Grouting quality - advice needed

[Badger2021]

I'm looking for some expert advice and hopefully some reassurance....

I've just had a complete bathroom renovation finished by a tradesman who specialises in bathrooms. In general, I am really pleased with the outcome and the contractor has been a pleasure to deal throughout the project. I have, however, some worries about the quality of his grouting and I want to be sure they are valid before I bring it up with him.

The wall grout has a lot of pinholes (photos attached) all over, including the shower enclosure and the area directly above the wash basin (less of an issue but still). I am not that bothered about how they look, but I do worry about the water ingress. To top it off, the tiles have been laid directly onto a gypsum board (not the waterproof kind) and the walls have no tanking on them. When I queried it, the contractor told me that it's because it's a bath shower so there is no point in installing tanking as full waterproof-ness cannot be achieved around the tub - since then I've read that tanking any type of shower has been mandatory since 2018 (is that correct?). These two things coupled together (no tanking membrane and holes in the grout) do worry me, it was an expensive project, which also caused a massive upheaval, and I don't want to have to revisit it in a few years time. Are my worries groundless? Any expert advice would be appreciated? Thank you.

 

[Dave]

They are air pockets in the grout from a wet mix. They can he touched in.
As for the tanking , it’s not mandatory, it’s a recommendation according to an update to bs5385 standards and not a regulation.

 

[Badger2021]

They are air pockets in the grout from a wet mix. They can he touched in.
As for the tanking , it’s not mandatory, it’s a recommendation according to an update to bs5385 standards and not a regulation.

thank you for your reply, Dave. Can they still be touched in even though the grouting was done a week ago and the shower has been used a few times since? I was under the impression that new grout won't properly bond with the old one and you need to rake it out first, is that only the case when the grout is old? Cheers!

 

[Dave]

thank you for your reply, Dave. Can they still be touched in even though the grouting was done a week ago and the shower has been used a few times since? I was under the impression that new grout won't properly bond with the old one and you need to rake it out first, is that only the case when the grout is old? Cheers!

Ye just rake out the affected areas and touch in. Have you told your installer

 

[Badger2021]

Ye just rake out the affected areas and touch in. Have you told your installer

no, I haven't yet as I wanted to have a confirmation that it is an actual problem first. I don't expect he will be happy about being asked to fix it as it sounds like a tedious job.

 

[Dave]

no, I haven't yet as I wanted to have a confirmation that it is an actual problem first. I don't expect he will be happy about being asked to fix it as it sounds like a tedious job.

It’s not tedious, it’s a fault on the grouting that’s needs correcting.

 

[Badger2021]

It’s not tedious, it’s a fault on the grouting that’s needs correcting.

thanks for reassurance. It's not what I do and I like the guy so I wanted to be sure my expectations aren't unreasonable before I ask him to come back. You put my mind at rest, thank you.

 

[Bathfix Bob]

Don't feel bad, he made the decision for you to ask him back by leaving the grout like that, I go to extreme lengths to get every last detail perfect sometimes staying till 7pm.

 

[Badger2021]

Don't feel bad, he made the decision for you to ask him back by leaving the grout like that, I go to extreme lengths to get every last detail perfect sometimes staying till 7pm.

thanks for reassurance. Yes, I think you are right, he was rushing, I think, and didn't inspect it properly afterwards. I did notice but at that stage I thought it was only a cosmetic thing and it didn't bother me enough to bring it up, now I realise that I probably should as it may cause issues further down the line.

 

[Badger2021]

One more question guys after I've had a chance to sleep on this. If I was to leave it as is (I'm worried about the potential tile damage when this is being fixed) and seal the grout - would that be okay? I assume that when grout eventually fails it will be very apparent to the naked eye, right? So say I see it cracking, holes getting bigger etc. in 2-3 years time, I have regrouted then? I am not 100% confident that asking my contractor to fix this now is the best course of action. Firstly, I worry about him cracking brand new tiles and secondly, if this is what he deems to be a good enough finish, perhaps he isn't that skilled at grouting. Thoughts?

 

[Dave]

Your worrying too much. Its a simple fix. Yes the air bubble holes won’t really cause harm , it’s more an aesthetic look.

 

[Badger2021]

Your worrying too much. Its a simple fix. Yes the air bubble holes won’t really cause harm , it’s more an aesthetic look.

oh, really? if that's the case, I can live with it the way it is... I thought that people were saying that it will make grout prone to water damage and reduce its lifespan?

yeah, I do worry cos it's an awkward conversation and I am not sure that trying to fix it won't make things worse. If someone is content to leave grout looking like this, I'm not sure that they will be able to fix it to a good standard.

 

[Dave]

oh, really? if that's the case, I can live with it the way it is... I thought that people were saying that it will make grout prone to water damage and reduce its lifespan?

yeah, I do worry cos it's an awkward conversation and I am not sure that trying to fix it won't make things worse. If someone is content to leave grout looking like this, I'm not sure that they will be able to fix it to a good standard.

If the grout is hard then wetting won’t hurt it, personally I would be asking for it to be corrected as that’s what you paid for.
Let us know how you get on.

 

[Badger2021]

If the grout is hard then wetting won’t hurt it, personally I would be asking for it to be corrected as that’s what you paid for.
Let us know how you get on.

Thanks, will do. The grout is hard but not as hard as it can be. I did a small sample to pick the colour and it is set much harder on that (and no bubbles). Will speak to the guy and see what he says...either way I need to make him aware in case there are issues further down the line. Thanks for your help.

 

[Marak Moore]

I think you are missing the point a little bit. Its a simple fix for a tiler,if you are grouting quickly (for whatever reason) there may be some pinholes, usually seen up the later/next day (after the airbubbles burst) and filled. Its part of the job, you have every right and expectation that this be done correctly. If this tiler is worth his salt, he should have no complaints about finishing the work.