Grout sealer – an absolute essential
When you have just completed a tile job, it is absolutely essential that you go in for a tile grout sealer to finish the job. Tile grout sealer is required when you have set your tiles with cement. Those that have been set with epoxy do not need a sealer.
The main reason a tile grout sealer is used is to prevent your tiles from absorbing moisture. Cement, just like concrete is porous and if exposed to water, it will absorb it. If a grout sealer is not placed, then this water can seep under the tiles and lead to a number of complications such as mildew and fungus. The main part that gets affected is the substrate or the layer exactly below the tile. Depending on the materials used here, the damage to your home can be significant. Once the water seeps in, the only solution left will be for you to remove the tiles, clean out the affected area and replace the tiles.
A grout sealer is used to hold the grout in place so that your tiles are not susceptible to wear and tear. If your grout is unprotected, then it will start chipping away with time and soon your tiles may come loose. At times like these, even the simplest of things such as a spilt juice can result in a lot of staining and destruction of the tile.
Grout sealers are of two types and these are based on the way they are to be used. The applicator comes with an applicator brush and the spray is where the tile grout sealer is sprayed on. When you have a large floor space to cover, the spray-on sealer works more efficiently. Smaller spaces can be covered using the applicator and this will require a great deal of intricate work.
September 30th, 2011 at 6:36 am
This is just a bit of an overstatement. My bathroom tiles are 50 years old and were subjected to leaks and neglect throughout the first 30 years of their life. I just dug out any grout that seemed loose and squirted a tube of super glue into the gaps between any tiles that appeared loose, then replaced the missing grout. Grout sealer would have minimized this damage, but it was repairable. It is particularly useful on tiles that were installed between 1950 and 1990, during which plywood was often used as a substrate. The nicest thing about sealing grout is that if it’s maintained, the grout lines tend to become filled in, which reduces the amount of dirt they collect. My floor is now almost as flat as linoleum.