Shower grouting?

[The Lone Rider]

I want to take out the old grouting around the tiles and edges and put in some fresh new stuff to make sure all is well and theres no leaks.

What do you do? I have the grout tube, and I have the grout gun.

How do you go about getting out the old and putting in the new? The person I usually ask, who is a painter and has done a fair bit of things all over, said he's never done it and didn't know but thinks you just get a box cutter (razor blade knife) and cut it all out, clean it, and then fill it in with new stuff.

[Grahameeboy]

I think thats about right and then you use a sealant......or you can use caustic acid to get a key, buy some special tile paint and paint the tiles and not worry about grouting again...

[Hitcher]

Erm... Employ a professional?

[rudolph]

Grout comes in a bag and you mixit with a bitof water and rub it in, sometimes you can wire brush the old stuf to make it look nice, it might be a major fuck up if you dig the old stuf out

[The Lone Rider]

I thought the grouting was a sealant? That white coloured rubbery stuff between all the shower tiles?

[JimO]

today is your lucky day seeing as im a self employed plastering and tiling contractor for a start is it the grout or the silicone that you want to remove (there should be silicone around the perimeters) if its silicone use a wallpaper knife and a razor blade and cut it out, when you replace it make shure you mask both sides. For removing grout (i dont envy you) go to a tile shop and get a grout file, be carefull not to scratch the tiles....if i was you i would be trying to clean it before i embarked on a removal job......if you want any more info just ask

[JimO]

I think thats about right and then you use a sealant......or you can use caustic acid to get a key, buy some special tile paint and paint the tiles and not worry about grouting again...

no nada dont paint the tiles as the water,steam will make it fall off

[JimO]

Grout comes in a bag and you mixit with a bitof water and rub it in, sometimes you can wire brush the old stuf to make it look nice, it might be a major fuck up if you dig the old stuf out

wire brush will mark the tiles

[JimO]

Erm... Employ a professional?

thats the second best advice so far

[BigG]

When youve finished dont forget to spray the grout with a special tyle silicone spray to seal the grout as the grout is pourus. Ask Jimjim.

[Grahameeboy]

no nada dont paint the tiles as the water,steam will make it fall off

It's special paint I was told......I won't use the shower till the paint's dry honest

[JimO]

When youve finished dont forget to spray the grout with a special tyle silicone spray to seal the grout as the grout is pourus. Ask Jimjim.

yes it is get some at the tile shop at the same time there is a brand called shure seal comes in a spray can and you can spray it pretty much straight away after you have grouted

[The Lone Rider]

I think I have my terms all jumbled.

I have a tube of white coloured Selley's "No More Gaps" that is water proof and such and such and "paintable". And I have a caukling gun to put it into.

[JimO]

It's special paint I was told......I won't use the shower till the paint's dry honest

not a good idea, tiles are glazed so it is a major job to get the paint to stick

[Grahameeboy]

not a good idea, tiles are glazed so it is a major job to get the paint to stick

Okay...was told the acid removes the glaze.....read it in a DIY book

[JimO]

I think I have my terms all jumbled.

I have a tube of white coloured Selley's "No More Gaps" that is water proof and such and such and "paintable". And I have a caukling gun to put it into.


go to your local tile shop and get some "Mapai" brand silicone its itallian and good and relativly cheap

[JimO]

Okay...was told the acid removes the glaze.....read it in a DIY book


we clean tiles outside with hydrochloric acid doesnt hurt the tiles at all at all we use a angle grinder to remove glaze

[Grahameeboy]

we clean tiles outside with hydrochloric acid doesnt hurt the tiles at all at all

Cool................

[The Lone Rider]

go to your local tile shop and get some "Mapai" brand silicone its itallian and good and relativly cheap
Selley's no more gaps will work fine though? Th silicone putty/rubber stuff is what seals the water from getting in and under right?

[JimO]

Selley's no more gaps will work fine though? Th silicone putty/rubber stuff is what seals the water from getting in and under right?

no more gaps wont work, the water will get under the tiles no matter what you do , there should be a waterproof membrane under the tiles that keeps the shower from leaking. The job i am doing at the moment is a 2 year old tiled shower that is leaking, the origional tiler farked up the waterproofing and now has dissapeared they are now faced with a $2000 repair bill plus fixing the downstairs ceiling and reconnecting the plumbing probably another grand all because the origional tiler didnt do the waterproofing properly

[The Lone Rider]

So I need a similar thing, but it needs to be Bathroom Silicone Sealant putty stuff.

[Sam I Am]

we clean tiles outside with hydrochloric acid doesnt hurt the tiles at all at all we use a angle grinder to remove glaze

where do you get hydrochloric acid from these days ?

[JimO]

where do you get hydrochloric acid from these days ?

placemakers, any brick suppliers its what bricklayers use to clean down the house once finished also known a spirits of salts

[The Stranger]

Selley's no more gaps will work fine though?

Selleys No More gaps is not suitable for use around a shower or bath.
You could use a silicone sealant, but if you do, ensure you get a reputable brand with a mould inhibitor. I would use a Sika branded product as their mould inhibitors perform well.
There are a couple of Expandite products which we have found to perform well in the bathroom also Silaflex MS and Uraflex. Silaflex is a modified silicone and is paintable, very durable, sticks to a wide range of materials and doesn't grow mould as quickly as normal silicones. Uraflex is a polyurethane sealant and performs similarly.

[ManDownUnder]

Selleys No More gaps is not suitable for use around a shower or bath.
You could use a silicone sealant, but if you do, ensure you get a reputable brand with a mould inhibitor. I would use a Sika branded product as their mould inhibitors perform well.
There are a couple of Expandite products which we have found to perform well in the bathroom also Silaflex MS and Uraflex. Silaflex is a modified silicone and is paintable, very durable, sticks to a wide range of materials and doesn't grow mould as quickly as normal silicones. Uraflex is a polyurethane sealant and performs similarly.

FWIW - maybe you should qualify your post with your relevant experience in the area - how do you know this stuff?

[The Stranger]

FWIW - maybe you should qualify your post with your relevant experience in the area - how do you know this stuff?

Dude, just made it up on the spot.

Been a commercial builder for quite some time, and yes some builders do actually care that things are done properly, go back and fix their mistakes and seek appropriate technical advice when faced with new or unusual situations.
Plus I am anal about water ingress. Seen and repaired too many nightmares caused by others.

[007XX]

Dude, just made it up on the spot.

Been a commercial builder for quite some time, and yes some builders do actually care that things are done properly, go back and fix their mistakes and seek appropriate technical advice when faced with new or unusual situations.
Plus I am anal about water ingress. Seen and repaired too many nightmares caused by others.

Well, that was a pretty good spot!

Am a tiler by trade (was practicing about 10 years ago), and your infos were pretty dead on from what I remember.
As far as being a builder that cares, you'd be a dying breed:yes: There are so many freakin' cowboys out there, it's not funny anymore...Partly the reason I gave up (that and the fact I was 6 months pregnant, so kind of had to stop!).

The Golden rule should be: WATERPROOFING! Don't skimp on it, it'll come back and bite you on the arse...

[The Lone Rider]

Interestingly enough, No More Gaps has a big label on it saying it is for bathrooms lol

So I need a waterproof bathroom sealant that is mold proof/has mold prevention in it.

[JimO]

Interestingly enough, No More Gaps has a big label on it saying it is for bathrooms lol

So I need a waterproof bathroom sealant that is mold proof/has mold prevention in it.

for bathrooms but not for showers

[vifferman]

Selley's no more gaps will work fine though? Th silicone putty/rubber stuff is what seals the water from getting in and under right?
Selleys Anything won't work. Almost all Selleys products are rubbish. And "No More Gaps" is one of their worst products. It's not waterproof, and despite what the label says, it shrinks.

[vifferman]

Selleys No More gaps is not suitable for use around a shower or bath.
You could use a silicone sealant, but if you do, ensure you get a reputable brand with a mould inhibitor. I would use a Sika branded product as their mould inhibitors perform well.
There are a couple of Expandite products which we have found to perform well in the bathroom also Silaflex MS and Uraflex. Silaflex is a modified silicone and is paintable, very durable, sticks to a wide range of materials and doesn't grow mould as quickly as normal silicones. Uraflex is a polyurethane sealant and performs similarly.
Eggs Zachary what I would've said, if I wasn't too pharkin' tired to type it out.

I've spent all day fixing a leaky pipe in the house. Er.... actually the pipe was relatively easy to fix; the fact fixing it made the pipe shorter, and then I cracked the inlet on the toilet cistern took hours...
And it'll take weeks for the carpet and inside of the walls to dry. On all three storeys. Pharkin' stupid house. Should never have bought it...

[The Lone Rider]

for bathrooms but not for showers

So water proof, mold resistant SHOWER sealant putty?

[JimO]

So water proof, mold resistant SHOWER sealant putty?

get "mapai" brand silicone from a tile shop its a top line itallian silicone made by the biggest itallian tile adhesive, grout, silicone maker. i have used literally hundreds of tubes and never had a problem with mold but aside from that replacing the silicone wont stop a shower leaking if the waterproofing is shot

[The Lone Rider]

I thought the whole point of the sealant is that it kept water out from getting in and through the cracks? The floor itself is stainless metal, theres just some tiles in the lower half foot around the walls, and I was wanting to re-seal the seams.

[JimO]

thats a different kettle of fish but you still need silicone basically the tiles are a decoration in the shower they are there to look at and tiles, grout ,silicone wont keep water out by themselves

[The Lone Rider]

Hmm, I really don't know then.

In the building inspection when I bought this place it was commented that there could be possible water leakage to the floor or something, from the shower. However there was nothing to say why he had thought that. The only thing under the shower is concrete and dirt. I suppose some water could seep into the walls though. But there's only two walls it can seep into.. and one I think is a brick concrete wall with the garage on the other side. And I think the 2nd wall goes connects to the neighbors garage on the other side.

[Brett]

Hmm, I really don't know then.

In the building inspection when I bought this place it was commented that there could be possible water leakage to the floor or something, from the shower. However there was nothing to say why he had thought that. The only thing under the shower is concrete and dirt. I suppose some water could seep into the walls though. But there's only two walls it can seep into.. and one I think is a brick concrete wall with the garage on the other side. And I think the 2nd wall goes connects to the neighbors garage on the other side.

Mate, listen to what has been said. You start with a substrate this is either impervious to water or is waterproofed with membrane to make it impervious to water.
You then put a protectived screed or layer of grout over the membrane, you then lay the tiles and either grout or silicon the joints, using an approved sealant - the Mapai stuff mentioned is perfect. Selleys No More Gaps will NOT work.
The whole idea is that the water IS going to get under the tiles, hence the water proof membrane stopping it getting any further. Thus it depends on how old the shower is as to its method of construction. I would certainly never ever rely on the tiles to keep the water out. Same story as with some of this leaky building crap...people thinking that the cladding alone will keep the water out...bullshit, one crack and the water floods in. Hence I hate plaster houses with a passion. In the case of cladding, a cavity is needed to convey the water out and not into the house. Your tiles are like brick cladding - designed to get soaked through and make it no further.

If you hear anything said...PLEASE DONT USE NO MORE GAPS.

And- Good luck with your project.

[Biggles08]

go to your local tile shop and get some "Mapai" brand silicone its itallian and good and relativly cheap

Mapai cheap?!?! man you've been given the line!!! lol. It is good stuff though because you can match the silicon with there grout color too. RLA Polymers have this type of system also.

[JimO]

Mapai cheap?!?! man you've been given the line!!! lol. It is good stuff though because you can match the silicon with there grout color too. RLA Polymers have this type of system also.

i pay $15 a tube what do you pay??

[Biggles08]

i pay $15 a tube what do you pay??

I sell silicone "Tilesil" which is RLA Polymers brand. $15 isn't too bad. Tilesil retails for around the $10-$12 mark. There isn't any distribution down in Dunedin though so there goes that :-).