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Tile Grout Cleaner - Formula 5 - REAL ?

Posted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 5:55 pm
by BeContented
Hi,
An uncle (50+) just came to my house to sell this bottle containing a yellow liquid concentrate. He squeezed direct onto the grout on my white ceramic floor tiles. Per his claim, 3 mins later he just wipe it off and all the stubborn dirt came off.

I used my hand to go over the area, no stickyness, no oil and no smell. Accordingly, just do it once on all the tiles and then, subsequent use like a normal floor detergent (add water) for maintenance. Can last for 2 years.

I was damn tempted. The uncle claimed it's local manufactured, PH5 (not a bleach) and he's only earning $8 as commission per gallon (4L) sold. The price is $68. But knowing how all these stuff works, it may look fantastic now....but I wanna wait a few days to see if it really works per claim.

I asked for his contact - NO. He will only come back once every 2 years.
I asked for the product company / name card - NO. Dun have.
I started getting suspicious.....cos' basically must buy NOW or wait 2 years.
And he said ...... MAN won't buy. He always only managed to sell to ladies. I can't make a $68 decision? Then he said, if you dun buy now, it's unlikely you will buy anyway. This was the last straw.

Thinking back, I suspect the product will not be as per demo......else I see no reason why there's no name card, no contact if it's sooooooo good.

Have any of you encountered this? Do share if you have bought this product before.

Re: Tile Grout Cleaner - Formula 5 - REAL ?

Posted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 5:59 pm
by Chenonceau
Sounds fishy... did he demo to you?

I use the Karcher steamer for grout lines. Easy on the helper's hands and no strong chemicals... environmentally friendly and it works good.

Re: Tile Grout Cleaner - Formula 5 - REAL ?

Posted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 6:07 pm
by UncleLim
cwc wrote: I asked for his contact - NO. He will only come back once every 2 years.
I asked for the product company / name card - NO. Dun have.
I started getting suspicious.....cos' basically must buy NOW or wait 2 years.
In this age of websites, facebook, mobile phones... this guy has nothing? 2 years ? :siao: :siao:

Re: Tile Grout Cleaner - Formula 5 - REAL ?

Posted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 6:15 pm
by Oppsgal
UncleLim wrote:
cwc wrote: I asked for his contact - NO. He will only come back once every 2 years.
I asked for the product company / name card - NO. Dun have.
I started getting suspicious.....cos' basically must buy NOW or wait 2 years.
In this age of websites, facebook, mobile phones... this guy has nothing? 2 years ? :siao: :siao:
:rotflmao:

Re: Tile Grout Cleaner - Formula 5 - REAL ?

Posted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 10:00 pm
by BeContented
Chenonceau wrote:Sounds fishy... did he demo to you?

I use the Karcher steamer for grout lines. Easy on the helper's hands and no strong chemicals... environmentally friendly and it works good.
Yes. He demo to me....just reach his hands into the house and pour the liquid onto my tiles, waited ~3mins and wipe, that's it. Really easy. Here's the pic :) I must say, the liquid does seem to work, I was impressed. The left side is clean, the right is ahem, how it actually look :oops:
Image

Last time, in my zest (first CNY as SAHM :laugh: ) to clean up the dirty floor grouts, I poured and scrub some parts of my house with bleach.....damaged that part :cry: . So now, I'm more cautious with such strong stuff, hence wanted to wait a little before deciding.

IF it's really a local product and so good, they should publicize and not be so secretive isn't it? Wonder will the product be same as what he demo. Like what UncleLim wrote - Internet, Facebook, Mobile etc.....by refusing to leave any contact, any trace ...... fishy right?!?! Anyway, the man is ~50+, bilingual and in shirt, pants and leather shoes...a bit like those small businessman.

Re: Tile Grout Cleaner - Formula 5 - REAL ?

Posted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 10:34 pm
by laughingcat
When i was in my youth, I used to help my mum clean the tile grout. I used a mild acid which you can find in the hardware stall, they will advice you accordingly. Used the toothbrush and dipped into the acid solution and scrub lightly and wipe it off fast with a wet cloth.

If the white cement came off due to wear and tear, simply repair on your own. Buy some white cement powder and mix it with some water to make into a wetter paste and patched the gap. That easy. I used to doo all these for my mum in my primary to secondary school days. I did it again when hub and i did our own reno for our first matrimony house.

As i grow older, i noticed jiff also works the same except that it doesn't last that long. Try it.

Re: Tile Grout Cleaner - Formula 5 - REAL ?

Posted: Thu Sep 29, 2011 6:51 am
by Chenonceau
cwc wrote:
Chenonceau wrote:Sounds fishy... did he demo to you?

I use the Karcher steamer for grout lines. Easy on the helper's hands and no strong chemicals... environmentally friendly and it works good.
Yes. He demo to me....just reach his hands into the house and pour the liquid onto my tiles, waited ~3mins and wipe, that's it. Really easy. Here's the pic :) I must say, the liquid does seem to work, I was impressed. The left side is clean, the right is ahem, how it actually look :oops:
Image

Last time, in my zest (first CNY as SAHM :laugh: ) to clean up the dirty floor grouts, I poured and scrub some parts of my house with bleach.....damaged that part :cry: . So now, I'm more cautious with such strong stuff, hence wanted to wait a little before deciding.

IF it's really a local product and so good, they should publicize and not be so secretive isn't it? Wonder will the product be same as what he demo. Like what UncleLim wrote - Internet, Facebook, Mobile etc.....by refusing to leave any contact, any trace ...... fishy right?!?! Anyway, the man is ~50+, bilingual and in shirt, pants and leather shoes...a bit like those small businessman.
Probably a bottle of overpriced mild acid that you would be able to get from any hardware store? You think?

Re: Tile Grout Cleaner - Formula 5 - REAL ?

Posted: Thu Sep 29, 2011 8:52 am
by heyhoe
Try "magic sponge" from Daiso - $2 only. Just wet the sponge and scrub, works for me. :)

Re: Tile Grout Cleaner - Formula 5 - REAL ?

Posted: Thu Sep 29, 2011 5:09 pm
by BeContented
Chenonceau wrote: Probably a bottle of overpriced mild acid that you would be able to get from any hardware store? You think?
You could be right......like laughingcat, the guy could have just 'concocted' the acid solution and try to sell to 'bodoh' me.....ha.

But seriously, to see him just wipe it off.....really like damn easy job to clean the dirt.

Re: Tile Grout Cleaner - Formula 5 - REAL ?

Posted: Thu Sep 29, 2011 5:17 pm
by BeContented
laughingcat wrote:When i was in my youth, I used to help my mum clean the tile grout. I used a mild acid which you can find in the hardware stall, they will advice you accordingly. Used the toothbrush and dipped into the acid solution and scrub lightly and wipe it off fast with a wet cloth.

If the white cement came off due to wear and tear, simply repair on your own. Buy some white cement powder and mix it with some water to make into a wetter paste and patched the gap. That easy. I used to doo all these for my mum in my primary to secondary school days. I did it again when hub and i did our own reno for our first matrimony house.

As i grow older, i noticed jiff also works the same except that it doesn't last that long. Try it.
Laughingcat, you quite DIY :)
I actually do have cement powder, wood filler, wall plaster, paints etc.....if have time I really dun mind getting my hands dirty type (used to meddle around simple stuff) .....but normally such things need a good stretch of time - to do and dry ... and these days, no time leh.

I have been using Jiff for the last 3-4 years.....1-2 mths before CNY I'll start scrubbing the whole house by sections. But it's really tiring & time consuming, that's why I was so impressed by the man's product cos' he just wipe, no scrubbing.....how I really wish there are such good products around.