Designing Kitchens and Bathrooms - Regrout Kitchen Tile Floor
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MikeyBoy
09-23-07, 10:42 PM
I have 3 floor tiles that have cracked grout in some spots. Can someone recommend a product from a Lowes or Home Depot that I can buy to fix this? There seems to be so many kinds. Or do I have to regrout the whole kitchen floor? I have never done this before. Can someone please include a process for this? Sorry, first timer on this. It sounds easy!
Just Bill
09-24-07, 04:30 AM
Cracked grout is an indication of inadequate floor prep, flloor not stiff enough. You can try some of the flex grouts, but I suspect the only way to fix it properly, is to start over and reinforce the floor.
cwbuff
09-24-07, 08:08 AM
I would just buy regular grout. Your biggest problem is probably going to be matching grout color. I would just scrape out the old grout from the cracked joints and regrout the damaged areas only. If you get more cracks your floor probably needs work.
If the area under your kitchen floor is accessible, you might want to investigate stiffening the floor.
If the area under your kitchen floor is accessible, you might want to investigate stiffening the floor.
HeresJohnny
09-24-07, 08:33 AM
Cracked grout is a sign of movement that the tile/grout cant handle. The movement can be caused by many different things all of which are attributable to the installers failure to make sure the floor is stiff enough or improper installation procedures. Replacing the grout will likely not solve the problem and the grout will likely crack again. Without knowing more about the original installation its hard to say what was done wrong.:wall:
cwbuff
09-24-07, 02:05 PM
I agree that floor movement is probably the culprit, not knowing the circumstances I wouldn't recommend a tear up and redo. The grout could have cracked from a one time occurance. I once wheeled a dolly carrying a heavy wood stove across a tiled kitchen and left a trail of cracked grout behind me.
It's a simple and inexpensive matter to regrout the damaged joints. If it keeps cracking then you have a larger problem and you'll have to determine how you want to pursue it. If it's just a poorly supported spot in the floor that's an easy fix. If your entire floor is too springy then you have a more expensive problem to fix.
You can sometimes determine the floor makeup by a little exploratory surgery. If you can access the floor joists (basement/crawl space, measure them and post back their size, spacing and span (distance between support) i.e. 2X10joists spaced 16" on center with a 10' span. Find an inconspicuous spot (under the sink or DW) and drill an exploratory hole to determine a cross section of your floor. Typically you might find 1 1/4" of plywood underlayment and subfloor and a 1/4" cement backer board.
It's a simple and inexpensive matter to regrout the damaged joints. If it keeps cracking then you have a larger problem and you'll have to determine how you want to pursue it. If it's just a poorly supported spot in the floor that's an easy fix. If your entire floor is too springy then you have a more expensive problem to fix.
You can sometimes determine the floor makeup by a little exploratory surgery. If you can access the floor joists (basement/crawl space, measure them and post back their size, spacing and span (distance between support) i.e. 2X10joists spaced 16" on center with a 10' span. Find an inconspicuous spot (under the sink or DW) and drill an exploratory hole to determine a cross section of your floor. Typically you might find 1 1/4" of plywood underlayment and subfloor and a 1/4" cement backer board.
MikeyBoy
09-24-07, 08:18 PM
The only signs of cracks is in the tile area where my wife and I sit at the kitchen table. I would think it would be because of the legs of the table chairs causing the cracks due to wear and tear.
The joists are 1 1/2 x 7 1/2 boards spaced 16" from center.
The joists are 1 1/2 x 7 1/2 boards spaced 16" from center.
HeresJohnny
09-25-07, 11:54 AM
Mikey
Could be all sorts of reasons for the grout cracking. It could be deflection issues, subfloor and underlayment issues or lots of other things. Bottom line is if you regrout it will likely crack again. No harm in trying to regrout though, worst that happens is if it cracks again you are right back where you started.
What is the unsupported span of those 2x8's from below? Whats the composition of whats over the joists, plywood, osb, cement board, how may layers, how thick? If cement board was used, was it bedded in thinset? Were the joints taped and mudded? What type of setting materials were used, thinset, mastic? What kind of grout was used? How big is the room? Could be more questions based on your answers.:coffee:
Could be all sorts of reasons for the grout cracking. It could be deflection issues, subfloor and underlayment issues or lots of other things. Bottom line is if you regrout it will likely crack again. No harm in trying to regrout though, worst that happens is if it cracks again you are right back where you started.
What is the unsupported span of those 2x8's from below? Whats the composition of whats over the joists, plywood, osb, cement board, how may layers, how thick? If cement board was used, was it bedded in thinset? Were the joints taped and mudded? What type of setting materials were used, thinset, mastic? What kind of grout was used? How big is the room? Could be more questions based on your answers.:coffee: