DIY Monday: Reader Question - Re-grouting tile?

Dear Swoon Studios,

I have an island in my kitchen with a tile top. I've had it for a while and the grout is starting to crumble. I'd like to re-grout the tile, but I'm not sure how to do it. Can you help?

Sincerely,
I Can DIY It!


Dear I Can,

Re-grouting is a lovely way to freshen up your surface and is pretty easy to do. First, pick out the grout that's crumbling. Leaving crumbling grout is like leaving a crumbling foundation - the new grout will not have a stable surface to adhere to and will just crumble more.

Once you have cleared all the crumbling grout, give the remaining grout a good scrub. I've found that hydrogen peroxide and a toothbrush are miracle workers in cleaning grout. The peroxide bubbles down into the porous surface and cleans out all that bacteria, leaving a shiny clean surface!

Let that dry while gathering your materials for grouting: grout, a grout float, sponge, bucket of water and a small, clean towel. I prefer using pre-mixed grout because I find it easier, but I know others prefer the kind you mix. It's up to you. If your seam is 1/8 inch or less in width, use unsanded grout, and if 1/8 inch or more, use sanded. Be sure too to match the color of your existing grout!

With clean water, lightly wet down the area you want to start grouting to help the old grout receive the new grout. Then take a little grout on your float and in a sweeping diagonal motion push the new grout down into the existing grout lines.

When you've pushed as much grout in as you think will go, lightly wipe over where you've grouted with a sponge to clean up the extra grout. Rinse out your sponge after every pass. You want a clean tile and even grout line. I then wipe over the tile with a clean towel to keep from having to clean up stuck on grout when everything dries, but be careful not to dislodge your new grout.

Continue to do this down your counter top working in small sections. When you're done, you should let it dry according to the directions on your grout - usually about 24 hours.

Then comes the most important part - sealing. Make sure you've cleaned off all the stray grout from your tiles. If grout is stubborn, I either use a toothbrush or a razor blade to dislodge it from the tile. Then, using a grout sealer you can find in the grouting section of your home improvement store, seal every grout seam. Follow the directions on the sealer to see recommended drying time and number of layers of sealant. Because this is a high traffic area, I'd seal it with several layers of sealant.

Let me know how it goes! I look forward to seeing the finished product!

Good luck,
Swoon Studios