Novice attempting grout removal - how to avoid scratches?

[Pazzer]

I've just had a go at regrouting a small area of my bathroom wall, and though not perfect the new grouting looks pretty good. Unfortunately, in the process of removing the old grouting with a Makita multi-tool, I scratched three of the tiles, one of which now stands out like a sore thumb bearing as it does a white graze, about 7mm², right at eye level (the tiles are light blue).

I generally consider myself to be a pretty careful worker, so was surprised at how easy it was to cause irreparable damage so quickly. It made me think that those who do this regularly must have some opinions on how to do it efficiently and with a minimum of damage. So, before I tackle the next section of tiling I was hoping to get answers from experienced grout removers to some or all of the following questions:

1. When regrouting a large area is some scratching inevitable, or would a professional expect to strip out all of the old grout without so much as a nick on any of the tiling?

2. I've only just realised that I can vary the OPM of my multi-tool. Is this a feature pros would make use of, perhaps by cutting a small trench at a lower OPM before switching to a higher setting when the blade can sit more deeply between the tiles?

3. It occured to me that I could use duct tape along the edges of the tile to mitigate the damage caused if the blade does veer from the grout-line onto the tile. Is this common practice, or is it more hassle than it's worth?

4. Finally, although I have some, I made very little use of my grout rakes. Is there any place for these in bigger jobs, or are they really only for very small sections?

 

[Wayne_Phipps]

I've just had a go at regrouting a small area of my bathroom wall, and though not perfect the new grouting looks pretty good. Unfortunately, in the process of removing the old grouting with a Makita multi-tool, I scratched three of the tiles, one of which now stands out like a sore thumb bearing as it does a white graze, about 7mm², right at eye level (the tiles are light blue).

I generally consider myself to be a pretty careful worker, so was surprised at how easy it was to cause irreparable damage so quickly. It made me think that those who do this regularly must have some opinions on how to do it efficiently and with a minimum of damage. So, before I tackle the next section of tiling I was hoping to get answers from experienced grout removers to some or all of the following questions:

1. When regrouting a large area is some scratching inevitable, or would a professional expect to strip out all of the old grout without so much as a nick on any of the tiling?

2. I've only just realised that I can vary the OPM of my multi-tool. Is this a feature pros would make use of, perhaps by cutting a small trench at a lower OPM before switching to a higher setting when the blade can sit more deeply between the tiles?

3. It occured to me that I could use duct tape along the edges of the tile to mitigate the damage caused if the blade does veer from the grout-line onto the tile. Is this common practice, or is it more hassle than it's worth?

4. Finally, although I have some, I made very little use of my grout rakes. Is there any place for these in bigger jobs, or are they really only for very small sections?

Hi,

Welcome to the pain that is re-grouting! I don't think there are many people that enjoy this task, especially if a large area. Grout rakes are ok on smaller jobs and with the softer wall type grouts, but very labour intensive on anything else.

Many of the professionals who re-grout for a living use oscillating as opposed to rotating multi tools. When I used to do re-grouts some years ago we used a tool called a Fein Multimaster and it did a decent job in the circumstances and was sold as a tool that could re-grout as one of its talents.

I usually recommend people use the grout re-colouring options that are available. I used to use one called aquamix (or something similar) that was like an epoxy paint that you applied with a toothbrush or similar and then sponge off the excess leaving you with whatever colour grout you want, I believe there are many options these days.

Good luck