Cracks in grouting - normal?

T

Toby

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Had a bathroom tiled floor and walls about 2 months ago by a professional and have noticed that the grouting is cracked along the corners of the room. Is this normal and will it cause leaks to the floors and walls? Thanks.
 
Could be some shrinkage - is it a new house? at the floor / wall junction, you could look at running a silicone bead (white) to seal it off. Internal corners at the walls could be also treated the same, or mix up a small bit of white grout to cover any cracks. Might be worth getting the tiler back to look at this.
 
i second quinnos post, if you are not confident at making a neat job of the silicone then ask the tiler in a nice way if he will come and take a look at it, have a tube of white silicone at the ready, chances are hell say its not my fault but if you ask him he will probably run the silicone in for you,you might consider offering money to him when he turns up, if he's any good he wont take the money. reason = pr for him, you will recommend him for future work!
Regards,
Steve
 
grout in corners of walls will always crack unless its an old house, should have been done with white silicone in the first place. not a huge oversite but should have been done...imho
 
owenm said:
grout in corners of walls will always crack unless its an old house, should have been done with white silicone in the first place. not a huge oversite but should have been done...imho
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It's good practice to grout all corners and then seal over this with a white or clear silicone.
 
Thanks, its a new extension so that probably explains it. Will contact tiles - he'll be back doing more work here anyway. Thanks
 
He probably couldn't run the silicone sealant in the corners because the grout needed to dry out. However, he should have advised you to run a bit of sealant down each corner when it was dry. Grout is not flexible so in areas where weight is applied (like in the shower or bath), cracking is quite normal. Its quite easy to do yourself, just mask off with masking tape and cut the tip of the sealant on a slant. Always cut the tip smaller than you think is necessary and have a roll of kitchen paper at hand for accidents. Run a wet finger along the silicone line when still wet and you will get a nice smooth finish. If you do get some sealant on tiles or glass shower door, remove when dry with a little WD40 on a cloth.
 
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