Getting ready to grout

Whelp. There was a project we should’ve done right off the bat but didn’t, because there were plenty of prettier things do, like paint the master suite. It involves the master shower. Who’s going to re-grout it this weekend? This girl! Yeah, you better be jealous. I party down like it’s nobody’s business.

You see, we didn’t get our faces pressed up against the shower tile when we did our pre-purchase walks. Mainly because one of the owners was still living there and all of her stuff was in the stall and it felt weird. And we expected the home inspection to catch issues like that, since it's visible. Shame on us. Upon closer inspection, we discovered that the grout was gross and needed a deep cleaning (normal), but then I realized while taking my first shower that some of the grout on the side tiles is, well, missing.

We should’ve stopped everything there, but we’d just moved into the master bath after removing wallpaper and painting, and I think we were just reluctant to haul it all back. And we had to do some research. We took our sweet time about it.

Quick note: You should seal your grout every 6-12 months. Grout is porous, yo. Then you add in cracks from wear and tear or house shifting, and you’re dripping into the shower pan. I’m terrified that our grout was never sealed, or only once. Hope we’ve got an excellent membrane and mud floor. Eeek.

Originally, we thought we could scrub the grout and refinish it with grout paint, then seal it. That was before I realized there were gaps in the wall grout. So THEN we thought we could caulk between the tiles, because caulk is the duct tape of DIY. Plus, I’m pretty good at it (with the help of painter’s tape) and the stuff formulated for tub and tile is waterproof, so we could skip that step. Genius, yes?

Nope.

Here’s what I learned on whether to caulk or not:

• People do it, but they are in the minority
• Caulk should be used wherever there’s a plane change (corners, seams around tub, etc) so it can flex as the house shifts. Grout will just crack.
• Caulk will wear down faster than grout, and people complain that it gets mildewy faster (even if it’s supposedly resistant)
• I’d be using a lot of painter’s tape, which might not be worth the time and money if I just have to re-do the job in a year or two
• Caulk can be used to patch small areas of missing grout, but it’s not recommended for whole shower walls

It could be that grout companies and their associates have launched a misinformation campaign against caulk, because if people knew how awesome it was as a grout replacement, grout would go out of business. But … probably not. Although I used to fancy myself an individualistic rebel back in the day, I have to say, I’m going to side with majority opinion on this. Grout it is!

Honestly, I’m both excited and fearful of this enterprise. I’ve never grouted before. But we wanted to DIY update the house, so … what’s the point if I cower at some wet cement mixtures? I’m also fretting that the shower has leaked for years and we have a rotting, moldy frame we can’t see until it’s done 5-digits worth of damage. But I’m a worst case scenario girl.

The game plan:

- Tonight - Go to Lowe’s to pick up a rug we ordered (hopefully it’ll be The One); grab grout mix, grout saw, sponge, sealer, etc.; scrub the shower down, dry it, then score out the remaining wall grout, vacuum up dust

- Tomorrow - Grout it! Raise kitchen curtains! Have a drink and watch some TV that night.

- Sunday - Seal it! Get my spray paint on with the cabinet hardware. Pick up box spring and basic frame to complete the "new" four poster bed we scored on Craigslist (post to come).

I SHOULD be working on a presentation and article for my association’s spring meeting later this month, but I feel like this is a much better use of my time. ;-) Oh, and I realize some of you may be wondering where my husband is in this grout scenario ... Well, he's got some other business to attend to ... this house ain't gonna fix itself, you know.