We recently received a call from a man who had used a local grout company to restore the grout lines on his bathroom shower floor. After years of use, it is quite normal for the grout to need some TLC, but the final outcome of the service he received just didn’t ‘wow’ him. We sent out one of our estimators to take a look at the floor that week, and he determined that we would need to do a 2-step process to bring the grout lines back to their original color.
While the customer opted not to have his stone tiles restored to remove the damage during the grout restoration process, we needed to give the floor and grout a deep cleaning to prep the grout lines for the second step of our restoration. In addition to prepping the grout, the deep cleaning was also necessary to remove the mold and mildew build up on the grout lines.
We then proceeded to the second step, which was grout tinting, as many of the dirt stains were deeply set in from heavy use. Grout tinting was possible in this case because the customer had sanded grout in his shower, and the sand helps the tinting product successfully adhere to the grout lines. The grout tinting process allowed us to give the grout a consistent color and make it look like it was newly installed. Unless it is absolutely necessary, we do not recommend completely removing and replacing grout because it is costly and there is a much higher possibility of tiles breaking during this process.
Tinting gives the grout the same look of newly installed grout for less money and fewer risks.
The final steps were removing and replacing the moldy, failing caulk around the perimeter of the shower as well as sealing the tile and grout to help prevent future damage and staining.
All in all, it was a successful shower floor beautification!
For additional information on your marble, granite, travertine, terrazzo or other natural stone and grout, please visit our Case Studies or Care Tips page! If you have additional questions or would like to schedule a free estimate with one of our stone care experts, please contact us today!
