Kate uses epoxy grout to grout the “fussy” mosaic tile on her bathroom floor
After all my hard work installing the mosaic floor tile in my master bathroom, it was time to seal it all in with grout. Not one to just slap any old grout on my beautiful new floor tile, I did much research to choose not only the right color grout — but also to choose the right grout product. I was scared to work with epoxy grout for the first time. But I used it — SpectraLOCK epoxy grout(*affiliate link) in particular. It turned out to be much easier than I expected — and it looks great. Read on for the complete grout saga–>
Choosing the grout for my mosaic tile bathroom floor
In the past, I’ve only ever installed white grout — on my bathroom and kitchen floors in my first house, as well as the kitchen backsplash in both my first and current house. All of the floor and wall tiles in every place that I’ve lived over the years have always had white grout. Here’s the thing about white grout though — it shows dirt so quickly — especially on floors. When first starting to plan my bathroom remodel, Pam bestowed her bits of bathroom wisdom on me — number one — don’t use white grout on the floor. It isn’t just Pam who has been warning me away from white floor grout. Several readers have also recommended to use a dark grout color — not only for ease of cleaning — but also to help the light colored tiles really pop. After contemplating all their advice, I agreed to break my previous white grout on the floor cycle — and go with a medium grey.
Which grout type to choose: sanded, unsanded, cement or epoxy?
Next came the research into which type of grout to use. If you’ve looked at grout before, you probably know that there are sanded and unsanded grouts — and that decision really comes down to the size of your grout joint and the type of tile being used, meaning your tile selection and desired spacing basically dictates that choice for you. My dilemma came down to another lesser known, grout decision — to use traditional cement grout or epoxy grout.
After researching both traditional cement grout (which I have installed before) and epoxy grout — specifically, SpectraLOCK epoxy grout (*affiliate link), which I chose because it claims to be the easiest epoxy grout to install and my father has used it before with great results.
During my research phase, I compiled a list of pros and cons for each grout type:
Pros of traditional cement grout:
- Familiar with installation methods (I’ve installed this several times before)
- Traditional product used to grout tiles pretty much since the invention of tiles and grout
- Cleans with plain water, can be removed even if it dries on tile surface
- Cost effective
- Easy to install with long working/cleaning time
Cons of traditional cement grout:
- When using dark colors, sometimes efflorescence causes dark grout to lighten in spots
- Needs to be sealed every 6 months to few years depending on cleaning habits, traffic and sealer applied
Pros of SpectraLock epoxy grout:
- Color is consistent and not affected by efflorescence
- Stain proof/easy to clean
- Never needs to be sealed
Cons of SpectraLock epoxy grout:
- Expensive
- During installation process, washing must be done quickly and completely with vinegar water solution before grout has time to try on tiles. Haze and grout left on tiles is very difficult/impossible to remove
- Short working time — grout stiffens and becomes harder to work as time goes on
After listing all the pros and cons of each type of grout, I was still left conflicted. Mostly, I was losing sleep over two important pros and cons of each type of grout installation:
- Regarding the traditional cement grout: I was terrified that using dark grey cement grout would result in efflorescence and uneven color (remember, in the past, white cement grout has been my go-to choice — I’ve never installed a colored grout before), resulting in a ruined floor job.versus:
- Regarding epoxy grout: I was terrified that the glazed texture on my mosaic floor tiles would “hold onto” bits of the epoxy grout and make it difficult or impossible to fully clean the tiles, resulting in a ruined floor job.
Feeling “darned if I do, darned if I don’t”, I considered the main benefits of taking a chance with the SpectraLock — my color would be even and I would never need to seal it. After all of the time I’ve spent working on this bathroom so far, the idea of having to seal the grout every year or so didn’t excite me. Finally, after many restless nights, I summoned the courage to try the SpectraLock epoxy grout in my bathroom.
My color choice: SpectraLOCK Natural Gray
Without being able to see any actual samples of the grout colors (besides online and what was printed on the package label) I was nervous about picking exactly the right color grey. After researching comments and reviews online from people who had used SpectraLOCK grout colors in their tile projects — I discovered that the grout often is slightly lighter than the color swatch on the package, and that the color darkens as it cures — meaning the initial color when mixed won’t be the final color. Taking these bits of knowledge into consideration, I decided on Natural Grey — which seemed to be a nice warm, mid to dark grey on SpectraLock’s color chart.
On the day of the grout installation, I was shaking in my boots. I read and reread the install instructions and made sure everything was ready. Taking Pam’s advice, I had prepared a sample tile board with leftover floor tiles so I could test install the grout for both color and ease of removal from the tile’s tiny bumps. I took a deep breath, mixed up a batch of the grout, and tried it on the sample board. To my delight — success! Knowing the color would dry a few shades darker, and noting that the grout didn’t stick in the tile ridges (probably because of the high gloss glaze) I began grouting the bathroom floor.
Tips to using SpectraLock Epoxy grout:
- Be sure to follow all instructions to a T — including using an epoxy grout float(*affiliate linke)(shown above) to install the grout instead of a regular grout float. The epoxy grout float is heavier and more dense, which helps it act as a squeegee and get much of the excess grout off the tile with the float, leaving less to wash off later.
- The grout does not stick to the epoxy float — not a problem when working on the floor, but I could see installing it on walls or ceilings would be more difficult.
- The SpectraLOCK epoxy grout does get harder to work with as time progresses, for best results, use two hands to pack the joints with grout and work quickly. I found that I had about 30 minutes from mixing the grout to the first wash (it was 77 degrees in my bathroom — grout hardens faster in warm temperatures). Since the buckets are small, I did not find myself wasting grout, but you need to mix a lot of batches to do the whole bathroom floor. Plus, grouting the floor felt like a total body workout.
- Coverage depends on the size of your tile and grout joint. For my project, each mixture of grout (Parts A&B + Part C colorant) covered about 8 sq. ft. Each mixture cost me about $24 and I used 8 units, for a total cost of $192 — not cheap.
In the end, I am very satisfied with the finished look of the SpectraLock epoxy grout. Having installed traditional grout before, my opinion is that the SpectraLOCK epoxy grout is no more difficult to install (at least on a floor) than traditional cement grout when directions are followed and proper and thorough cleaning is done. However, I’m sure the type and size of tile that is being grouted (as well as the finish) plays a huge part in my assessment. I am contemplating also using SpectraLOCK to grout my pink tile walls, but am worried about working with smaller grout lines on a vertical surface during the install.
Putting aside fears of grouting the wall tiles, I can say that I am in love with my retro pink tiled floor. The dark grout looks fabulous, and really does allow the light colored tiles to stand out and shine.
Brenda says
It looks FAB!! (I would not have been as brave and probably would have given in to have a contractor do it!) Congrats!!
Kelly Wittenauer says
Bravo, Kate! Job well done. And a second vote for a floor steamer for cleaning tile.
Robin, NV says
I would never have thought to use grey grout but it turned out awesome. It really does bring out the colors of the tile – white grout may have washed them out too much. I’ve more or less settled on this tile for my bathroom floor: http://www.mosaictilesupplies.com/glowtan-lyric-matte-glazed-hex-tile-lgh-209.aspx
I was thinking of using white grout but now I’m not sure. I also think grey grout would make it look too dark.
Robin, NV says
Oops! Wrong link. This is the tile I’ve settled on:
http://www.mosaictilesupplies.com/choose-lyric-matte-glazed-hex-tile-lgh-213.aspx
Mary Elizabeth says
Robin, This is a beautiful tile choice. As shown on line, I think your tile trends toward the coral/beige spectrum (so appropriate to where you live, too!) rather than the pink/lilac/gray of Kate’s tile, so depending what other colors are carried out in the room, you might want to choose a beige. Definitely not white, for practical reasons–it’s difficult to get it back to its original color when you clean. But it all comes down to your personal aesthetic whether you think a gray or a beige tile goes best.
When I had the backsplash done in my kitchen in beige and brown colors, I found the grouting decision to be agonizing. But I settled on a color that was slightly lighter than what I envisioned from the sample (as Kate pointed out, the grout may darken as it cures), and it looks beautiful. I think Kate’s tip about laying the floor first, then trying the color and type of grout you think you want on a leftover square is a great tip.
Robin, NV says
My bathroom has Ming green fixtures and speckled cream/yellow/gold tile – a really tough combo to find a matching (or at least not clashing) floor tile. The previous owner put in a beigy faux travertine floor that doesn’t look terrible but I dream of a nice retro tile floor. I’ve been meaning to send it in as a design dilemma.
By the way, I ordered a few samples from Mosaic Tile Supply and I’m finding that the colors are far more muted than what is shown on their website. Or maybe it’s just my monitor.
Diane in CO says
Exactly the right color grout, IMHO, the floor looks amazing — very vintage-y!
And your narrative reads like a suspense novel – very entertaining and well-written. I could totally relate to your trepidation (“shaking in my boots”) as you began applying grout, haha!
Beautiful floor!
Kate says
hahaha thanks Diane! Ask my husband, the days leading up to the grout install were like a suspense and drama movie playing out right in front of him… 🙂 He’s just as glad as I am that everything worked out and this part of the project is over… 🙂
Robin, NV says
Kate – out of curiousity, why did you start with the floors for your remodel? Just wondering if there is a logic to where you start with these things.
Kate says
Well, since I wasn’t using cove base wall tile that dictated I start with the walls, it didn’t really matter which one I did first. I started with the floor because the vanity I’m going to build for the bathroom sits up off the ground several inches — so the floor had to be completed under the vanity before I can start building/installing it. Therefore, I decided it would be best to get the floor done, so I could work on the wall tiles and vanity simultaneously if need be.
Robin, NV says
Gotcha. Your vanity sounds cool! It’s so fun to see how your project is progressing. Can’t wait to see it when it’s all done – I bet you can’t either!
Kate says
Thanks Robin, I hope the vanity turns out as cool as I hope it will…this is my first attempt to build furniture too! Lots of firsts with this project…
RetoSandie says
Kate, it looks beautiful!!!!!! Congrats on a job well done!
Jennifer Kepesh says
Kate illustrated a natural approach to decision making that can lead to poor decisions, as well as part of the cure for it. When faced with a list of pros and cons, if the list of choices is short, we are usually good at assessing the relative weight of both pros and cons. However, if we have more choices, we tend to focus on the cons (as Kate almost did) and discount the pros. This means that people are actually likely to make poorer decisions with numerous choices, and to knock out candidate choices for very small negative reasons instead of focusing on the pros. SO! Experts on decision making suggest that once you’ve made a list of pros and cons and have your candidates, you do the following: (1) Only knock out candidates for a con if it’s a true dealbreaker (sanded/unsanded grout choice) (2) Weight the pros–that is, list most important advantage to least important advantage separately from the candidates themselves, using a simple scale (10 advantages you are considering? Most important is 10, least important is 1); (3) Notice if there are one or two dealmakers (e.g., “must come in a color I love”) and eliminate candidates that don’t, (4) Add up the “weights” for each candidate and eliminate all but 2-3 choices (5) reconsider finalists based on pros and cons together. Great for choosing between houses/apartments, between jobs, and many of my renovation decisions get this treatment!
pam kueber says
Very interesting — thank you! I think that Kate got to her right place — the epoxy grout will likely be very durable, the color was right, and it turned out that it was not too hard to apply.
Kate says
Yes, that is very interesting!
In this case, the deal breakers for traditional grout — possible efflorescence and maintenance over the years — much outweighed the extra cost and effort to purchase and install the epoxy grout in my book. That’s how I finally decided to go with the SpectraLOCK.
Chad says
I think the color is perfect. The gray color gives them a little built-in patina; the tiles will truly look like they’ve always been there. My parents’ one remaining original bathroom floor – same pattern but completely flat, low gloss tiles in an even yellowish cream color – has similarly colored grout now that it is 62 years old.
Mary Elizabeth says
Looks fabulous, Kate. The grout color on my Merona University Pink bathroom floor tile seems identical. Don’t know whether they used traditional or epoxy grout, because I wasn’t here. But I think if we have to regrout at some point we’ll use the epoxy. Again, kudos on the great job.
lynda says
Great job, Kate. I think that you will be happy with choosing a lower maintenance product for many years. I also recommend a good steam cleaner for tile. I love my Ladybug steamer. Your tile looks great. The internet makes it easier to research choices, but sometimes we can just agonize forever about the “right” decision. You did a great job sorting out the options and making a good choice.
Kate says
Thanks Lynda, that’s what I’m hoping! I’ll keep the steamer in mind for cleaning up my other bathrooms. 🙂
Jamie D says
Your hard work paid off. Nice job!