Old Grout - Painted?

[NewHomOwnr]

Hi All,

I am new to the forum and have really enjoyed reading through the pages of advice on here. We bought our condo about a year ago, and at the time were really happy with the condition of the grouting in our bathroom considering the unit is almost 30 yrs old. Hah! They had me fooled, I noticed yesterday that it appears that either the old grout has been painted (?) to make it look white and clean or the previous owners applied something else to 'refresh' the grout.
Problem is now what ever it is, is starting to come off. Grout seems to be ok underneath, dirty but not mildew. I have no loose tiles, no signs of water damage, just dirty grout that should be cleaned and sealed.
I noticed you recommend an alkaline grout cleaner, with that in mind, how should I get what ever is on there off, and then I am assuming it should be sealed again?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated, cheers!
Paul

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[SABoyt]

Paul, you may have more of a project on your hands than you realize. We often run into colored grout that has been applied by someone else. Either the homeowner or a professional. We never know which one it is and so we have to guess at what it will take to remove it.

We have encountered exterior latex paint as colorant, all the DIY brand colorants (aquamix, polyblend, etc) and even concrete stain. If it looks like it is trying to release from the grout, you might have a head start. You will need to test some strippers on the grout lines. Also, keep in mind that if your tile is not glazed (ceramic or porcelain) you may need to test for safeness on the tile as well.

Start off with some paint stripper from the local store. Let it dwell for varying times and then scrub it off with a good stiff brush. You may need to try several types of strippers to find the right one. Look for one that is designed to work with epoxy based paints and one that is for latex paints. That will be a good start. If you can find it, try some soy gel stripper. That one seems to work most often for us.

[NewHomOwnr]

Hi Steve,
Thanks for the advice, it seems that the tile is glazed, but not 100% sure whether it is ceramic or porcelain. I will have a look this weekend for some 'mild' strippers and see what happens.

Do you have any suggestions for cleaning the grout underneath or is best just to remove the old grout and apply new? I am assuming at this point it almost makes sense to retile then?

Cheers

[SABoyt]

Paul, i never recommend regrouting when the grout is in sound condition. Cosmetically, you can make it look new again with professional grout colorant. Done properly, it should last you another 15 years or more. If the tile is porcelain or ceramic, you can use most any stripper on the grout without fear. It's very possible that the stripper will do a fine job of cleaning the grout as well provided there is no major staining, just dirty.

We color thousands of square feet a week and we warranty it for 15 years.