Regrouting wetroom shower/tray area

[xchrisx]

Hello,

I had someone in to regrout/skim my bathroom floor as the grout had lifted in some places but, not in the wetroom area. The grout was fine in the shower area apart from the usual limescale build-up & the floor was tanked correctly 4 yrs ago & had never had a problem.

He attempted to remove the limescale & unfortunately during this process, 50% of the original grout was removed. He re-grouted the area again with Ardex-Flex which was used in the 1st instance 4 yrs ago.
In error, the shower was used less than 24hrs after the grouting & immediately we could see in areas, when putting foot pressure, water seeping up through the re grouted area. The shower hasn't been used since.

This was 7 days ago & the moisture has almost disappeared when walking in the above area's but, I'm now unsure what to do from here?

*Has the grout laid last week now of no use because of becoming wet so soon because of running the shower - should this be removed, dry area completely & re-grouted?
*Has this moisture now ruined the tanked shower section altogether now that water has obviously got in?
*Is there a beneficial sealant that can be applied, once grout has properly dried - how long ideally shd you leave the grout to dry properly within a wetroom area.

I was in B&Q yesterday & spotted Unibond Flexi-Mix Additive - wondering if this can be added when re-grouting the area?

Thanks & appreciate your feedback

[Colour Republic]

hmmmm you have more problems than just the grout. You shouldn't have had grout lifting after 4 years if it was done correctly in the first place, whats more you say water is visable when "when putting foot pressure", this suggests that you either have poorly fixed/loose tiles or deflection in your floor. Neither of which is good in a wet room (or any bathroom for that matter!).

Have you got pictures?

[Colour Republic]

BTW Ardex good - Unibond BAD

[xchrisx]

The floor/grout looks exactly like it did prior to the grout being replaced?

[OchAye]

The floor/grout looks exactly like it did prior to the grout being replaced?

Read again the first post by Colour Republic. He made two points:

a. It should not have needed regrouting after 4 years.
b. There should be no water being squeezed out from underneath the tiles when you put pressure on them (whatever the condition of the grout).

I trust him is all I can say.

OchAye.

[xchrisx]

Guys,

Thanks for replies & agree a perfectly good floor shouldn't have been regrouted but, it was unfortunately & then the shower was used 4+ hrs after the new grout went down escalating the problem.

What can I do from here?

Thanks,again

[Colour Republic]

The point is Chris you might have more serious underlying problems and you are just masking the problems by regrouting. As its a wetroom the consequences of ignoring it are far more serious than if it was just a standard bathroom. If you ignore it then I suggest you check your insurance is up to date!

If the shower was used just 4 hours after grouting then it is likely you have undermined the strength of the grout by washing the polymers away and is likely to leak as it has a weak bond to the tiles and only get worse. If it was in a dry area you might have got away with it as it's largely cosmetic. However in a wet area it will need to be re-done.

To answer your questions

*yes it needs regrouting
*No the tanked area becoming wet should not have damaged it, that's its job. However the deflection or loose tiles may damage it over time, in addition there is an outside chance that the the tile adhesive has become damaged by becoming wet depending on the type used.
*yes there are grout sealers that will help in the fight against limescale and also its water resistant properties BUT they are supplementary sealers and not to be relied on for water protection in a wet area and I'm not suggesting you use it on your current damaged grout. In a wet area you should leave it 48hrs before use, although do check the instructions as some grouts can state up to 2 weeks!!!!

[xchrisx]

Many thanks for your detailed reply.

Agree with all your points.

I suppose I'm just annoyed at myself for 1)not stipulating to the builder not to touch the wetroom/shower area as it was perfectly watertight beforehand & just had the unsightly limescale buildup. 2)Running the shower too early after grouting.

I'll remove the new grout, allow to air/dry & regrout using the original Ardex-Flex & probably leave for as long as I can. You mentioned as sealer that I can apply after the new grout has dried - can you recommend a product?


Again, I appreciate your continued comments

Chris

BTW - great website you have !

[tictic]

Again...you will more than probably have damaged the adhesive under the floor tiles with grout not had time to set..min 7days IMO..so again give your floor tiles a tap with your knuckles and listen for a hollow sound,but by reading your op...sounds has tho you already have that and your tiles may start to tent/de-bond from the floor substrate.