used mapei black grout on this fired earth porcelain,to my disgust it clearly has gone brown or grey or something WTF????

mixed it right,clean bucket,etc etc
what do you vote for?(client wants black)

1.rake out and find a "black"grout?
2.enrich and seal it
3.aquamix colourant

Did you mix EXACTLY according to spec? Black grout, or really dark grout, is about as sensitive as grout gets when it comes to mixing and application. I've found that only about a deciliter worth of water can mean the difference between black, and dark gray.
It's imperative that you use as little water as possible when you clean it off, and that you really do observe slaking times and curing times. Try to do two passes at the most with a very slightly damp spongefloat. Less water is better. Then for the final cleaning, use a damp microfiberrag, as they pick up residue very effectively, and require less water than a sponge.

Keep in mind that the colour of cementious grout lightens a bit when it cures. If you want true black, you need to use an epoxy type grout.

Anyways... That said... I guess you could try recolouring the grout, but I'd likely just enrich and seal the grout, as it'll look a little darker then... It doesn't look that bad; it's just a little lighter than what you'd expect from black grout. Looks more like anthracite with a little too much water in it.

also washing off to much can also bring the polymers to the top and that will lighten the colour also,but this was`nt the case with my floor,seeing as it was the first time i had used it,it was to the correct spec

Jimmy

Was it Ultracolor Plus? I have used it on grantite and it was fine.

Originally Posted by grumpygrouter

Was it Ultracolor Plus? I have used it on grantite and it was fine.

no Russ,it was just ultra colour,not the plus

Jimmy

lets start a campaign to get black grout banned under the health and safety at work act . its bad for your health because of the stress it causes to tilers ,or at least we could get the name changed to
" black grout fingers crossed " lol

Originally Posted by garythetiler

lets start a campaign to get black grout banned under the health and safety at work act . its bad for your health because of the stress it causes to tilers ,or at least we could get the name changed to
" black grout fingers crossed " lol

i will be the first to sign ya petition Gary mate,best black grout i have used was about 2 years ago now,think it was dunlop charcoal,it was supplied by my customer,but it was a really deep black

Jimmy

The last black Grout I used was the BAL Ebony Efflorescence free, mixed with some GT1 to suit the fast flex.



As you can see the grout is actually blacker than the tiles!

as punch once said " thats the way to do it" looks nice Hugo.

Jimmy

For black grout I always use BAL. So far Ive not had a problem with it.

missyT

crofter,thats clearly still wet?

do what ever the customer wants you to do mate!!!! with in reason

I agree with crofter and misstyler. I Use Bal without any problems apart from getting my hands clean afterwards!! Also not advisable to use the same sponge on white grout the day after!!

Must say those are some smart looking floors there guys.

Originally Posted by garythetiler

lets start a campaign to get black grout banned under the health and safety at work act . its bad for your health because of the stress it causes to tilers ,or at least we could get the name changed to
" black grout fingers crossed " lol

Know that when I do a black grout job I am banned from my wife for at least week.
Mus remember to wear gloves when grouting
He he