Can You Vacuum Tile Floors? Yes, But Here's What to Know

Technological advancements have made cleaning floors easier than ever. Vacuum cleaners, for example, make cleaning carpets, upholstery, and couches easier, faster, and more economical. What about tiles? Can you vacuum tile floors?

Yes, you can vacuum tile floors; it's fast, efficient, and easy to remove dirt.

Vacuuming tiles also protect the person vacuuming from the dirt and dust, as the vacuum contains them so that they don't float up into the air and contaminate your indoor air.

However, many of us don't want to use a vacuum on tiles for fear of scratching up our floors! To prevent scratches on your tile floors, ensure you're using the right vacuum cleaner and brush attachment.

Depending on the condition of your floor, you can use a handheld or an automatic vacuum cleaner or hire professional tile cleaners to clean your tiles.

So, are you supposed to vacuum tile floors? This article answers this controversial question and explains whether it's better to sweep or vacuum clean.

Sit back, relax, and read through to gain knowledge; it's power!

Can You Vacuum Tile Floors?

Yes, you can vacuum tile floors, but with an understanding that vacuums and tiles vary in quality. Each tile type has unique features, so you must vacuum clean it as advised by the manufacturer to prevent damage.

Tile floor types include vinyl, ceramic, natural stone, and porcelain.

If you follow the best tile-cleaning practices, your vacuum cleaner can thoroughly clean and remove dirt and grime from your tile floor.

Benefits of Vacuum Cleaning Your Tiles

Below are the advantages of vacuum cleaning tiled floors:

• Removes Allergens: HEPA vacuum cleaners trap allergens like dust mites, pet fur, and pollen, improving indoor air quality.
• Efficient: Vacuum cleaners automatically pick up debris, dirt, and dust from the floor, making them more efficient than sweeping.
• Versatile: Most vacuums are versatile. They can clean walls, tile floors, and upholstery, meaning you don't have to switch cleaning tools to clean your entire house.
• Fast: Vacuuming your house is generally much faster than sweeping, making vacuuming tiles a better option.

Disadvantages of Vacuum Cleaning Tile Floors

Vacuum cleaning also has drawbacks, as noted below:

• Liquid damages or clogs dry vacuum cleaners: Vacuum dry tile floors, not sticky or wet ones. Wipe wet messes with a cloth or mop.
• Ineffective in cleaning grout lines: Grout lines trap dust and allergens, but some vacuum cleaners may not clean those lines effectively. Steam cleaning or hiring professional grout cleaning services is the best option for cleaning grout lines. You can use vacuum brush attachments though on grout lines to remove dirt and dust.
• May scratch tiles: Some tiles are harder than others; be careful when cleaning soft tiles such as vinyl. Vacuum cleaning the soft tiles could scratch and damage your floor.

What Are the Safety Precautions of Vacuuming Tiled Floors?

To prevent damaging your floor, consider the safety precautions for vacuuming tiled floors, which are discussed below.

• Use the soft brush attachment: It effectively cleans the tiles without scratching or degrading their quality.
• Be gentle: Don't use excessive force to vacuum clean tiles. Vacuum cleaners can gently clean tile floors without damaging them. Adjust the settings: Depending on the type of floor you're cleaning, adjust your vacuum cleaner's brush roll settings and suction power. Not all vacuum cleaners have these options; buy an adjustable one to protect your floor's quality.
• Avoid messes: Before vacuum cleaning, wipe wet messes because they could break or clog your vacuum cleaner.
• Clean your vacuum cleaner: A dirty or poorly maintained vacuum cleaner can damage the tile floor. Clean and properly maintain your vacuum cleaner to keep it working effectively and safely. Empty the bin often, replace vacuum filters, and inspect the beater bar or brush for damage and debris.

Can I Vacuum Ceramic Tile?

Yes, you can vacuum ceramic tiles. Ceramic tile is hard and resistant to water. Follow the following simple steps to vacuum clean your ceramic tiles.

• Make the room inaccessible during the cleaning period and remove furniture if possible.
• Vacuum the floor to remove dirt and debris and prevent them from being embedded in the grout or tile.
• Use a mild detergent and a mop to clean the ceramic tiles, starting from the furthest point. Rinse and properly ventilate the room so that it dries properly.

Can a Vacuum Steamer Be Used on Tile?

Yes, vacuum steamers can be used on tiles and are great for cleaning large areas. They're effective in removing stubborn dirt from the tiles.

Some of the advantages of using a vacuum steamer to clean tiles include:

• You don't use paper towels or chemicals; they're environmentally friendly
• They kill bacteria and help remove stubborn stains on tiles
• They're easy to use
• They're good for allergy sufferers

Is It Better to Vacuum or Sweep Hard Floors?

Depending on the situation, it could be better to vacuum or sweep hard floors. If other family members are asleep, you can sweep without causing a disturbance, for example.

If setting up your vacuum cleaner seems like too much work and time-consuming, sweeping could be better than vacuuming.

Vacuum cleaning hard floors is better than sweeping if you have allergies because it contains dust. The machine stores the dirt, debris, and dust in a dust bag or cup.

Top-quality vacuum cleaners remove debris and dirt quickly, making them more effective and faster than sweeping.

Some of the advantages of vacuum cleaning over sweeping include:

• Vacuum cleaners with HEPA filters contain allergens, preventing them from escaping into the room.
• Vacuum cleaners can clean hard-to-reach areas, such as far corners. They can also clean and extract stubborn dirt and grime stuck within cracks and corners.
• Vacuum cleaner machines are less manual, making them less tiring, especially when cleaning large areas.

The Best Vacuum for Pet Hair on Tile

Dealing with pet hair is a major challenge because it adheres to clothing, causes allergies, and clings to surfaces. A good vacuum for pet hair on tile should be portable, durable, functional, and have good suction power.

Below is an overview of the best vacuum cleaners for pet hair on tile, according to external reviews, and in no particular order:

1. Dyson V15 Detect Cordless Vacuum Cleaner

This cordless vacuum cleaner features a hair screw tool that sucks pet (and human) hair from the floor. You can convert it to a handheld vacuum cleaner and use its anti-tangle conical brush bar to remove pet hair from the stairs, beds, and car seats.

With Dyson dust illumination, you can't leave any hair, dirt, or dust behind. The machine illuminates it, making it possible to see particles that are hard for the human eye to see. Its Digital Motorbar cleaner head is ideal for all tile floors.

2. iRobot Roomba j7+ (7550) Self-Emptying Robot Vacuum

Unless you have a hypoallergenic dog breed, you'll have to deal with pet hair on the floor, couches, and clothing daily.

The iRobot Roomba j7+ (7550) is a great option because it helps vacuum pet hair on tiles daily. It sucks pet hair (dirt and debris) effectively without tangling the brush head while you focus on other things.

3. iRobot Roomba Combo j9

This machine is ideal for cleaning tiles, hard floors, and carpets. It picks up pet hair and debris. It's a two-in-one machine that vacuums and mops your floor. It empties collected debris for 60 days and refills the cleaning solution or water for 30 days.

The iRobot Roomba Combo j9 is ideal for pet owners with small and large homes. However, we recommend that you avoid using it on soft tile floors, as it can leave scratches after removing stubborn soiling.

4. Shark Matrix 2-in-1

This robot effectively cleans tiles, but you must map out your rooms so that it knows which ones to clean. This is important if some of your rooms are tiled and others carpeted.

Shark Matrix 2-in-1 properly cleans pets' and humans' hair, dust, and debris. It is easy to clean and remove collected hair from the Robot.

The Best Robot Vacuums for Tile Floors

Finding the best robot vacuums for tile floors can be an exhausting task. Most robot vacuums on the internet that claim to clean tiles only clean carpets!

Below are three robot vacuum cleaners suitable for cleaning tile floors, based on external reviews, and aren't listed in a specific order:

1. bObsweep - Phoenix, PetHair SLAM Robot Vacuum

Customers commonly refer to this robot vacuum cleaner as 'Bob.' It is good for tile, carpet, and laminate floors. Its color-coded map works perfectly, so it knows which areas to leave out, and it avoids obstacles excellently.

bObsweep is intelligent; it goes to its charger after vacuum cleaning. It follows the given commands perfectly without anyone having to 'babysit' it.

It's quieter than most of the robot vacuums on the market.

2. ECOVACS Robotics

This robot is easy to install and set up. Once the setup and installation are done, the robot begins to vacuum the house without first exploring it, as most robot vacuum cleaners do.

It has sensors on the top, front, sides, and back, making it easy not to hit furniture or get stuck under it.

ECOVACS Robotics vacuums also clean corners without struggles and don't scratch or leave marks on the floor. They are powerful, clean tile floors perfectly, and pick up pet hair, dirt, and dust.

Robotics is easy to clean and maintain, making your life stress-free.

3. iRobot Roomba Combo i5 Robot Vacuum and Mop

There are several ways of connecting the iRobot Roomba Combo i5 Robot Vacuum and its App. If one method fails, try the other one. iRobot Roomba Combo i5 is a 2-in-1: Vacuum cleaner and a mop.

It picks up dirt and debris well, making it easy to clean your tiled floor daily. If your floor is heavily soiled, empty your robot after cleaning.

The robot can run for several hours without going off because it has a good battery life.

Zerorez® Tile and Grout Cleaning Services

When your tile and grout need more TLC than sweeping, vacuuming, or mopping, because your grout is yellowing or it's getting dingy and residue-laden, hire Zerorez to help professionally and safely delivery like-new tile and grout to your flooring again. All We Leave Is Clean®!