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Regrouting Grout Lines 
Regrouting Tile Lines
Kitchen and bathroom floors can sure take a beating. Because these are two of most-used floors in a house by everyone, they can quickly become dirty, dingy, and start to look unattractive. Surprisingly, it's probably not the tile that's making the floor look so old and worn, it's probably the grout. The grout is the substance in between the tiles that holds everything together and gives it a finished look. Sometimes re-grouting grout lines is all that's needed to make your floors sparkle once again!
Because grout is so prone to absorbing anything that falls on it, including dirt, water, and other stains, it can become especially hard to clean. It's true that the older grout gets, there will be more deep-set in stains in older grout. This is when re-grouting floor tile will be necessary to get back that clean look you're after. Re-grouting grout lines doesn't need to be all that difficult, and there are many tools that can help you do this easily. The first tool you will want is a scraper, which simply looks like a handle with a mini-saw on the end, a rubber grout float, which looks like a large paddle, and a grout finisher, which is a small sponge on the end of a tube.
First you need to thoroughly clean the grout on the kitchen and bathroom tile floors. Although you're going to be re-grouting the floor, you don't want old dirt to become mixed in with the new grout that you will be putting down. Dry the floor thoroughly once it's clean and begin to scrape out the old grout that you want to replace. To do this, you simply have to place the scraper on the grout, push firmly, and scrape it along the grout area. It will simply break off and lift out. If you are re-grouting ceramic tile, be sure to push the scraper away from the tiles. You don't want to chip or break them in the process of re-grouting the grout lines! Wipe the area with a damp cloth so that you don't get dust and grime in the new grout and continue on.
The next step requires the rubber grout float. This is going to re-grout the grout lines as it will take the newly mixed grout and spread it over the lines. Be sure as you are doing this that you are pushing the new grout directly into the grout lines. Getting grout on the tiles is unavoidable but make sure that you quickly scrape off as much of the excess grout as possible. If too much of it dries onto the tile, it will harden and will be extremely difficult to remove! When you are re-grouting ceramic tile, any grout that gets onto the tile is likely to give the tile a murky appearance so the excess grout should be easy to spot.
It would be a shame to do all that work of re-grouting a tile floor only to be left with uneven, rough grout. Because of this, you will need the grout finisher to run down the newly laid grout. This will smooth it all out and when you apply a bit of pressure, it will also force even more of the grout down into the grout lines, making sure that the grout fills the entire line. Your finger will work just as well for this job if you don't have a grout finisher; just make sure that the lines you've re-grouted are even.
If you are considering re-grouting your tile floor and want to do it yourself, there are plenty of re-grouting kits available that will have all of the tools that you will need. However, if the job is very big, or you are not entirely sure of what needs to be done, it's a good idea to find a contractor to do the job. Whichever you choose, re-grouting your grout lines will do wonders for your kitchen and bathroom floors, and can give them many more years of life!
Remember, if you aren't familiar with the manufacturer's grout application specifications, call a professional.
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