Grout up the wall or grout down the wall?
Question:I have installed travertine and glass tiles to an 8 sq. foot area behind my stove. We have sealed the tiles 3 rounds and are ready to grout, not sure if we should work from the bottom up or the top down. The display is beautiful and we want to keep it that way... Any help would be appreciated!
Answers:
While you can go either way, I prefer to start at the bottom and work my way upward. There is an invisible force called gravity, which pulls downward on semi-wet substances like grout. My way takes gravity into consideration and prevents the possible of sagging if the grout is a little too wet.
Grout at a 45 degree angle with a good foam towel, let the grout set up for 20 min and wipe off with a damp sponge rinsing frequently and without much pressure as you don't want to remove the grout in the seams...wait 24 hours and buff off the film with a soft cloth.
It don't matter. Get it on and Git'er done.
God Bless
Up or down truly isn't an issue. What is most comfortable to you in that direction, given the stove there is how you should proceed.
Judy has offered valid clues, and I'll offer experiences in thousands of sq. ft. of tile.
The grout should be at a consistency that isn't "runny" (which actually degrades its bonding agents)
Working the grout in small, manageable sections is best, and at angles to the grout line with as Judy suggests, a rubberized trowel type tool. 45 degrees isn't an angle "set in stone" but the idea is simple. The tool allows that the grout gets pressed into the line depressions, but doesn't press itself into them, depleting the level of grout applied. The Tool also allows removal of much of the excess that should be taken up before sponging.
I begin immediately after with a just damp,,,Grout specific sponge...usually large, often with 2 different "Grit/weave surfaces on opposite sides. As the grout sets I repeat the sponging even increasing the wetness of the sponge.
Any grout, no matter what you perceive will likely leave a film after. That wipes away easily once the grout has set enough not to degrade when wet with the sponging.
Steven Wolf
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