Repair cracked grout

[Dennis C]

There is small crack along the grout line between the granite countertop and the tile backsplash. What is the way to fix it? It is about 1mm in width. Pics here

Thanks

[DanG]

all I got was pop of advertising. Don't go!

[Norminn]

It is usually practice to caulk, not grout, where rigid surfaces meet....expansion and contraction cause cracks. Flexible caulk will give a little and not crack.

[dadiOH]

I'm not going to sign in to Yahoo to look at the photo but my suggestion would be to add some grout. Or caulk, either will do.

[RobertMacy]

As you may have noticed, once cracked ALWAYS cracked.

I was JUST going to update on solving similar problem with cracks in travertine flooring grout! People here had recommended everything from regrout to 'sanded caulking' to plain caulking.

If cracking is not obtrusive, you can use a close color match of DAP's Tub n Tile Sealer. It's water proof, easy to work with, and squeegies down into cracks nicely, BUT! it has a smooth final surface which may catch your eye, especially since what you describe is counter top height.

To match texture, find the same color "sanded grout" caulking. Comes in a tube about $4-$5 at HD or Lowes. Don't trust the colors on the tube, but you can match very closely by taking a sample of your grout [if possible] to compare to sample colors as shown for the bags of grout [bags of grout and sanded caulking tubes have the same names, but don't EXACTLY match, but may be close enough for govt work, eh?]

Before I got a piece of old grout large enough to take in to HD, I bought bag after bag at HD, got just enough powder out of the bag to make a small slurry mix, then apply with finger tip onto existing grout, let dry, and examine in several forms of lighting to check for match. That several forms of lighting is super important! I confirmed that sunlight spectrum and lightbulb spectrum are WAAAAY different. Surprisingly close doing this, but not close enough. The best color match occurred when I could take the actual piece of grout in to compare using HD's color samples. So, close. Slight difference is probably difference between Lowes vs HD brands.

*IF* you go with sanded grout be ready for one small problem. IT SHRINKS LIKE NOTHING I've ever seen before! Fill a crack and it's like it sucks into it! But, and this is important, it LOOKS like grout. Even at only about 2 ft viewing distance looks great!

Two ways to go here. One is to barely cut off the tip of the tube and put the smallest bead you've ever made in there and never touch it again. If you have that skill, kudos, if like me and there's a bit of hesitation along your line. Carefully, can't stress this enough, carefully use finger tip to even the surface. I found best to let excess migrate along the horizontal surface NOT the vertical surface, else almost start over.

Finally, *IF* you're a real perfectionist on this stuff; leave the 'rounded' bead alone, you can finish the final caulking surface after it cures a bit by taking a sharp box cutter blade and cut absolutely level with BOTH surfaces, remove the tiny rubbery bit, and you'll be left with an incredibly FLAT surface that still has that 'grout' look. [Don't try to smooth while working the wet bead with water. BIG MISTAKE! Working while wet, makes this stuff appear glass smooth and you lose your texture match. Leave alone, work with it semicured instead.]

And the other caveat: patience! I found I could only work about six to 12 inches at a time. Low humidity here cures the stuff too fast to work on longer lines. You know the problem, catastrophic rubbery roll ups that then pull out your work, making huge mess, so you can start over type of problem.

[Norminn]

All of the DIY experts I've read say that caulk is the right choice for corners....when the plane changes, expansion/contraction will cause grout to crack. In addition, small cracks between backsplash and counter can allow in enough moisture to mess up the wall or counter.

Here is a link with good info:

It can get tricky trying to caulk along a tile surface because the caulk tip won't slide evenly across the grout lines. When I did that, I used masking tape to mark the edge of the caulk, taking pains to try to keep it adherent down into the grout joint. Gotta take the tape off right away for the caulk to smooth out and not stick to the tape. I also used caulk with masking tape to "fake" a grout joint where tile and wallpaper met next to shower....worked very nicely, as a very thin white line the same width as the grout lines was sufficient to seal off the edge of the wallpaper and keep moisture out.

[nestork]

Dennis:

That joint is always going to crack because or tiny relative movement between the counter top and the wall.

If it were me, I would have caulked that joint instead of grouting it.

All the grout lines on the wall or on the counter top can be grouted, but that one joint between the wall and the counter top should be caulked IMHO.

[krw]

+1

Tile stores sell grout with matching caulk, both in either sanded or unsanded. They do a very good job of matching them.

[Dennis C]

Sorry I think I didn't make the photos public, so it was asking you to log on. Please try this link:

Sorry everyone and thanks for all the responses.

[Dennis C]

Sorry I think I didn't make the photos public, so it was asking you to log on. Please try this link:

Sorry everyone and thanks for all the responses.

[dadiOH]

Nope, that is no good either.

Regardless, I re-read your post and realized that the exact location of the needed repair had not dawned on me. You do NOT want grout between counter and back splash; what you DO want is silicone caulk and that is what should have - probably was - used when things were originally installed.

You don't want grout there because it will wick in water and that water may - with time - mess something up, You can tell whether what is there now is caulk or grout by pressing it with your fingernail...grout is hard, caulk will flex. If it IS grout - shouldn't be but if it is - I'd probably use grout to fill the missing part. If caulk...

Silicone is rather messy and does not keep well once opened so this is what I would do...

1. Buy the smallest amount of silicone - PURE silicone - caulk you can find in the color you need.

1. Mask off both counter and back splash as needed to keep the caulk only where you want it.

2. Squeeze out an appropriate amount and push it in with your finger. Clean your finger, dampen it (finger) and smooth the caulk to conform to the shape of what is/was there; generally, that is a slight cove feathered out to nothingness at the edges which is where the masking tape should be.

1. Remove tape and let the caulk cure.

[Norminn]

Still can't see the image....set up as "private"!

I would not obsess about the caulk being silicone, especially clear silicone, because sometimes it is very shiny and that might stand out like a sore thumb.....unless there is a lot of splashing around and water standing on the counter, sili/latex, color matched, should be fine.