Grouting Question?

Question

I am looking to re-grout my bathroon - just moved in and its kinda grey in colour (not attractive) - do i need to chip away and remove the old grout before applying new stuff?

Or can i simply grout over to whiten things up?
Thanks

Answer 1

I ran into the same problem when I purchased a home last year. Essentially, you have a couple of different options other than re-grouting - which is a lot of work. The first option - which I chose to use - is a grout re colorant. You can find the product at Lowe's and it actually worked really well. Just get a kids toothbrush, apply the product to the grout, let dry for 15 minutes and then wipe off anything that got on the tile with a wet sponge and re-seal. http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=201122-73085-100494&lpage=none
The second option is try acid washing the grout with the same product that removes haze from newly installed tile. It is basically a mild acid that removes old grout sealent - but also has a tendency to remove stains. In either case, just remember to re-seal. Good luck!

Answer 2

You can do one of two things. You can either get a pen whitner which you just go over in between the tiles to make the grouting white but its all according how many tiles you have up because they can work out expensive otherwise. Secondly, you can buy a grouting remover tool and his goes inbetween the tiles and scrapes all the old groupt out from between them and then you just replace with new waterproof grouting. Below is the link to show you what a grouting tool looks like. Happy Diy in . Take care

Answer 3

Yes if there is enough space to take the grout.

However an hour with a steam cleaner also does the trick, if it is not too bad. You need to get the stuff really clean anyway before you grout, so the steam cleaner is a good option, as it will get rid of all th soap, and may save you the job.

There are also Grout whitners, or even coloures, blue green etc, which may suit the tiles better.

Answer 4

they make a tool that grinds the old grout out and then you clean it good and regrout. I don't know if you have heard of a Dremel (cost between$60 and $ 90 bucks) comes with all attachments. Little bit of elbow grease but in the end it is worth it,not a cover-up but new work, looks 100 times better. There is a grout scraper but I do not recommend it, to much of a chance of tearing tiles loose. Good Luck

Answer 5

Don't worry about grouting it. If the grouting is tidy (ie. no gaps or lumps etc) but just discoloured, paint over it with white emulsion paint (silk works but matt is better).
Leave it to dry, then rub off excess from the face of the tiles with a cloth or scourer sponge.
I guarantee that this will work perfectly and is much less fiddly than using a grout 'pen' thing.
It also costs nothing since you're bound to have some white paint knocking around.

Answer 6

I did this and it stayed good - get rid of obvious loose bits. Get the grout that is ready out the tin, smear on over old stuff but make sure it doesn't come out further than the tiles and smooth the excess off straight away with your finger but only polish tiles afterwards when the stuff is dry as mess on the tiles will come off a lot easier then.

Answer 7

you need to get rid of the old grout but watch the tiles as they may fall off, my suggestion is take all the tiles off and re tile and grout, there are some cheap tiles out there, may save you a lot of time and money

Answer 8

At home depot they have a small grout file in a kit to redo your bathroom wslls it is a very simple project just follow the directions it takes around two maybe three hours dont rush it so good luck

Answer 9

Just carefully rake out any loose bits then apply ready-mixed waterproof grout/tile cement (Sparingly) Remove surplus with a damp sponge-cloth as you go.

Answer 10

Remove is best, Can pick up a simple scraping grout removal tool, It will look better and last longer. dont have to try to scrape it all out