glass subway tile backsplash

They don't really get damaged by soil. They are a bit harder to wipe clean. Oil and grease are the big problem. Dawn dish soap cleans this quite easily.

I hate my frosted glass backsplash. I found this post while trying to find a magic solution to clean it. Grease spots are especially hard to clean. I've tried a whole array of cleaners and have now found a method that somewhat works, but requires most of an afternoon. The only thing that saves me is that only half the tiles are frosted--they are mixed with shiny glass ones.

nancam, what are you using to clean it? You might try a commerical cleaner/degreaser called ZEP sold by Home Depot for about $5. We had some serious grease on our ceiling from years of making soup, and it took it right off.

You can also get good degreasers in the automotive section of a store. You would need to dilute it according to the directions, but if it can take the grease off engine parts, it should work on glass--test it in a corner to make sure it doesn't hurt it first.

Thanks Haley! I'll try it...I'll try anything!

So does it work? I'm getting mosaic glass tiles done in a couple of week and now have second thoughts.

Yes it does. The only problem is that I live in Vancouver and we have incredibly soft water (we only use a quarter of the recommended detergent amount in anything). The Zep suds a lot so it takes a lot of rinsing. My shiny glass tiles have never been a problem, only the matte frosted ones.

Thank you for your speedy reply. I was very worried about the frosted tile but if ZEP works, then I'm going ahead with my project. I'm Chinese and we love our stir-frys!

I believe linear frosted glass tile to be very aesthetically pleasing. We had a client who is Chinese and also loves to stir-fry. We specified a horizontal coursed 1" x 6" white frosted glass tile from counter-top to underside of high window sills. We simply incorporated a removable stainless steel back-splash element matching the finish and width of the cooking appliance - allowing this higher maintenance area to be cleaned easily. Plus, it's removable.

(photo of similar detail we designed in a small bungalow kitchen)

The frustration with having frosted glass immediately behind the stove top is that you can't just do a quick wipe after cooking. You can find products, like Zep, that will clean it, but it takes a while to spray it on, scrub, and rinse, rinse, rinse, rinse. I wish I had installed shiny glass that just took a quick wipe with a cloth after a spot appeared. I stare and glare at the spots for a few days before I find the time to tackle it.

When I posted this question I had my heart set on a mosaic with some frosted tiles. I searched a little more and found an all glass linear mosaic. I'm so thankful I did. Clean up is so easy....and the backsplash is still beautiful. I think if you can find a similar product without the frosted parts you'll be thankful later. Save the frosted tiles for an application that requires less cleaning.

We had "clear" frosted glass tile installed all round the wall below the cabinets a few months ago. This morning we noticed that some of the tiles behind the stove, and the toaster oven, have weird spots on them. I found an article at DYI-Network that says "Also, some adhesives and sealants may react with the back coatings of some glass tiles, so make sure the manufacturer supplies you with a list of compatible adhesives and sealants."

I suspect the installer simply used their go-to products and paid no attention to compatibility. We're going to raise the issue with the company that installed it, but I'll be very surprised if they offer to redo it.

sjkrup - photo's please.