Wrong color

[dadiOH]

I've been putting down Saltillo tile in my house. Used a wet mix of cheap type S mortar for grout, worked fine.

I had to stop for a while and now I can't get the same brand of mortar. Tried Quickcrete type S but it dries to a very light grey...the other in much darker - what I think of as "concrete color".

Fortunately, I have only a small amount of light grey joints but even if I chip up a bit and put new on top I need a darker mortar. Anyone have any suggestions? I know I could add a coloring agent but really don't want to do that...I was thinking more along the line of brands. What determines the color of set mortar?

While I'm at it, anyone have any ideas how to get the new, lighter mortar to a darker color short of replacing it? Dye? What kind?

Thanks for suggestions,

dadiOH

[Art]

There are guys who actually make a career out of staining mortar to make it match.

[Richard J Kinch]

Blend in a darker shade of gray grout (Home Depot and Lowes have a wide range of colors) with something the mortar you have. . You'd have to experiment to get a close match when cured.

Portland cement is an ad hoc product. Shade varies from batch to batch and mill to mill, depending on the feedstock.

You could try blending and wiping unsanded grout paste onto the too-light areas you already have.

The eye is very sensitive to slight but spatially abrupt changes in shade (24 bits of color data yield millions of colors that you can still distinguish in close comparisons). The skillful repair will match colors well to start with, and then spread the transitions gradually.

[Richard J Kinch]

Maybe this isn't clear. I mean, take a portion of the dry type S mortar you first used, blended with a dry portion of darker grout, and mix with water. Make samples of various proportions and compare the color after curing.

[dadiOH]

Yes, I understood. Thanks!

-- dadiOH _____________________________

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[Jennifer]

Another option is colored grout sealant, though I'm not sure how well it would work on mortar. It applies like paint, but I'm not sure if there are any kind of chemical bonding issues...

I used Aquamix's colored grout sealant on my tile floor.

If you call them, they'll sent you free color samples. It's a little tedious to apply, but looks great when it's done.

-- Jennifer