I removed some originial subway tiles in my bathroom because they were stained on the edges and looked nasty. You can see the slight discoloration around the edges in the picture tiles 2. Some of them appeared to have been installed with some grey stuff... maybe portland cement. Some of them were very hard to take off.

I tried to get the stain off the old tile. I used: Tile-ex, bleach, lemon juice, and "iron-out" stain remover. Whatever I used seemed to make the stain WORSE.

I purchased replacement subway tiles from a salvage house and they are the old fashioned "flat field" type and are a good match to the original tiles. Some of the tiles I have are clean on the back (like the tile on the right) and some have grey stuff (cement?) still attached to the back.

My questions are:
1. Can I get the stains out of the tiles I removed from the wall?

2. Do I need to prep my new (used) tiles before installing them by soaking in water or something like that?

3. Is the adhesive and grout mix in bought (in picture tiles 2), OK to use?

Thanks for any advice you can offer.

That gray stuff is thinset and you should use it to set your tiles. If you have your receipt take that tub back to the store. Grout/adhesive is a quick fix for one or two tiles, it's a short cut that doesn't do as good as thinset. Are your tiles all glazed, they do not appear to be.

That gray stuff is thinset and you should use it to set your tiles. If you have your receipt take that tub back to the store. Grout/adhesive is a quick fix for one or two tiles, its a short cut that doesn't do as good as thinset. Are your tiles all glazed, they do not appear to be.


Yes the are all glazed. The photo shows the back of some tiles.

I'll take the adhesive stuff back to the store and get thinset.

Any ideas on how to get the stains out?

Actually never seen a stain on glazed tile that did not come off. Try Whink Products Company - America's #1 Specialty Cleaner Company (http://www.whink.com/) to see if its rust or BarKeepersFriend to scour the surface.