I just finished putting in a tile floor in the bathroom. One area, the grout did not seem properly applied (I found some debris had worked its way in when applying it.)
My question - I was able to scrape out the grouting fairly easily with a sharp edge of a trowel. Is this normal? I would have thought it would be much harder. It has been sitting for about 2-3 days and has not had a sealer applied.
It is Polyblend sand based grout from Home Depot, supposed to be stronger for floored surfaces....
if you can scrape out grout 3 days after installation, it's not setting and either was defective or was not installed correctly.
i would take out all that i could now. mix up some grout in a paper cup and let sit to the consistency of very thick cake batter (if you draw lines in the top with a fork, the lines should stay and not fill in). if it doesn't set up in 30-60 minutes, then throw it out and buy some more.
Damn! That is a lot of work! It sounds like that is about the consistency I used. Should I have added anything to it?(aside from water)? I asked at HD and they said no.....
But ...., which one is correct? 180 degrees from one another.
I guess I can leave it with the expectations that people do not try to dig it out and it does not crack or wash out, or try to dig it all out and redo it! In actual fact though it is the same grouting I was going to use for the walls, so it is best I try to home in on this a bit more. I am a newbie obviously, and am not trying to negate anyone's input or opinions, but just trying to see what the consensus is before I compound the felony (and potential work and effort....)
well, how thick is the grout line? a thin one can always be scraped out with a metal tool. i was under the impression that it never set and was still soft and liquid from your OP.
can you scrape it out with your fingernail? that would be too soft and doesn't bode well for cleaning in the future.
i'd still make up a sample in a cup or on a plate and see if it was setting correctly. old grout that sat on a shelf for a long time absorbs humidity and isn't good to use, so it does have a shelf life.
My grout line is using 3/16 of an inch spacers. It is not soft and liquid. It has dried, but I can scrape it with my fingernail if I push hard enough and it digs out with a metal implement like a pair of scissors fairly easily.
I thought to check the last tile job that I did probably 15 years ago in the front entrance way. The stuff is like rock - not like this crap at all, so I guess that is my answer....
Looks like I'll take a few hours to dig it out and redo it - AND I will not be buying my material at Home Depot for sure! I'll go to a proper tile shop. I just hope the mastic I used is better.
You are wasting your time if you do. Give it a couple weeks before you do anything. It's just about impossible to mess up grout unless you put way too much water in it. Since you've done it before I'm thinking you knew how much water to add. I've never used anything but the poly blends from home depot and lowes and never had any problems.
Well - on the basis of what I have read here and thinking about it...
1) It could take a little longer to cure because of the underlying mastic still drying out releasing water vapor into it.
2) It seems like it could take longer for a sand based product to cure.
3) the very upper surface could be a little powdery even when totally cured since it would have been subjected to a bit of extra moisture due to rubbing off the extra with a damp sponge. That should wash off though.
What I will do is wait a week or two and then test it in an area under the vanity location. If it still seems 'flakey' and easy to come out (within reason) then I'll redo it. Otherwise I will seal it and wait for an even longer time.
It seems to me when I mortared my fish pond it took more than a few days for it to really cure. However I will say this sure seems 'sandy' to me, but time will tell.....
In the meantime I can proceed along with finishing the copper for the tub/shower and steam ahead with at least planning and tiling the walls and wait grouting them pending results of the above....
Does anyone know offhand of any good web sites on tile layout and hints for a bathroom wall? - Like where to try make the cuts and where to center the tiles, etc.????
Temperature cam also make a big difference. When it is cold, and portland based product will be slow to cure but that is not a bad thing. Slow cures are hard cures. My tile guy told us not to do anything with our new tile for 48-72 hours because the grout could still be green enough to stain or be damaged. It was unusually cold here.
True enough, but this is in a heated house. I'll let it sit for a few more days or a week before I panic and see what the results are at that point in time... I guess it's a waiting game. Problem is I guess I should try to stay off the tile for that amount of time too, so it puts everything in a hold pattern. Fortunately I am just a weekend warrior so I have some flex in my schedule. If worst comes to worst- out it comes. I am sure if I had a pro readily at hand they could take one touch and tell me if it were good or bad.....
It takes quite a while - 30 days or so - for cement products to cure to maximum hardness. I don't find it unusual that you were able to scrape out grout after a couple of days depending on what you mean by "fairly easily".
Mastic and not thinset? Mastic doesn't normally have water, it is generally a petroleum product. __________
The sand is there to give it strength...plain cement has very little. Sand doesn't effect the cement cure time. _______________
Same way as a floor; normally...
draw horizontal and vertical lines dividing the wall into equal quadrants
start at the intersection of the lines and work out so cut tiles will be at the edges
before actually laying, figure out where the first tile will be. a. center of tile where layout lines from #1 intersect b. corner of tile where layout lines from #1 intersect c. one layout line bisecting the tile, the other at the tile edge
Choose the starting point to give you the biggest cut tiles at the edges.
There may be other considerations though; e.g., you may want wall grout lines to line up with floor grout lines. Of course, if you did the above for the floor and are using the same size tiles on the wall, the grout lines will line up automatically.
I wet mop a few times a day for the first day or two. Keeping any cement mix damp on the top for a day or two increases the final strength. Not a big deal with grout though. For post holes I cover immediately with fill dirt to keep the mix wet. The goal is to not lose water to evaporation that would be needed to complete the hardening. Cement mixes do not "dry" instead the water is in a chemical reaction with the cement and becomes part of the final product.
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