tile-n-grout

Spurling

Member
Joined
Sep 23, 2007
Messages
361
I did about 400 sf of 12 in ceramic tile and grout 2 days ago .. by the time I was done, about half of it looked dry .. (used a carpet fan) the grout went from black to tan.. looked pretty good .. then I sealed it with Stonetech heavy duty sealer .. some areas puddled due to the uneven floor.. I get a call the next day .. client says grout looks eneven and blotchy lookin .. tan and bleached white lookin..I go there today and yep alot of the areas are white even the same grout line within 12 in has a white ,tan,white .. Im thinking maybe too much sealer.. is there a quick fix? thanks to anyone who can help.
 

Mikey P

Administrator
Joined
Oct 6, 2006
Messages
112,308
Location
The High Chapperal
That there is the curse of using water based sealers on anything but snow white grout my friend.


First try scrubbing the "sealer haze" off with your Blue Grout brush, if and when that does not work try re-wetting the effected ares with the same sealer on a towel.


If no luck with that, use an Acid Cleaner on a sponge or brush to get it off. The acid will have removed most of the Heavy Duty so reseal those areas with a solvent based product once its good and dry.
 

Spurling

Member
Joined
Sep 23, 2007
Messages
361
I took some of the same sealer .. applied it heavy ..used a grout brush and wet terry towel to try and rub it out..didnt work ..I used acid then alkaline and rubbed out .. looked like sealer was rubbing off like elmers glue .. so should I dip a sponge or brush in an acid (Viper Venom) and sponge/brush the grout lines ..do I neutralize with the alkaline after? should I wet terry towel after.. or set up the truck and use the grout tool ? thanks
 

safeclean

Member
Joined
Apr 9, 2007
Messages
159
Try this leave it for 8 weeks and see if it removes itself by drying out if not than re applying with a solvent base may help, viper renew may help but you are dealing with a sealer that sits just below the surface. I you really get stuck I would use a sealing and coating remover floor stripper apply to grout let sit for an hour with out drying out and than scrub with grout brush than rinse no need to neutralise. If all else fails color sealing is there only option.

Craig
 

TimP

Member
Joined
May 19, 2007
Messages
4,055
That is exactly the reason I wont use water based sealer again. It took only one job like that to go back and piss me off. I don't like to have to go back at all. Also the white haze isn't the sealer it's efflorecence or calcium that has wicked up within the grout. All good advice above. Last resort is the acid to get rid of the haze.

I've been using Cobbs SB impregnator so far I think I like it. Only time will tell though.
 

Tile Nerd

Member
Joined
Feb 23, 2007
Messages
545
Some solvent sealers will look blochy for a couple days to a week until it all cures. Mikey nailed the white chalky problem. Used Heavy Duty once about 7 years ago and never again. I've pretty much been a solvent guy ever since. Of coarse I never (almost never) use clear sealers on ceramic grout anymore. We color seal 99% of the time. If you want to increase referrals then start color sealing.

As far as solving your problem goes, acid wash the floor with a 10 minute dwell time. Reseal with a solvent based sealer... or better yet, color seal it.
 

alazo1

Member
Joined
Oct 8, 2006
Messages
2,567
Location
San Jose, Ca.
Name
Albert Lazo
Why they even sell these water based sealers is beyond me. I had it happen within a half hour of application. Pure crap. Had to use alkaline, 3 hours of extra work and not get paid for the sealer.

Albert
 

Mikey P

Administrator
Joined
Oct 6, 2006
Messages
112,308
Location
The High Chapperal
The Tile Nerd said:
Some solvent sealers will look blochy for a couple days to a week until it all cures. Mikey nailed the white chalky problem. Used Heavy Duty once about 7 years ago and never again. I've pretty much been a solvent guy ever since. Of coarse I never (almost never) use clear sealers on ceramic grout anymore. We color seal 99% of the time. If you want to increase referrals then start color sealing.

As far as solving your problem goes, acid wash the floor with a 10 minute dwell time. Reseal with a solvent based sealer... or better yet, color seal it.



That often eh?


to quote Ron Lippold..."Wow!"


How you you get them to pay for that, that often?


How much are you charging?
 

Tile Nerd

Member
Joined
Feb 23, 2007
Messages
545
We now charge $1.48 per foot to clean and color. We have recently dropped the price from $1.98 per foot. The cost of color sealing is $0.83 per foot and $0.65 to clean. If they only clean we charge $0.79 per foot. The cleaning is discounted if they color seal. We clean and clear seal for $1.34 per foot so the clear seal price is $0.68 per foot. We do charge an additional $0.70 per foot for color changes and other additional charges would apply to smaller tiles (more grout) or special patterns (pinwheel, hopscotch or bricklayer to name a few). Different patterns slow the job down because their is less contenuity with the grout lines.

I know you're gonna say we're cheap but believe it or not we are the most expensive in our area and are still making $125 to $150 per hour. We determine our hourly rate based on the time we pull up until the time we pull off.

We give a lifetime warranty on the color seal with annual maintenance cleanings at $.49 per foot. They get a 3 year warranty without maintenance cleaning. Therefore everyone starts with a lifetime warranty. If they skip the annual maintenance then the warranty is reduced to 3 years from date it was colored. Not a huge price difference so it's a no brainer. Two guys can color 200 to 600 sq ft per hour depending on tile size, pattern and room size. Alone a guy can do 100 to 300 sq feet per hour.

My business has gone from about 70% carpet/30% tile to 70% tile/30% carpet. We have virtually eliminated paid advertising because repeat and referral business is so good.
 

clean image

Member
Joined
Oct 5, 2012
Messages
968
Location
Orlando
Name
Carl Maddock
TO CLARIFY all this WB sealer hate.

It much more important to match correct sealer to the porosity of what you are trying to seal..

the OP had grout that was dried before he was finished cleaning it. that tells you its not going to take a lot of sealer. A simiar solvent would of delivered same result.

Opposite end of scale: Most non polished limestones,

How dark when wet out and how long before returns to normal gives you a real scale
 
  • Like
Reactions: Mikey P

Wandslinger

Member
Joined
Oct 7, 2006
Messages
1,005
Location
Simi Valley
Name
Tom Meyer
I have felt that pain with HD Stone Sealer...now I just use Cobbs

I did about 400 sf of 12 in ceramic tile and grout 2 days ago .. by the time I was done, about half of it looked dry .. (used a carpet fan) the grout went from black to tan.. looked pretty good .. then I sealed it with Stonetech heavy duty sealer .. some areas puddled due to the uneven floor.. I get a call the next day .. client says grout looks eneven and blotchy lookin .. tan and bleached white lookin..I go there today and yep alot of the areas are white even the same grout line within 12 in has a white ,tan,white .. Im thinking maybe too much sealer.. is there a quick fix? thanks to anyone who can help.
 

todg

Member
Joined
Apr 16, 2013
Messages
444
Location
Las Vegas
Name
Michael Marcus
Funny, a lot of folks on here have their own opinions of what's good and what's bad...I go with what works for 20+ years for me...Fake it to ya make it...
 

Latest posts

Back
Top Bottom