Help with pricing using grouting gun

[Matthew77]

Hi All

Would be grateful of some advice on pricing 7 square meters of 100x100 tumbled travertine. My customer wants to keep the travertine looking rustic so only wants the grout joints grouted and none of the holes filled on fronts of the tiles.
I was thinking of using a grout gun like what they sell at trade tiler to fill the joints but I really can't imagine how long this will take and when I come to sponge off how will I keep any grout from getting in all those holes.
I'm going to use a stone sealer before fixing tiles & then seal fronts again before grouting to reduce the chances of excess grout sticking to the face of the tiles.
Does this sound like the best way to go about this & how much extra time would you guys allow on top for using the grout gun?

Thanks Matt

 

[doug boardley]

is your customer aware of dirt, bacteria etc, getting into the traverine pores if left un-filled?

 

[Matthew77]

yep, I believe the tile shop where they have got the travertine from has explained this. customers are really keen to keep the holes ungrouted,although I have suggested a sandstone grouted to blend better with the stone as the ones they looked at had been grouted with white.

 

[Perry]

you could grout the tiles first when that drys grout the joints lol reminds me of the customer i had once wanted clear grout wouldn't pay me for two bathrooms 60 mtrs of marble because i couldn't give her clear grout there is no answer just suggest she visits the doctor sooner than later

 

[Andy Allen]

you could grout the tiles first when that drys grout the joints lol reminds me of the customer i had once wanted clear grout wouldn't pay me for two bathrooms 60 mtrs of marble because i couldn't give her clear grout there is no answer just suggest she visits the doctor sooner than later

you should of just not grouted them and told her it was clear grout but you just can't see it :smilewinkgrin:

 

[david campbell]

i've seen this done and the customers travertine was breaking up at the pitt holes with people walking in with high heels(even her husband...lol)

 

[SandyFloor]

If you do this don't use the gun. Much better to use the grout bags IMO. I used the gun a couple of times and it has a tendency to fall apart but the bags are no problem at all and cheaper. I did a Fired Earth reclaimed brick floor earlier in the year and grouted it with the bag for the same reasons as you are talking about. It wasn't any problem and I don't think it took much longer than the grout float.

 

[Perry]

you should of just not grouted them and told her it was clear grout but you just can't see it :smilewinkgrin:

see chose a pink grout which she wanted it was after we had finished she said she wanted clear grout as she didn't like the pink once it had been done

 

[Ajax123]

Hi Matthew - It sounds to me like you need to be wary of this one cos it sounds like you might be setting yourself up for a fall. I am not an expert in travertine technology but from the posts others have made it seems to me that to not fill the holes at the front of the tiles could lead to issues later on and customers being what they are that could lead to a claim against your work.

 

[Matthew77]

The travertine tiles will be wall tiles with a porcelain floor tile so there should be no problem with the travertine breaking up from being walked on it. Just had visions of it being a real pig to keep the grout off the face of the stone.

Sandy do you have any tips for using the bags? Do I need to make the grout a bit wetter or dryer for best results?

Thanks all for your replys