Tile Wall To Tile Floor Shower Grout Versus Silicone Caulk

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Tile wall to tile floor shower grout versus silicone caulk.

Caulk is a sealant typically made of silicone or acrylic material. Tom meehan a second generation tile installer and co author of working with tile who lives and works in harwich mass responds. I have a walk in shower with marble tile walls and a ceramic tile floor. It will create a dam that will hold water that migrates down the wall.

Generally grout should be used on the shower walls and floors and all other vertical or horizontal shower planes. Grout is mostly used to seal the cracks between tiles on a bathroom wall. It is common for people to confuse these two substances and put grout where caulking should go or vice versa. This is largely because of the way grout binds with backer board the concrete material placed behind tiles.

Wait two weeks for the grout and caulking to cure. 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. Grout and caulk both have their respective places in a tile shower. The grout at the change of plane was cracking so i decided to remove it and replace with silicone caulk.

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. Run a bead of silicone tub and tile caulk along the joint where floor tile meets the walls sink shower or bathtub. Similar to the gap that can exist between your wall tile and tub you may have a space between the floor and your bathtub. No matter how well you seal the grout water will seep into the grout and run or wick down the wall.

Caulk is impermeable meaning it won t let in water. If you create a caulk dam it will grow mold. Grout or caulk between floor tile and tub. Though grout is more porous than caulk it s best for tiled shower walls and floors.

Repeat do not caulk the joint where the wall of a shower meets the floor. The vast majority of showers that i ve tiled have had no problems when i use grout in the corners. 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. Or where the edge of a tile meets the wall.

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. As with any other gap near your bathtub you ll want to close the opening to prevent any possible water damage.