Wrong Sealant used on Unfinished Ceramic Tile... how to remove?!

flipjarg

When I moved into my house we took the carpet out of the bathroom and put in some 6x6 (maybe 5x5) unfinished ceramic tile. Instead of sealant for tile being put on, sealant for wood floors was put on (don't ask it is a terrible, bothersome story). On the can it said it was a water cleanup product. Today I tried using grout cleaner and hot soapy water at the same time. It took me two hours to remove the sealant from a 3x3 foot area. The sealant does not want to come off the grout.

My question is, what can I use to remove this stuff more quickly? The grout is white and the tiles are dark red. I am afraid to ruin any of the colors.

I am going to put the right stuff on as soon as I can remove this wood floor sealant.

Any help would be very appreciated. Thanks!

Snav

They sell sealant cleaners that you're suppose to be able to use when you are preparing a tiled surface for re-sealing. But they sometimes take a long time and lots of elbow grease, too. . . and they stink to high heaven and require strong ventilation and aren't always effective. (Oh, and the effective ones are really expensive).

I've also heard of a product called 'Oil Eater' being used to prep grout for sealing. Not that it really removes old sealant - but it cleans the surface so new sealant can be applied.

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flipjarg

The current wood sealant that is on the floor has spots that came off and exposed the tile. That happen after two days of having the stuff on there. I don't think it will take too much to get it off but soap and grout cleaner are just not doing it.

I will have to take a look at some of those cleaners you mentioned. It is a 45 minute drive to the nearest hardware store that is worth going to. I could go to my local one and pay twice what I would at home depot or menards.

Snav

You can never beat elbow grease.

In the past I've taken a buffer to sealant-covered surfaces to remove extra leftover stuff - worked pretty good :D Buffer pads are washable, too

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