Cracking grout

[jdpjamesp]

Hi everyone - once again I ply this forum with my never-ending questions!!

It seems that the floor tiles in our bathroom have been laid directly onto the floorboards which are very slightly spongy around the middle of the room. This was done before we bought the place. Lately the grout between the tiles has started to crack and crumble a little and as a result water is getting into the floor when it splashes on the floor. It's not a massive problem, but I want to nip it in the bud. Is there anything I can do, short of scraping out all the grout and replacing it? Could I, say, put a thin layer of clear silicone over the joints to seal it? Or is there a better product for that? Or is that a really bad plan?

 

[iwaters]

I'm afraid whoever installed the tiles originally is a complete plank. The grout is cracking because there is too much movement in the floor.

Scrapping the grout out and replacing wont fix-it and it will re-crack again in no time.

You might be able to fill the gaps with silicone but it wont be easy to get it in there neatly and will probably look rubbish.

Re-tiling properly is the only proper way to sort it.

 

[jdpjamesp]

I feared as much... how about laying some vinyl over the tiles? I have an off-cut big enough. Or would that cause problems too?

 

[kjacko]

Well, you could try some flexible tile grout. If the tiles haven't shifted noticable then that 'might' work.
Really should have laid the tiles on proper board AND with flexible adhesive and grout.
As regards laying vinyl on top, yes as long as you put at least 4mm ply on top of the files first. Otherwise an impression of your grout/tiles lines will start to show through after a few months of treading on the vinyl.

 

[jdpjamesp]

Thanks everyone.