Tile Wall To Tile Floor Shower Grout Versus Silicone Caulk

It is common for people to confuse these two substances and put grout where caulking should go or vice versa.

Tile wall to tile floor shower grout versus silicone caulk.

If you create a caulk dam it will grow mold. It will create a dam that will hold water that migrates down the wall. My tile installer recently told me that he wanted to use caulk in the corners of a tiled shower instead of grout is that necessary. Caulk is a sealant typically made of silicone or acrylic material.

Grout or caulk between floor tile and tub. The vast majority of showers that i ve tiled have had no problems when i use grout in the corners. Tom meehan a second generation tile installer and co author of working with tile who lives and works in harwich mass responds. This is largely because of the way grout binds with backer board the concrete material placed behind tiles.

Caulk is impermeable meaning it won t let in water. The problem is that there is grout haze at the bottom edge of the wall tiles from where i tried to patch up the old grout in the past. Read on to. Grout and caulk both have their respective places in a tile shower.

Re grout the base of a wall. No matter how well you seal the grout water will seep into the grout and run or wick down the wall. Though grout is more porous than caulk it s best for tiled shower walls and floors. Grout is mostly used to seal the cracks between tiles on a bathroom wall.

The grout at the change of plane was cracking so i decided to remove it and replace with silicone caulk. In this case you have to ensure you ve given enough time for the tile adhesive to fully dry or else it can mix with the grout and the effectiveness of both will be compromised. Caulk should appear seamless while keeping your walls windows floors and ceilings adjacent to showers tubs and toilets safe from the excess moisture that is typical in a bathroom. Similar to the gap that can exist between your wall tile and tub you may have a space between the floor and your bathtub.

Repeat do not caulk the joint where the wall of a shower meets the floor. Generally grout should be used on the shower walls and floors and all other vertical or horizontal shower planes. Or where the edge of a tile meets the wall. Run a bead of silicone tub and tile caulk along the joint where floor tile meets the walls sink shower or bathtub.

As with any other gap near your bathtub you ll want to close the opening to prevent any possible water damage. Where grout is just good for bonding together tile caulk is good for creating a seal between multiple materials say between glass tiles and a porcelain tub.