Tileing/showers

[confused 2]

I am about to tile out a shower enclosure but am concerned that many people on here talk about tile/grout porosity and damp.
Is it really a problem if good quality waterproof adhesive and grout is used and properly done??

 

[Nige F]

No

 

[Nestor_Kelebay]

No. I agree with Nige F.

You get a better job, however, if you use good quality waterproof adhesive and grout over a proper tile backer like a cement board which won't deteriorate even if it does get wet.

And, you get a still better job if you wait for the grout to dry and then apply an acrylic sealer over that grout to prevent mildew from growing on it.

But, thousands of bathrooms have been tiled without a proper tile backer board behind the tiles, and without sealing the grout to prevent mildew from discoloring it.

 

[masona]

Is it really a problem if good quality waterproof adhesive and grout is used and properly done??

The grout is only water resistance and not 100% waterproof, the only way is to tank the shower as Nestor_Kelebay pointed out.

Another way is what I have is a shower wall board, no tiling or grout to worry about!

See this for one of them

 

[Nestor_Kelebay]

No, the point I was trying to make is that board intended for use as a tile backer board in showers will be highly resistant to moisture, and that means it's won't deteriorate or lose it's strength/rigidity if it gets wet. This is important since any loss of rigidity of the tile backer board is going to result in the tiling bending, and that results in the grout lines cracking.

And, of course, grout lines cracking leads to the tile backer board getting wetter still, and the situation becoming analagous to that of a snowball rolling downhill.

The grout is water proof. It doesn't deteriorate at all if it gets wet. The problem is that cement based grout is porous, and the mildew spores will grow in that wet porous surface just like stuff will grow between the rocks on a rocky beach. It's the grout itself that makes mildew hard to clean off of mildewed grout just like it's the rocks themselves that make it difficult to clean an oil slick off of a rocky beach. By sealing that grout, you prevent the water from being wicked into the grout (one way or another, depending on the kind of grout sealer you buy), and that in turn prevents mildew from growing IN the porous surface of the grout.

If cement based grouts weren't porous, they'd be no more susceptible to discoloration of their surface by mildew than the glazed ceramic wall tiles. Epoxy grouts aren't susceptable to mildew precisely because they don't dry porous like cement based grouts do (but epoxy grouts aren't as user friendly as cement based grouts to work with, and may not be appropriate for use by a DIY'er tiling something for the first time).

 

[Nige F]

Have to disagree with Nestor on Epoxy grouts I used some on a shower @ my last house, and nearly had a nightmare scenario it was SO difficult to remove from the tiles..Luckily I am a slow and cautious worker when doing new things, and I managed to clean the tiles and make a good job by doing a few grout lines at a time.

 

[masona]

The grout is water proof.

This can be misleading, I don't know what type of grout you have your side but over here in the UK the ceramic tile grout is porous and water can leak through and most manufacters only claim water resistance. The reason I came across this I used to do shuttering work for swimming pools and the tilers claim the tile grout are not waterproof and the water is behind the tiles & also claimed that the tiles in the swimming pool is for decorative purpose only. When I get a bit of time, I see if I can find some links to back this up.

I like your idea of sealing the grouts.

 

[bathjobby]

As NK said;

But, thousands of bathrooms have been tiled without a proper tile backer board behind the tiles, and without sealing the grout to prevent mildew from discoloring it.

and its still the norm in the UK. If you prepare the walls properly (firm, clean and a diluted coat of pva adhesive to fix them), fix the tiles properly and with a good adhesive and use good (standard) water resistant grout and get it well applied (with a float), then you will be fine for a domestic shower i.e. not in constant use 24 hours a day. Never had a problem with, oh whats its name ? went to higher school in Aus to get a degree with 007. Get it ?