| Grouting Tile | Mixing and Preparing the Grout |
| Applying the Grout | Cleaning Grout Haze |
Before you grout your tiles you should properly clean and prepare your tile installation. You want your tile installation to be completely cleaned up and ready for grouting before you actually apply the grout. You do not want any dirt, debris and tile adhesives to get mixed in with the grout while you are grouting. Trying to clean up dirt and debris while you are grouting can cause many problems that could of been avoided by cleaning the tiles beforehand.
Before you start grouting your tiles you should also consider using one of the newer synthetic grouts like an epoxy grout or a urethane grout. Grouting with epoxy grout and grouting tiles with a urethane grout requires a much different grouting procedure. The cost of these synthetic grouts is much more than cement based grouts. Epoxy and urethane grout are much easier to clean and maintain and they never needs to be sealed. Epoxy and urethane grout can save you a lot of time and money over time in the cleaning and maintenance of the grout compared to normal cement based grout.
It is important to not have any thinset or tile adhesives on your tiles that will need to be cleaned up after you are done grouting. It is much easier to clean up the tiles prior to grouting them as opposed to trying to clean the tile surfaces after you have applied the grout. You can use a razor blade scraper tool on most ceramic and porcelain tiles to remove all traces of tile adhesives and thinset from the tile surfaces. Also most glues and caulks can be removed with isopropyl alcohol and a terry cloth towel. If you are grouting stone tiles then any issues with the appearance, polish and imperfections in the look of the tiles should be taken care of before actually grouting the tiles.
Before grouting your tiles you should make sure that all of the tiles are properly set with no loose or improperly set tiles. You can usually tap on wall or shower tiles to hear of any hollow sounds that indicate poorly set tiles. For tile floors you can walk on the tiles and tap on them to make sure all of the floor tiles are properly installed. Any loose or improperly set tile issues should be dealt with before grouting the tiles. You should also check to make sure there is no unacceptable lippage in the tile installation. Lippage occurs when adjacent tiles are set higher or lower than the adjacent tiles. Some lippage will always occur in a tile installation and acceptable levels of lippage will vary from person to person. It is much easier replace any broken tiles or improperly installed tiles and correct these tile installation issues before you grout the tiles rather than trying to correct the tile installation issues after you have finished grouting the tiles.
One common mistakes people make before grouting their tiles is to leave spacers between the tiles prior to grouting them. You should always remove all spacers between the tiles prior to grouting. Some spacers that are deeply set between the tiles may be difficult to remove but it is important to dig out and remove all tile spacers prior to grouting. Do not think that you can just grout over tile spacers. Grouted over spacers can cause the grout to crack and break apart above the spacers. Also the spacers will cause the grout above them to be thin and weak and over time the spacers may show through this thin layer of grout. A pair of needle nose plier can be used to remove deeply set tile spacers.
Another common mistake people make prior to grouting is to leave high areas of thinset between the tiles. High areas of thinset between the tiles will show through the grout after you are done grouting. Many people mistakenly think that these areas of thinset will be covered with grout but find out too late that the thinset is popping out through the grout. You should scrape away and knock down all areas of thinset that are over half the height of the edge of the tiles. A grout grabber or grout grinder tool like a multimaster tool works great to grind down these high areas of thinset. It is better to be safe then sorry when knocking down high areas of thinset. It is much easier to knock down thiinset before you grout the tiles rather than having to scrape out grout and areas of high thinset and grouting over the areas where the thinset was. Repairing areas of grout after you are finished grouting is a difficult procedure. The new grout that is applied to repair the existing grout will often have color shade variations between the new grout and the existing grout. The areas of repaired grout will also often have an uneven shape and texture compared to the existing grout.
You should have all of your grouting tools and supplies on hand and ready to go before you start grouting your tiles. You do not want to be forced to take time out looking for grouting supplies in the middle of your grouting procedure. When grouting your tiles it is important that all required steps in applying the grout and cleaning up the grout and grout haze be done in a timely manner. Allowing the grout to set improperly or not cleaning up the grout haze on the surface of the tiles in a timely manner can ruin your grouting job.
Supplies needed for grouting:
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Cement based grout
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Open face bucket to mix the grout
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Grout float
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Grout sponge for cleaning up excess grout off of the tiles
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Bucket of clean cool water
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Vinyl or rubber gloves to keep grout off of your hands
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Cheese cloth or terry towels to remove the grout haze
Improperly installed grout can be impossible to repair or replace after the grouting procedure has been completed. In some cases the grout can be removed and reinstalled but if the grout has set for a few days then the grout will be extremely difficult to be removed. In many cases it will be easier to tear down the entire tile installation and reinstall the tiles rather than replacing the hardened grout. Grouting a tile installation is something that should be taken seriously and never taken for granted as an easy task.
After you have prepared your tile installation and have gotten all the necessary supplies then you are ready to start mixing and preparing the grout for grouting.
Grouting tile can be a difficult and time consuming job which also requires some practice and acquired skills. You may want to consider hiring a tile installation contractor to do your grouting job for you. You can read some valuable information here about how to hire a tile installation contractor.
Mixing and Preparing the Grout