Sometimes the Jones’ Have to Keep Up Too
I had a conversation with one of my customers the other day after we finished cleaning and color sealing her grout. She shared the story of how she came to call me.
“As so often happens,” she began, “my greatest insights are conceived in the bathroom.”
With a bemused look on my face and my curiosity piqued, I couldn’t help but agree and let her regale me with her story.
“I was sitting in my downstairs powder room, not thinking about anything in particular, when I noticed how uneven the grout color was. Some areas were an off-white, beige color, other areas were almost a dark brown. You’ve got to understand. I’m one of those clean freaks. My home is my masterpiece. I am cleaning it all the time. I thrive when it is clean and fresh.”
Just outside the powder room was her great room area, with more of the same tile and grout. She closely examined it all and was so disappointed in how it looked. Moreover, she had recently moved the furniture around and found the grout lines in a section that had been covered by an area rug since they moved into the house were considerably lighter in color.
“Could this be…. dirt and stains?” she wondered. But she was so fastidious about her housekeeping. How could this happen? She laughed and confided that secretly she had to admit she was completely unsettled by this, so she researched the web and found great tips for cleaning grout lines. With sheer determination and potential loss of reputation driving her, she spent an entire Saturday scouring her grout lines. And she did an amazing job. The tile and grout were gorgeous. All but a few areas that she decided she had no choice but to live with looked great. She loved walking into the room and seeing the overall dramatic difference it made.
But within a few months, even with frequent mopping, she noticed the grout lines weren’t looking so great anymore, and thought, “Oh well… better start planning on another Saturday.” What happened next though was, in her words, “Life changing!”
She went to a friend’s house for a barbecue. As they were sitting in her friend’s outdoor kitchen and eating area, she noticed how clean and even-colored the tile floor looked.
“Now, I have to tell you,” she confided, “this friend is not a clean freak like me. You’re much more likely to see her romping around with her kids or lounging around her pool than spending any time, much less an entire Saturday, on her hands and knees, going over grout lines with a toothbrush and bucket. I had to know her secret!”
Finally she just came out and asked. Her friend smiled and said, “Color Sealing.” The friend went on to explain that she had hired us to deep clean her grout lines and then apply ColorSealing. It evened up the color of the grout so it was all consistent, then it protected it from absorbing soils and stains. All she had to do was sweep it and damp mop occasionally to keep it looking great.
My new customer concluded, “She laughed and told me how often drinks are spilled, food is spilled, kids come running in and forget to wipe their feet, and so on, yet the grout continues to clean up almost effortlessly. I was sold. She gave me your name and number and I almost ran home to call you right then and there.”
For decorum’s sake, she waited until the next day.
This is one of a series of articles written and published on behalf of Stone and Tile PRO Partners.
