How can we regrout our shower?

[mich1972]

Morning friends. There is moisture coming through the wall from our shower. We recently had two quotes to get it re grouted and they are very expensive. Would it be something my hubby and I could fix ourselves ? If not we will get it done. They checked the pipes in the wall with that special machine to see if they are leaking and they are not so that’s good. Apparently it’s the grout. We would appreciate your advice please 😊

[mich1972]

@EricL  are these photos helpful ? There are bits of grout missing on the floor tiles. 

[MitchellMc · Accepted solution]

Hi @mich1972,

My concern here would be that even though there is missing grout, the walls should have a waterproofing membrane that captures this water and sheds it down to the drain. If you are experiencing dampness on the back of the wall, it might indicate there is an issue with the membrane. In order to resolve your missing grout issue, it's a reasonably straightforward job. Cut out the damaged and missing areas with a grout saw until you reach solid grout. You can then fill the areas with grout. Once you have repaired all the areas, I'd recommend going over the tiles and grout with a tile and grout sealer. Here's a guide on How to refresh tile grout and our Best Advice article on How do you repair tile grout?

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

[mich1972]

Hi Mitch. Thank you for replying so quickly mate. Ok , I am going to show this to my hubby so we can buy what we need to fix it. We stopped using the shower as of this morning and using our ensuite shower instead so we can let it dry out. How long do we wait for the shower to dry and then we can start repairing ? 

[EricL]

Hi @mich1972 

I believe three days should be more than enough to dry out the shower. I recommend having the doors and windows open to promote air circulation in the room. I also suggest taping the shower door open so that any residual moisture in the room will be carried away.

One other method you can do to dry off the bathroom is to point an electric fan into the room and leave it running for a few hours. 

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

[mich1972]

Hi @MitchellMc @EricL and to all of the Workshop Community out there. I wanted to send a massive shout out to you both !!!!! 

I shared a post to ask for friendly advice on how to fix some cracked / missing grout in our shower and moisture issues. 
Straight away Mitch and Eric replied with great advice and lots of info to read up on. 
You both gave me the confidence to have a go at doing the repairs myself and guess what, I did !!!!!!! 
I even told my hubby that I am going to repair the shower myself and I didn’t want him to help, I wanted to learn how to repair it as I have NEVER done this before. 

It’s nearly finished, just waiting for the sealer to dry out and the last thing I need to do is the silicone. 

Luckily we have our ensuite shower to use as the main bathroom is off limits 😆 and also this has been about a week between drying times ect. I have learnt so much and still learning more. I am so grateful for the workshop to be able to ask for help and advice. 
P.S Thanks Eric for the tip to use a fan to help with drying as it’s been really wet and cold here in Perth at the moment. 

[mich1972]

 

 

 

 

[mich1972]

Here’s a few photos of the process so far , everything purchased from Bunnings 😊

[EricL]

Hi @mich1972 

Thank you very much for sharing this update on your regrouting project. It's looking very good, just remember to give the sealer enough time to cure before you start using the shower.

If you need further assistance, please let me know.

Eric

[mich1972]

Thank you @EricL 

We won’t touch the shower until next week or so, is that ok ? We will leave it as long as we can. 

I now want to paint the ceiling and walls in that bathroom so I will need advice for that please as I have never painted before. 
Also there are a few cracks in the walls due to movement over the years from what my hubby said. From what we know the house was built in 1994. We are the second owners. There are a lot of cracks like this throughout the house , I want to concentrate on the bathroom first.