Grout ARGH! With diagram.

[goldpendant]

I have recently given our bathroom a mini makeover (new colour paint on cabinets/new mirrors etc).

I always regretted having white grout with our white metro tiles and came across a grout stain/sealant which worked brilliantly on a tester patch I did.

Anyway, I've moved onto a larger area, and suffice to say the original white grout job seems to get progressively sloppier as I move around the bathroom. The dark grey stain only emphasises it.

So, the question.

Stop now, with one with the grey stained grout (above vanity area and sink), or carry on and accept that it's not going to look brilliant.

See diagram!

Here's the rough diagram as you look at the bathroom from the door.

Red line indicates area that has been grout stained.

Blue area, plus wall parallel to bath, and the wall facing the vanity area are fully tiled to ceiling.

You’d need to photograph the grey grout so we can see if it’s as bad as you think.

It perhaps isn’t!

It may be easier for someone in real life to judge right enough!

Yes think you need to put a pic of the grout. It’s too hard to judge otherwise..

Ok pics coming up

Pic 1, the grout lines pre stain on the tester area. They are pretty neat.

Pic 2, the after!

But, the grout job gets sloppier as I move around... see pic 3 and pic 4.

How daft does it look to stop here and do no more? I'm loathe to keep going if it's going to look like a dogs dinner...

Pic 5, the overall effect and where I plan to stop.

I wish a regrout were an option but our tiler won't do it, says it would look dreadful.

I think it looks better with the grey grout, even if the job isn't perfect. If you do the whole room you will stop noticing the wobbles.

The grey grout looks miles better. Keep going!

Yeah you need to keep going. When you find yourself getting sloppy stop. Come back at it the next day. But it looks miles better with the grey grout and Daft if it’s grouted in two different colours.

It’ll take a while but before you stain where the grout is bad you could try and fix it up by masking and then sanding off the excess grout.

Fiddly job though.

The grey looks lovely! Far better than the while. Do it all

Ok thanks everyone!

DH has offered to try and beaten up the shoddy grout with a file before I go around and stain... agree the grey looks much better.

I think you've done a really good job!

Metal straight edge and a Stanley knife to clean up the grout?

The dark grout looks great, can i ask what product you are using as I am thinking out kitchen floor would look better with darker grout.

Ah thanks everyone. I am a perfectionist so the blurry wavy lines are doing my head in, but unless you're up close it is is much better!

It's by a company called Universealant - it's actually pretty easy, especially if you've got larger floor tiles I imagine.

I read the title as Grout ARGH - with diaphragm. Ouch.

Honestly it looks so much better and it makes the undone bits look bad, sort of faded. Definitely crack on.

The grey grout looks smarter. Keep going.

I'm about to do up a bathroom and now have Grout Fear. Is white really a bad idea if it's not on the floor?

If you can get a tiler to use epoxy grout it is stain proof. It's used in hotels. More expensive and harder to use. The tiler needs to have used it before.

Ours isn't even that old (3yrs). It just looks really bad next to the white tiles.... don't know what we were thinking, did grey in the kitchen!

@Bobbots

The grey grout looks miles better. Keep going!

I agree - it looks a lot better, don't worry about your finish, you will notice it more than anyone else

I've a steam mop (about £50 in Argos) that converts to a handheld steam cleaner with different brushes - the wire one tidied up the sloppy grouting on my kitchen floor really well. You'd have to check the wire wouldn't scratch the tiles maybe by doing a bit in a corner?

The sort of thing that you have in pic 3 was fixed by the steam/wire brush