Okay, so check it, I gotta tell you 'bout this weekend. My grout was lookin' NASTY. Like, seriously needed some love. I mean, years of grime, you know how it is. I was gonna scrub it all by hand, but then I thought, "Nah, there's gotta be a better way." That's when I remembered seeing those grout cleaning machines for rent at the local hardware store.

So, first thing Saturday morning, I hauled myself over to the store. Place was packed, of course. I asked the dude at the rental counter about the grout cleaning machines. He showed me a couple different models. One was a smaller, handheld kinda thing, and the other was a bigger, stand-up model with all the bells and whistles. I figured, "Go big or go home," and rented the stand-up one. Cost me about 50 bucks for the day, plus the cleaning solution.

Got the machine home, and man, it was heavier than I thought! Wrestle it out of the truck and into the house. Followed the instructions – filled the tank with water and the special grout cleaning solution. Plugged it in, and it was ready to rumble.

I started in the kitchen, because that's where the grout was the worst. The machine was pretty easy to use, you just kinda glide it over the grout lines. The brush scrubbed away at the grime, and the vacuum sucked up all the dirty water. It was kinda gross seeing all the gunk coming up, but also super satisfying, you know?

The first few passes, it didn't look like much was happening. But then I went back over the same area a few more times, and BOOM! The grout started lookin' noticeably brighter. It was amazing! I kept going, section by section, makin' sure to overlap each pass. Took a few hours, but I got the whole kitchen done.

Next up was the bathroom. Smaller area, so it went a bit faster. But man, the bathroom grout was even dirtier than the kitchen! So much soap scum and mildew. The machine really had to work for it. Had to go over some spots like five or six times. But eventually, I got it all cleaned up.

Pro tip: Wear some old clothes and shoes, 'cause you're gonna get splashed with dirty water. Also, have a bucket and mop handy to clean up any spills.

After I finished, I emptied the dirty water tank. HOLY CRAP, it was disgusting! So much black sludge. You really don't realize how much gunk is hiding in your grout until you see it all collected in one place.

Rinsed out the tank and the machine, and then hauled it back to the rental store. The dude at the counter was like, "Wow, you really put that thing to work!" I was like, "You have no idea!"

Back home now, and the grout looks AMAZING. Seriously, it looks brand new. Totally worth the 50 bucks and the few hours of work. If your grout is lookin' rough, I highly recommend renting a grout cleaning machine. It's a game changer!

• What I used: Stand-up grout cleaning machine from the local hardware store
• Cost: About $50 for the day, plus the cleaning solution (around $15)
• Time spent: Roughly 5 hours total
• Would I do it again? HELL YES!

And that's my grout cleaning saga. Hope it helps someone out there!