# Help! New grout color uneven



## headtight

was the floor clean..was it grouted all at once or in small batches?my guess is small batches ,probably mixed with different amounts of water


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## angus242

Your installer should "fix" the issue, no matter what happened.

Here are 2 things that could have gone wrong:
1) Installer used multiple bags of grout and there was a slight difference in the lot colors. This can be alleviated by premixing all the dry powder together BEFORE adding water.
2) Too much water was used in the mix or in cleaning. Efflorescence can occur but makes the grout look white with a powdery finish.


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## enchilila

I bet you are right about using different amounts of water for each small batch. I'm not really sure how much water was used in the cleaning process. He only used one bag we had bought for him. If in the morning it is still uneven, I'm going to call him and have him come and take a look. Thanks to all.


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## AtlanticWBConst.

Strange: Same bag....?

Water is the only "link" that would have really affected it. Dirty or rusty water? 

Hopefully it even oust when completely cured/dry...


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## CCSowner

I'd just let it dry first.:thumbsup:


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## Bud Cline

> Water is the only "link" that would have really affected it.


Not necessarily true!

What type of tile adhesive was used?
What color was the adhesive?
What color was the grout?
Where adhesive purges between the tiles in existence?
What was the weather like during grouting?
Was a fan used to encourage drying?

Only ten hours may not be long enough to wait. Just because the grout is hard to the touch in a few hours doesn't mean the grout has had near enough time to cure. 



> The installer told me it would be dry by tonight.


Someone has been watching too much Saturday morning TV.


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## enchilila

We bought Ultra-flex adhesive from Lowe's. We had a choice of white or gray color adhesive. We chose the gray. The grout was Mocha in color. The weather was around 101, sunny and hot (until the rain blew in from the tropical storm in South Texas. The fan was on high while grouting. I don't know what all of this means. My hubby just called and told me that he contacted Mapei (maker of the grout). They told him to wait another couple of days for drying time and if it still looked uneven he could use acidic chemicals but stated they were really harsh. Otherwise, he could take a damp sponge and go over only the light spots.

Mapei also stated if we used enhancer to NOT use sealer, and vice versa. 

Hubby called the installer and he said if it did not dry out to just MOP the floor with plain water.

What are your thoughts?

Lila


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## Bud Cline

The way it can work is if a mastic adhesive is used and hasn't been allowed enough time to completely dry it can effect the grout color.

The grey adhesive and mocha grout should be compatible, no issue there unless the adhesive was mastic. I don't know what "Ulte-Flex" is without a brand name. assuming that's not the brand name.

Days of high humidity or precipitation can have an effect on grout curing and color.

Adhesive standing tall in the grout joints in spots and not so tall in other spots can effect the grout color.

A fan should never be used.

Wait and see.


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## ccarlisle

FYI: "Ultra-set 2" is a polymer-modifed thinset mortar made by Mapei. Replaced Ultra-set 1 which had problems. I wonder what substrate he placed this on. Should be left for 24hours before grouting. :whistling2:


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## l1r

angus242 said:


> Your installer should "fix" the issue, no matter what happened.
> 
> Here are 2 things that could have gone wrong:
> 1) Installer used multiple bags of grout and there was a slight difference in the lot colors. This can be alleviated by premixing all the dry powder together BEFORE adding water.
> 2) Too much water was used in the mix or in cleaning. Efflorescence can occur but makes the grout look white with a powdery finish.


Before we go blaming installer for that, I'm gonna blame grout companies. I used Mapei one time. Same bag, same mixing technique, but grout from the bottom of the bag was different than grout from top. I, as an installer, am NOT going to mix a whole bag of grout at a time, nor am I going to dump the whole bag in a dry bucket and mix it to make sure colorant is distributed evenly - that is Mapei's job, which they suck at! had same exact thing with caulking. Great thing owner there was not too picky and it all worked out, but I am not using Mapei anymore. 
Grout does need a day or two to dry up, you can't tell color variation accurately 2 hours after application. 
Moping will not fix the problem, nor will the acidic chemicals. It sounds like the problem is that color was not mixed in withing grout evenly... Like I said it happens. 
x2 on what ccarlisle said. 

If you post pics of the floor, I'm sure we'd all get a better idea of it though


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## enchilila

48 hrs has passed and grout is still very uneven. Hubby wants to go ahead and seal it. He's very frustrated right now. He just wants to get the remodeling over with. I know we shouldn't let the installer off, but if it is true about the Mapei product that was used on oiur floor, then what can a consumer do??

I read where someone used something called AquaMix grout color. I do a lot of shopping at Lowe's and Home Dept. Does anyone know of something I can look for there this weekend? I would be satisfied if I could just get the color to be consistent myself.

Lila


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## JazMan

Regardless of the cause, grout colorant should take care of the problem. :thumbsup: http://www.aquamix.com/products/pg_detail.asp?pdid=25042&pgid=8374

Jaz


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## Bud Cline

DON'T SEAL IT if you are considering a grout colorant, there are plenty available. Have hubby cool his jets until you guys can make an informed decision. No reason to make matters worse at this point.

Sealing the grout WILL NOT change anything and could screw up the ability to use a topical grout colorant.


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## l1r

x2 - do not seal it. Once you seal it, there is a good chance you won't even be able to color it. And (shall the need be) scraping it out, once sealed, will be a lot more pain in the... well, you know where.

Can't say for colorants, never used any. But had one homeowner who decided grout was too red after I did it... Had to scrape it out and redo (he paid for it - it was his fault). It's a little easier to scrape it out now, before it sat there for a week or two.


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## feizhigao

*Mapei grout class action lawsuit*

I have the same problem with the mapei grout, as do many other people online if you research it. I think Mapei should at the least refund us for the grout, and possibly for the reinstall on the grout because it's extremely expensive. Another option is for them to provide a grout colorant and labor for the install. They ruined my beautiful basement install with uneven grout. I got it at Lowes- three bags. The whole floor is uneven, so it's clearly not variation between bags. It was supposed to be light brown but it has every color between brown and white, a lot of it white. This is horrible!!! I spent $2000 for tile floors and it looks worse than vinyl. Mapei needs to come clean instead of continuing to ruin people's homes. Any lawyers out there want to go for justice?


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## zman22

Sorry to hear about your grout issue. The problem might also be the color choice. 
I recently had TEC light buff grout installed. It's kind of a light taupe/brown color on the chart. It turned out to be whitish in areas along with grey and brownish areas. Very strange.

I wonder if anyone knows of a grout color that might be the safest / consistent color to use. I mostly read about the light browns having the varied issues. Since I am re-grouting I dont want any issues with this again. Our tile has a yellow and beige tone to it. Perhaps a beige color from TEC is what I will use and see what happens. I'll test with some extra tile pieces first as well; which I didnt do the first time around.


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## Bud Cline

Do the instructions recommend that you mix the entire contents of the package dry before mixing any portion of the package with water?

Has anyone read any of the instructions that come with the product?


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## zman22

Hate to say it, but you are probably right Bud. I'm pretty sure that the 25 lb bag used to grout my floor was not dry mixed entirely before mixing the grout with water. It also looked like the installer was using quite a bit of water to clean it up as well. LIVE AND LEARN I guess.


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## drtbk4ever

I find it funny that people will spend more time looking for solutions and whining and complaining than it would have taken for them to read the directions in the first place.


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## Bud Cline

Happens all the time!:yes:


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## hindsight1

*newly applied uneven grout color, Mapei maple*

It's been one week since I had 530 sq ft of tile applied. Tile installer very experienced, has approx 30+ years of experience, plus 2nd generation installer. 
The grout chosen is a Mapei, maple color. Has dried very uneven color, within each line of grout significant variations from almost white to maple. Majority of grout is lighter colored than maple. 
Have attempted to wash it, thinking that lighter color could be residual haze, may have improved color by 5%. When grout was wet it looked perfect. Also tried vinegar wash, this did not make a difference, looked great while it was wet. 
Checked out the Mapie web site. They give NUMEROUS reasons that grout can dry with an uneven color, including temp, water mixed unevenly, water with too much chemicals in, and many other reasons. Someone actually suggested to buy bottled water to mix with the grout. 
From my experience and the other posts I have read that I would not suggest using Mapei grout, especially colors in the medium color range. the color I used was maple, similar to taupe.
I have sealed one smaller area with aqua mix gold sealer, thinking that sealing it may give it an even color. While it was wet looked perfect, but when dry again uneven color. 
QUESTION, Does anyone have experience with either of two aquamix sealer products; 1. stone enhancer 2. enrich and seal. I am hoping one of these will give an even color.


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## zman22

*breath....*

Sorry to hear your grout issue Hindsight1. I was in exactly your shoes a couple months ago and all I can say is to try and breath and relax. From my experience there really isnt anything you can do at this point that will make you like the grout if it's not satisfactory by now. Trying acids and other chemicals probably will only make it worse. 

Grout colorants arent a bad choice, but you could do what I did and remove the grout and re-grout a second time. It would be best to remove the grout within the next 2 weeks before it really cures strong. I wound up digging out 400 SQ/FT of grout after it cured 100% (after 28 days). This made it a little harder on the hands to remove all that grout. However, It took about 4 days total and I couldnt be happier with the TEC sand color I chose. A manual grout saw and a few days off from work was my answer. 

Question: Was any additive used or just water added to the grout when mixed ??? Also, what kind and size tile ? Is it rectified tile ? All these things can help make a decision to re-grout if you are unhappy with it.


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## Bud Cline

> QUESTION, Does anyone have experience with either of two aquamix sealer products; 1. stone enhancer 2. enrich and seal. I am hoping one of these will give an even color.





> *I am hoping one of these will give an even color.*


You are joking, right? Why would a clear sealing product change the color of grout?

Take it out and start over. That's your only real hope short of using a grout colorant.


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## hindsight1

*Why would enhancer change color.*

MR BUD, Your response was a joke, RIGHT?
The reason I thought enhancer might work is because when the grout is wet it all is exactly the same color. I thought an enhancer might have an effect like furniture oil, giving an even appearance to wood.


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## Bud Cline

Not really intended to be a joke actually. True that enhancers can enhance colors and bring out the richness of a stone while at the same time maintaining the natural appearance of the stone and in some cases delivering a lasting "wet look", sorta.

When installed over grout it would do basically the same thing. Whatever color exists before the application may well exist after the application but may be enhanced. You wet the grout with water - it changes colors favorably but returns to the undesireable color(s) when the water dries.
You wet the grout with the enhancer and the grout also changes color favorably. The question is what will happen when the enhancer dries.

No where on the label (that I am aware of) or in the claims does it say those products are "grout color evener outers".

Worst case scenario is that you would have to remove the grout and start over. So.........why not try some enhancer and see what happens? If the results suck, you know what your next course of action will be.

Give it a shot!


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## zman22

*listen to.....*

Listen to Bud Hindsight1,
I was in exactly your shoes a few months back. I mean exactly. 

The answer, well I wound up bothering the heck out of Bud :laughing: with a ton of questions and he really has the experience. You can trust what he says:thumbsup:.
I tried experiements with enhancers, colorants and acids. All of it was a waist of time. I should have removed the grout immediately and saved my self a lot of grief. I couldnt be happier with the results now after re-grouting. 

The key: Just go slow and remember there is light at the end.... you know the saying. Coincidently I originally used a taupe color as well, but from TEC. I dont think the manufacturer was the issue. It might be wise to choose a different color as well.


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## zman22

*currious...*

_"Tile installer very experienced, has approx 30+ years of experience, plus 2nd generation installer"_

Just curious, what does your experienced installer have to say? 
Sounds like someone like this would have seen the issue before. 

My guess is that an additive (maybe the wrong one) was used and/or too much water was used during cleanup. The least amount of water used during clean up should probably yield the best (even) results.


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## Bud Cline

> Just curious, what does your experienced installer have to say?
> Sounds like someone like this would have seen the issue before.


*Excellent point!!!*
Any installer that has never before seen this issue just doesn't really have that much experience would be my guess.


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## DCTile

*Fixing Uneven color grout....*

I recently installed over 3000 sq.ft of 16 x 16 porcelain in the addition of my church. I did some research and thought that TEC's Next Generation grout would be a good choice, stain resistant, mold resistant, and didn't need to be sealed. I picked the darkest brown color they had, almost the color of dirt.

I let it cure for almost a week, and it never dried evenly. Many of the grout lines were almost white! It is a mess. I called TEC and they recommended that I try an acid wash, so I used their "Like New Grout Cleaner". I used it on a small area and it worked. I wondered if it was the XT grout, so I switched over to the regular TEC grout and it dried evenly.

The way I see it, this is a grout issue and don't believe that I should have to fix it. I received 3 estimates from grout cleaning companies ranging as low as $1700-$4,400 to clean it. I submitted a claim to TEC and am waiting to hear what they are willing to do to resolve the issue.

Try TEC's Like New grout cleaner. Mix it with water (50/50 solution). You have to scrub the grout line with a course brush, let is sit for a minute, then rinse with water.

Hope this helps and God bless,

DC Tile


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## agpbiohazard

Hello everyone,

I know this is quite late in posting, but I figured I'd leave my input for future readers that stumble across this article.

A lot of you speak of whitish coloring on your grouts, all of varying colors.

This is not caused by a defect, it is caused by standing water. Please read this, hopefully it will save you all some trouble.

The first wash is what we usually call the "forming" wash. You wring out a sponge until it is free of most water, and then do circular motions over the grouts and the tile, "scraping" off the excess residue on the tile and at the same time forming the grouts to a consistent shape.

After you've done this, you may want to let it sit a little while (10-20 minutes) to give a chance to the haze that is now all over the tile to dry out a little bit.

Now here comes to point where there is varying opinions. Some installers do multiple washes after this, but some only do one "wipe" with a heavily wet sponge. What we recommend is to WIPE the tile in one direction with a DAMP sponge (wring it until it is almost dry), flip the sponge and use the other side, then rinse and repeat. The result is that film or "haze" of grout getting wiped up by the sponge. If your sponge is too wet, it will leave water sitting in the grout lines. This is what you want to avoid. Even if there is no visible water sitting on the grout, if more moisture is on part of the grout than another, it will discolor. What you may want to do is with a rag or a barely wet sponge, lightly run along each grout after your final wash, wiping away that excess water. Attention to detail will get you a long way.

The important thing to remember is CONSISTENCY. You should always follow the grout manufacturer's instructions (mixing powder together, using consistent amounts of water). We like Mapei and Profix among others, any notable company's product should work fine when done right. Do consistent motions with consistent pressure, and take care to study closely what you are doing. Watch the grout lines and how they behave, you'll pick it up quickly.

TIPS: If you are dragging residue from the tile or from grouts onto other grouts, you are setting yourself up a headache. This will cause excess water on those areas and they will discolor.

On the second rinse (after you've formed the grouts) you want to wipe OFF, not wipe around. Rinse OFTEN. One pass per side of the sponge, then rinse. Wiping with a dirty sponge will only spread grout and water around. 

It is important that after each rinse of the sponge, you wring it thoroughly. Trying folding it in half twice (or once, if you cannot manage) and twist it tightly.

Hope this helps a little. Good luck!


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