Bring your shower back to life in a weekend with new grout
Tile is strong and durable, but grout is not. Even with the strongest materials and the best application, grout gets dirty, becomes unsightly, and even wears down over time. Learning how to regrout a shower will help you make your shower look as good as new, even if the tiling is aging too. Plus, regrouting your shower can help prevent water seepage and the resulting mold and rot in the walls. In this guide, we’ll explain how to regrout a shower like a pro in a single weekend.
Before you start regrouting your tile shower, take time to set up the area. First, cover the drain with tape or a drain plug to prevent debris from falling down the pipes and contributing to clogs. Then, if the shower has a porcelain floor or tub, cover it with a drop cloth to prevent scratches and chips. If necessary, remove any hardware on the tub or shower to prevent damage from falling pieces of grout while you work.
Finding the perfect match for your grout can be difficult. If possible, look for an opportunity to salvage a chunk of the existing grout to take to a store to find a match, like underneath a baseboard or in an area you plan to regrout already. If you’re unable to find a match, you might need to remove all of the grout in your shower and plan to replace it.
For larger grout lines (anything over ⅛” wide), choose a more durable sanded grout to prevent cracking. For smaller grout lines, you can use unsanded grout.
If you’re regrouting a shower floor, a sanded grout is a better option, as it will stand up better to foot traffic.
Use a grout saw to remove as much of the old grout and caulk as you can. Start with the vertical joints and then move to the horizontal joints once you have a good starting point. Ideally, you’ll take out at least 1/8 inch of grout or at least half of the depth of the tiles.
Cut out any extra challenging areas with a utility knife, being careful not to scratch or crack any tiles (leading to another bathroom DIY project). Use a hand vacuum or shop vacuum to remove any excess dust and debris once you have the bulk of the grout removed.
Pour the desired amount of grout into your bucket. Then, following the manufacturer’s instructions, start with half the recommended amount of water. Mix and add water until you achieve the desired consistency (a thick paste).
Let the mixture sit for up to 10 minutes before application.
Holding a grout trowel at a 45-degree angle, spread the grout across the tile. Work in multiple directions and add extra pressure at joints to ensure the grout spreads evenly. Regrout the shower tiles at least three times during this step to make sure you fill all lines to the proper depth.
If your tiles have a beveled edge, drag a pencil eraser along the joint once the grout has started to dry to leave a thinner joint and expose the textured tile edges.
Holding the trowel at a 90-degree angle on its edge, scrape off the excess grout from the tiles. When your trowel is full of grout, wipe it into your grout bucket before continuing.
Work quickly at this point, or the grout will start setting and cure on top of your tiles. Depending on your home's humidity and temperature level, you have anywhere from five to 20 minutes to complete this step.
Before starting this step, check that your grout is firm to the touch and doesn’t stick to your fingers.
To clean your shower’s surface, dampen a sponge and wring it out completely. Wipe away excess grout with short motions, taking care to rinse and wring out the sponge often. It may be helpful to have two buckets of water, one with water for cleaning off the dirty sponge and one with fresh water to soak the sponge before you continue.
For the best shower appearance, take your time. The more careful you are during this stage, the less likely you will be surprised by dried (nearly impossible to get off) grout later on.
Tile and grout alone aren’t enough to stop moisture from getting into your walls. Caulk is much more flexible than grout and is better suited to bond different materials like tile and a porcelain tub. With a waterproof silicone caulk protecting these joints, water is far less likely to get behind your walls.
First, if there’s old caulk on the edge of the tub, use your utility knife to remove it before refreshing the caulk around the tub.
To caulk your shower, run 100% silicone caulk along the joints where the tile and your tub meet, making sure to overfill the joint. Do the same for the 90-degree angles between walls and between walls and the ceiling, if your ceiling is also tiled.
As you lay down the bead of caulk, wet your finger and drag it across the excess caulk to smooth the line. You can also use a plastic putty knife designed for smoothing out caulk in corners.
Let the grout and silicone caulk cure for 48 hours. Once cured, check for any grout haze (powdery film) left on the shower tiles. Take a cloth and simply wipe this off before sealing the grout.
Then, use a toothbrush to run a sealant along the grout. This step will help extend the lifetime of your grout and add an extra layer of protection from water and moisture.
Shower grout usually lasts for between eight and ten years before you need to replace it, so if your last bathroom remodel was about a decade ago, it might be a good time to regrout the tiles. Even if you installed new tile or regrouted more recently, there are some signs that indicate a refresh might be ideal:
You notice the grout crumbling or missing entirely
You find cracks in the grout that reveal the wall behind it
The grout is severely stained or discolored, and cleaning the grout doesn’t help
You notice water damage around where the grout sits
Tiles around damaged grout are falling off or shifting
You notice moldy or musty odors in your shower that won’t go away with cleaning
In any of these cases, removing the existing grout and replacing with fresh grout is probably a good idea.
Regrouting your shower takes some time—even when paying for a professional’s help—because it involves multiple days’ worth of work. Tilers usually charge between $10 and $25 per square foot for the cost to regrout a shower, plus the cost of the materials. Some companies may charge for the travel and for having to return back to finish the job on top of the hourly rate itself. Ultimately, you could save an average of around $1,000 by doing the work yourself, which is definitely worth it if you’re comfortable with the job.
If you don’t feel comfortable taking on this project or don’t have the time, you can always hire a professional to get the job done with minimal effort on your part. Plus, a pro is more likely to get a good seal with grout and caulk, meaning a lower risk of water damage and other grout issues in the future.
You might even be able to hire a tile and grout cleaner near you for a deep grout cleaning instead of regrouting. This could save you some money and deliver similar results, depending on the condition and age of the existing grout.
You can put new grout over old grout, but it’s not always the best choice. For example, if your existing grout is cracking due to an underlying issue, regrouting shower tiles on top of old grout is just covering up a bigger issue.
If you’re sure there’s no issue other than cosmetic problems, you can put new grout over old grout. Just use the same type of grout to maximize adherence, and be sure to match the color for the best look.
There are specific grout removal tools, like grout blades and saws, which tend to be the best options and let you get the job done as quickly as possible. You can also use a utility knife to remove stubborn pieces of grout or to get into areas that you couldn’t with a larger power tool.
You should plan to reseal the grout in your shower every one or two years, depending on how often your household uses the shower. Resealing shower grout costs around $200, but it will help extend the lifetime of your shower and freshen it up without having to go through the entire process of regrouting your tile shower. If you have a custom shower enclosure with grout between tiles on the floor, that grout should be resealed more often due to increased wear—once every six months might be necessary.
