True Reviewer

I’m here to share my experience of a decade and half on the subject of sealing your ceramic tiles. Sealing is helpful only if it is carried out the way it should be. Inappropriately executed sealing does more harm than any good and spoils the floor.

Sealing does not remain as effective as the manufacturers would normally claim. If the manufacturers say it would last for say five years, consider yourself lucky if it goes beyond a year. But, it will not be proper to hold the manufacturer solely responsible for this state of affairs. It is the way of execution and the kind of floor that is being sealed. For instance, sealing your bathroom floor or even the kitchen that is sure to have moisture can not be as effective and long lasting as any other place of your home.

Without any intentions of discouraging you from going ahead, I just want you to take care of a few things while sealing your floor. The most important factor is to use a sealer of very high quality, and that is going to be rather expensive. You would have already invested a lot of money in getting your floor tiled with ceramic tiles. Using a second grade sealer is going to tarnish the image of your expensive floor. The price of a good quality sealer should be around $100 per gallon. Anything cheaper than that could be suspected for its quality.

Apart from the quality of sealer, the most critical factor is the maintenance of your floor. Bear in mind that use of detergents and soaps for cleaning of such floor must be avoided at all costs. Use of such materials leaves a thin layer of sticky chemicals on the floor. This layer attracts dirt. Use a mixture of vinegar and water for cleaning. Ten ounces of vinegar in three gallons of water is sufficient to get the desired results. Equally important for the maintenance is the use of clean mops. It’s very simple to understand that a dirty mop would rather impart an unhealthy look to the floor than making it cleaner.

Mind you I make money by cleaning and sealing grouts in houses all over the town, yet I do not recommend my customers to go for sealing for the simple reason that I know it is not worth it. By and large it remains ineffective.

However, in case you are bent upon having it, take care of two things: use a sealer of excellent quality and be prepared to spare time in maintaining it the way it is desired. If you are not too sure of sparing the time and effort needed for its maintenance keep yourself away and save your money, not to mention the headache of keeping it clean.

After you have researched hot tub covers and have decided which one to buy, you’re going to want to think of one more thing.

Taking care of your hot tub cover.

You not only want your hot tub cover to protect your spa, you also want to protect the cover from wear. Hot tub covers that are well kept and cleaned regularly will benefit you greatly and will save you money over the long haul. Hot tub covers aren’t difficult to maintain, but if you want them to last, there are some things you should know about how to protect them.

Use a quality UVA/UVB vinyl protectant four or five times a year. Do not use protectants that have petroleum or alcohol in them, like Armor-All, which will damage the vinyl on hot tub covers. If you choose to use bromine, use as little as possible and make sure to wipe the surface of the cover down very well. You don’t want gas from the strong chemical to get stuck beneath the underside of the cover, which will make it brittle and wear it out.

Make sure to leave your hot tub cover open for a half-hour jet cycle just to clear out the system and make sure no such gases are caught inside the spa. One thing that destroys hot tub covers (or at least makes them ridiculously heavy) is seepage of water getting into the foam core. The foam core has a plastic covering that you don’t want to get punctured. If it does get punctured, water will begin to seep into the very dry core of the cover and it may mold and will definitely get heavier.

To fix the problem of water getting into your hot tub covers core, use clear packaging tape to patch up any holes or tears in the plastic covering.

Hot tub covers tend to sag after a few years of use and after water seeps into the inner core, which will happen over time. You can take the inner core out of hot tub covers and flip it over. This should reverse any sagging.

If you do this every six months as well as check the inner plastic seal for holes, then you shouldn’t have to look for hot tub covers anymore. Yours will last for years.