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Make your old grout look like new with this $9 grout pen. Restore grout and make it white!
Grout is something a LOT of homes have and yet it always looks old and dirty. It can make a decent tile look outdated. Instead of tearing out the tile and grout to put in something new which can be hundreds or thousands or dollars, I found a little trick to make the grout look new which in turn makes the tile look new!
Our house was built in 1989 and it has a lot of outdated aspects, like the pink bathtub. The tile in the guest bathroom isn’t terrible. It looks almost like marble.
The problem was that the grout looked dirty, outdated, and just plain gross.
I tried getting it clean by scrubbing it, using bleach, and even some natural cleaning solutions. Nothing worked to make it look clean and I really wanted it to be white.
To get the grout to be white, I really only had one option and that is using a grout pen.
Make Old Grout Look Like New
Grout pens are handy little tools that restore grout and give it a new color. They are water-based, non toxic, low odor, fast drying, and have an anti-mold formula. It’s also anti-bacterial and anti-fungal. They come in different colors and sizes to fit your grout.
One pen can cover up to 60 meters of grout and I found one pen to be just enough for my small bathroom.
Shop The Grout Pen
How To Use A Grout Pen
To use the grout pen, clean your grout first and then shake, push the tip in, and apply. You have to depress the nib several times to activate the paint flow at first.
The nib is a fiber tip so if you use it over rough grout, it will wear down. Be as gentle as possible with it and it should last longer.
I got the 5mm pen in white. I didn’t time myself to see how long it took to paint all the grout but if I had to guess, I’d say between 1 to 2 hours, including cleaning the grout first.
It’s really just like using a marker and coloring in the grout. Think of the grout pen as white-out because that’s basically what it is.
I plan to use a grout pen for my master bathroom too to make the grout look like new. It’s fun finding low cost ways to upgrade and update a room. Gone are the days of complete remodels to transform a room. Just look at how I renovated my guest bathroom for under $500! Crazy transformation, right?
Hey Jenny. My friends are very impressed with your work. Love you, Grandma
Thank you Grandma!! Love you!
I learn so much from you and your diy videos r wonderful. My husband and I r working on our forever home and your videos are very helpful.
Ty
So happy I could help! It’s exciting making a home your own. 🙂
Hello. Thx For your tips on using a grout pen. I am repainting the tile in my bathroom walls. And I’d like to fine-tune the grout by using the white grout pen that will make it look brand new with brand new colored tiles. Do you have any idea if the grout pen will work over a primer paint thank you
I’m not sure as I haven’t tried it but it’s worth a try! You could always try it on one small spot and see how it works and then do the whole thing.
Did this hold up? I wanted to apply to the grout in my shower stall but I’m worried it’ll wash away.
Thanks,
Lauren
Hi Lauren! It’s held up great so far. I’ve done it to my master bathroom floors too where we shower daily and have stepped on it with wet feet, I’ve mopped the floors multiple times and it looks the same as when I first did it!
Did you also paint the tiles or was it just the grout pen you used? The tile looks so different!
Nope, I didn’t paint the tiles. They just look so much better with how the grout looks now!