgoues look. However, keeping tile floors sparkling clean can be a challenge, especially for large areas. Scrubbing by hand is time consuming and tiring. So can you rent a machine to clean tile floors instead?
Renting a professional-grade tile cleaning machine offers several benefits over manual scrubbing. Keep reading to learn why renting a tile floor cleaner is a great option and what types of machines are available for rent.
Why Rent a Tile Floor Cleaning Machine?
Renting a tile floor cleaner machine is much more efficient than manual scrubbing. Here are some of the biggest benefits:
1. Save Time and Effort
Cleaning tile floors by hand is incredibly labor intensive and time consuming. The process involves scrubbing on hands and knees, constantly rinsing out dirty water, and repeating.
Renting a tile cleaning machine does the hard work for you. Just guide the machine over the floor and allow it to scrub and vacuum up the dirty water in one pass.
2. Deeper Cleaning
Tile cleaning machines reach deep into the grout to lift out dirt, stains, and grime that regular mopping cannot. They use spinning brush heads and strong suction to thoroughly clean.
This deep cleaning ability makes renting a tile scrubber ideal for older floors or tile that hasn’t been professionally cleaned in a long time.
3. Large Surface Areas
Larger tile floors and commercial tile jobs can be daunting or even impossible to clean manually. Yet repeatedly hiring professional tile cleaning services grows costly over time.
Renting a heavy duty tile cleaning machine is a cost effective way to tackle large tile cleaning projects. Homeowners can achieve professional level results without the expense of hiring a service.
Rental Cleaning Machines for Tile Floors
Types of Machines
Home improvement stores, grocery stores, and other retailers typically rent two types of powerful tile cleaning machines:
Steam cleaners
They use hot, pressurized steam – often over 200°F – to blast away dirt, stains, and grime from tile floors. The high heat also sanitizes the floor by killing bacteria and other pathogens. These machines come in lightweight handheld models for small jobs and larger rolling models for whole rooms.
Floor scrubbers
They particularly utilize rotating brushes, water, and cleaning solutions to scrub and scour tile floors. They are more effective at removing built-up grime and soils. Some models also have a squeegee vacuum function to remove the dirty water as they clean. These ride-on style machines are ideal for big tile floors.
Where to Rent Them
Many major hardware stores like Home Depot and Lowe’s offer floor cleaning machine rentals. Their selection includes steam cleaners and floor scrubbers in various sizes.
Grocery stores may have smaller steam cleaners for rent. Rug and flooring rental companies are another option for more specialized tile cleaning equipment.
The rental machines, detergents, brushes, pads and accessories are usually located together in a designated rental section or desk within the store. This makes it convenient to find everything needed for tile cleaning projects.
Cost of Renting
Expect to pay approximately $25-$50 per day for a basic handheld steam cleaner or small floor scrubber rental. Larger machines may cost $75-$100 per day. The price varies based on the machine’s size, power, and features. Buying the detergents, brushes, pads and accessories adds another $15-$30 or more to the total rental cost.
Consider the square footage and type of tile you need to clean when choosing a rental. More powerful steamers or auto-scrubbers are ideal for large floors, while compact spot cleaners may suffice for small spaces. Compare rental costs and features to get the best cleaning performance for the price.
How To Use a Rental Cleaning Machine on Tile
Prepare the Floor
To allow full access for the cleaning machine, be sure to clear and prepare the tile floor thoroughly prior to starting:
- Sweep up loose dirt and debris with a broom. Vacuum if needed.
- Remove all furniture, area rugs, and other items sitting directly on the tiles.
- Inspect grout lines and crevices for built-up grime or stains needing spot treatment. Use a scrub brush and cleaning solution to manually pre-treat these areas if needed.
- Check for cracks or loose tiles that may catch or damage the machine.
The tile floor needs to be fully exposed and cleared of obstructions so the rental machine can cover the entire surface area efficiently.
Operate the Machine
Always refer to the instruction manual and follow rental store guidance for proper operation. Here are some general guidelines:
- Roll or carry the machine slowly over the tiles in overlapping paths to cover all areas. Apply even forward pressure on floor scrubbers.
- On steam cleaners, hold the nozzle 6-12 inches above the floor and squeeze the trigger intermittently. Take care not to oversaturate any sections.
- Work in manageable sections of 15-20 square feet. Rinse scrubber brushes or change steamer pads frequently to prevent redepositing grime.
- Avoid lingering too long in one spot, which can damage tile or grout. Keep the machine moving.
- When finished, empty dirty water tanks from floor scrubbers. Rinse away any chemical residue.
Follow all safety precautions and wear closed-toe shoes to protect feet from hot steamers or scrubbers.
Allow to Dry
It is crucial to let tile floors dry completely before allowing regular foot traffic or returning furniture. Lingering moisture after using cleaning machines can allow bacteria and dirt to redeposit on tile.
- Place fans strategically around the room to facilitate quick drying. Dehumidifiers also help remove moisture from the air.
- Keep people and pets off the tile for a minimum of 6-12 hours. Wait 24 hours before replacing area rugs.
- Only put furniture back once tiles are completely dry. Moisture trapped under objects slows drying.
- Don’t walk on floor with shoes until fully dry. The grout is sensitive after deep cleaning.
Well dried tiles are necessary for an evenly cleaned surface free of moisture rings or cleaned/uncleaned variations.
Final Thoughts
There you have it – renting a specialized tile floor cleaning machine allows DIYers to efficiently remove years of accumulated grime, dirt, and stains from tile surfaces and grout.
So, if you would like to go for this option, convenient rentals are affordable at home improvement and grocery stores. And with some basic preparation and attention to operating guidelines, homeowners can restore their tile floors to a like-new condition.