(BPT) – With fall and winter weather driving homeowners indoors, it’s a great opportunity to turn pent-up time and energy into a kitchen or bathroom upgrade. The visual and functional design of any kitchen or bathroom starts with the floors, which make installation of tile the perfect project candidate.
For both professionals and homeowners, the first step in any tile installation project is choosing the right grout, which are available in a wide range of stain-resistant and crack-resistant options. Selecting the right grout will determine the long-term beauty and durability of a bathroom or kitchen floor. Custom Building Products, the largest manufacturer of tile installation systems in North America, suggests considering three questions before starting a project to save time and money on maintenance over the lifespan of a tile floor.
1. Is the tiled area going to be subject to stains?
Every kitchen and bathroom floor is susceptible to stains, so it’s important that steps are taken to prevent or minimize their impact. If a cementitious grout is selected for a tile project, a sealer like AquaMix Sealer’s Choice Gold should be applied after the grout has cured three days. Keep in mind that the sealing process must be repeated periodically to maintain an enhanced level of stain resistance. The alternative to applying a sealer is a ready-to-use, single component stain-resistant grout like Fusion Pro that does not have the porous characteristics of cementitious grouts, but cures with comparable hardness.
2. Is the tiled area going to be subject to mold and mildew?
Every kitchen and bathroom floor is susceptible to mold and mildew, which is why higher performance grouts are used for many tile installation projects. Epoxy grouts and urethane-based grouts are common choices, but require more work and are expensive. Highly stain-resistant, single component grouts that include Microban antimicrobial protection are an attractive alternative for resisting the growth of stain-causing mold and mildew on dried grout.
3. Does the tiled area require complementary or contrasting grout color?
The growing popularity of tile that looks like wood has driven a trend toward picking a grout color that closely harmonizes with the tile color to help give the floor a single monolithic appearance. However, contrasting the grout color to highlight the tile size, shape or pattern can give a bolder look to a floor, which is popular with some homeowners. A ready-to-use, single component grout is highly recommended, especially in large rooms to eliminate the time and energy required to blend together multiple bags of powdered grout to achieve color uniformity.
Today, homeowners enjoy a wide array of high-performance grouts in a variety of colors that deliver exceptional beauty and performance on kitchen and bathroom tile floor projects, so you can spend less time cleaning stains and more time enjoying life. For information on AquaMix, Fusion Pro, Polyblend and other tile floor installation products, visit Custom Building Products at www.custombuildingproducts.com and Facebook.
