Need to know quick! Sanded vs unsanded grout - what to use?

15 years ago

Hi all - I may get responses too late to make a difference, but in the interest of others who might need to know - what's the difference between sanded vs unsanded grout? Our floors are being grouted today and our GC tells us that we should get sanded grout. The place where we bought our floor tiles (which are honed limestone), suggested unsanded. GC says that because the floors are heated, sanded is best (stronger) and that he never uses unsanded.

What's the difference and more importantly what's the difference in the end result (look?).

TIA,

Eliz

Featured Answer

bill_vincent

15 years ago

but I do know that sanded is much stronger and hold up better. I think it is intended for 1/8" or wider grout lines.

It's not that it's stronger. It's that it doesn't shrink as much, because of the fact that most of its bulk is the sand.

As for the explanation of the different grouts, I just posted this in an FAQ thread on the gallery side of the bathrooms forum. Here it is, copied and pasted:

Although there are others, for all intents and purposes, there are two kinds of grout-- portland cement based, and epoxy. The portland cement based grouts are the conventional grouts that have been around for millenniums. Although in the last few decades, they've been modified with latex and other polymers to make them stronger and more resistant to mold and mildew, they're basically the very same grouts that have been used since Greek and Roman days. There are two kinds of portland cement based grouts. One is sanded, and the other unsanded. The only difference between the two is, as their names imply, the sand. The ONLY thing that determines which grout should be used is the joint size. NOT the glaze, NOT aesthetics, NOT the material (ceramic vs. glass or polished marble), NONE of those. I'll repeat-- the ONLY thing that determines which is used, is the joint size. Anything under an 1/8" takes unsanded grout. Anything 1/8" or bigger, you use sanded grout. If you use unsanded grout in larger joints, the cement in the grout will shrink way too much as the water evaporates out of it, and the joints will end up shrinking and cracking bigtime. If you try using sanded grout in smaller joints, the grains of sand will literally clog the top of the joint, and not allow the grout to get down INTO the joint, and the grout will flake off in a matter of days.

As for the Epoxy, most epoxy grouts use a much finer "sand", and therefore can be used in any size grout joint. Further, epoxy grouts are everything people say they are. They're much easier to clean, practically stainproof, and also extremely expensive. Most epoxies will cost atleast 4 times the cost of conventional grouts, and the installer will also usually charge a premium of between 1.50- 2.50 a foot for the use of epoxy grout. There are alot of people who will disagree with me, but my own opinion is that for most residential installations, epoxy grout is bigtime overkill. The ONLY times I'll recommend epoxy grout is first, if you're installing a tile countertop, and two, if you have animals in the house that either aren't housebroken, or are prone to accidents. In either of those cases, epoxy might be worth the money. For anything else, though, conventional grout is more than good enough.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (16)

remodelfla
15 years ago
I've learned from this forum (thank bill v.!) that unsanded grout is used for narrow grout lines like 1/16 and sanded for larger. I don't know how the fact that the stone is limestone factors in. Is it honed and filled? Hopefully, Bill or another expert will chime in.
ccoombs1
15 years ago
Hopefully Bill or some of the other experts will see this. I am not an expert, but I do know that sanded is much stronger and hold up better. I think it is intended for 1/8" or wider grout lines. For teeny grout lines, you have no choice but to use unsanded.
Related Discussions
Sanded or Unsanded caulk with Spectralock?
Q
Comments (5)
My GC used sanded. The bathroom is only 4 days "old" so I can't comment on how well it stands up, but it looks great. Both grout and caulk were "mushroom" color. The grout looks like sanded grout, not at all like cheap white plaster grout. I suggest you read the instructions for the grout many times over and everything you can on this forum.... it seems to have a steep learning curve. My GC does his own tile work but had never used it and says he won't again. It's harder and he doesn't know how much more to charge. It's also more expensive and if you need a little bit more you have to mix up a whole kit (as I understand it). One problem my "first time user" GC had is getting the epoxy off the tile. It's sticky and messy and unlike regular grout if you just wipe up a drip, you still have a shiny smear of epoxy left behind when everything has dried. Mask the floors and tub and everything else.
...See More
Sanded vs. Non Sanded Grout Doozy of a Question
Q
Comments (8)
bill_vincent wrote: "Spectralock's another good choice, but more expense than really necessary." Bill we acknowledge and honor your experience and expertise. In contrast, we have tiled only one large shower and one sink backsplash, both for ourselves, and certainly do not consider ourselves tile experts. But I have seen you make similar responses when epoxy grout has come up in the past, and I find the response very curious. In the total cost of any project where tiling is involved, the cost of the grout materials is usually a very small fraction. Moreover, the DIFFERENTIAL between the cost of cementious grout and epoxy grout to cover a given area is but a fraction of the total materials cost of the grout, so the "epoxy premium" is a small fraction of a small fraction. In our (9 foot by 33 inch small) powder room renovation, the total cost of the Laticrete SpectraLock epoxy grout for the entire backsplash tiling job was $21, while the cost of the tiles themselves exceeded the cost of the grout by a substantial multiple. For the room project in which the materials alone (new sink, faucet, and toilet, plus tile and wallpaper, with new lighting fixtures not certain but under consideration) are running $2,000 to $3,000, the cost of the grout was a drop in the bucket. Because cementious grout is sold only in large bags, the minimum quantity of high quality cementious grout would probably have cost us more than the small Laticrete SpectraLock epoxy grout kit which provided us about 30 to 40 percent more grout than we actually needed. We probably SAVED materials cost by using epoxy grout, in other words. Admittedly, the biggest reason that the epoxy grouting was a DIY project for us was that not one professional tile installer in the Portland, Oregon, area would agree to apply epoxy grout; they all wanted to slapdash cementious grout in there in the shortest time period possible, take their money, and run. By using epoxy grout in the wet environment of a sink, we got grout that we do not need to seal, will never need to re-seal, and which is a very inhospitable host to mold and mildew and just short of impervious to those problems. In the eight years since we retiled our shower using epoxy grout, we have never had a mold problem; the same shower had serious mold issues when the grout lines had been cementious grout. Shouldn't maintenance costs be taken into account when comparing costs between cementious and epoxy grout?
...See More
Sanded or Unsanded grout?
Q
Comments (6)
I had to jump up and down to get unsanded grout. From the get-go I told everyone from the person bidding on the job to the guys doing the work that I wanted unsanded. Then they went ahead and used sanded because a sample board I had done for color was sanded. I could only get small bags of grout in the color I wanted to test in sanded. He said, "Oh, that's what I thought you wanted." As it turned out, I had chosen the wrong color for the grout and had them remove it 10 minutes after it went in. The next time they used unsanded. It looks SO much better.
...See More
Sanded or Unsanded grout with marble?
Q
Comments (15)
Seal before so that you can easily clean the grout from the marble, and then yes, after as well. Marble has been used in baths for centuries. Keep in mind that there are various grades of marble and it can make a difference on several levels. All the hoopala about marble staining is not a concern for most of our clients. But then they use the correct cleaning products and avoid harsh products like hair dyes, etc. One client had hard water and after about 10 years, before they put the house on the market, they had a marble restoration company come in and buff and polish the walls (about $400). New again. Most clients have no issues at all. Use PH neutral cleaners. We like MB Stone Care (MB-5), but there are many. More important for ANY shower surface is ventilation (a fan that is actually USED), and a quick squeegee and wipe down with a microfiber towel after use. It only takes a minute and is the single most important thing you can do to maintain your shower surfaces.
...See More
elizpiz
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks so much for the quick responses - I love this forum!

Eliz
gshop
15 years ago
Hi Eliz:

Post your question in the John Bridge tile forum. They are a HUGE help when it comes to all types of tiling questions. They were great help when we were doing our backsplash project. Good Luck!

Here is a link that might be useful: John Bridge tile forum
heimert
15 years ago
There's a difference in look because sanded grout has, surprise, sand in it that is visible. The texture is rougher and gives more dimension. Unsanded is pretty smooth and probably better used where the grout lines are thin.

As for strength, I'm a bit puzzled just because grout isn't going to add strength of any sort either way. The tiles better be set well in mortar to stand up. The grout is just to seal the gaps. If it cracks it's because there's movement in the tiles or subfloor, which is a problem with that, not the grout.
redroze
15 years ago
I'm curious about this as well. Eliz, please post your findings, thanks!
ci_lantro
15 years ago
Non sanded grout for 1/8'' & smaller grout lines. Sanded for larger. Sanded grout is stronger and there's less shrinkage w/ sanded grout. (That's because the sand doesn't absorb any water that will then evaporate and shrink the grout.)
elizpiz
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks all. GC ended up using sanded (grout lines are 1/8") and the floor looks great. Will post pics in the next day or so when it's cleaned up.

Eliz
redroze
15 years ago
Great description Bill! Interesting that our grout lines for the backsplash will fall at the 1/8th mark like Elizpiz. Bill, you mention 1/8" or bigger use sanded. I noticed Cilantro mentioned 1/8" or smaller use unsanded. Our GC recommended unsanded. What do you recommend at exactly the 1/8 mark?
redroze
15 years ago
I'm guessing you'll say 1/8" should go with sanded...your instructions were very clear above. (Please don't yell!) Just want to double check. =)
kdonald
14 years ago
We have large grout lines (about 1/4") on our shower floors and our installer used unsanded grout. Of course, it's cracking (and it's only been about 2 months). How should we fix this? Regrout sanded over the existing cracks? Or do we have to remove all of the unsanded grout and have the whole thing regrouted?

Thank you!
Keri
TileExcellence
10 years ago
Hi Keri,

Sorry to hear about your installer not choosing the appropriate grout for your shower. Unfortunately, my recommendation would be to remove the unsanded grout before you re-grout with the correct sanded grout. The reason is more then likely there is not enough area that the sanded grout will stay in the joints properly. There needs to be at least 1/8 inch layer of new grout in the space to stay put and not flake or crack. It would be helpful to use an acrylic mortar admix liquid to the sanded grout which will make it adhere better.

Good luck!

This post was edited by TileExcellence on Sun, Jan 19, 14 at 22:11
kbsl
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
We are doing restroom remodeling. Please help us on the following questions.

1. Restroom floor + closet floor(tile size: 6"x46", rectified): We want to use non sanded grout with 1/16 grout line. However, GC wants to use sanded grout with 1/8 grout line. He said it's more durable his way. But we really like small grout line for the look. Plus our floor tile is rectified. Is non sanded with 1/16 grout line durable enough for floor tile?

2. Shower room wall (tile size: 12"x24", non rectified): Same question. Sanded grout with 1/8 grout line VS. non sanded with 1/16 grout line. Which way should we go?

3. Shower floor (2x2 mosaic). How big the grout line we should use?

Thanks.!!
rishrad
8 years ago
Aa Haa, all you experts! I am a DIYer. My grout line VARIES from 1/16 to 1/4!! But not a problem. I shall use sanded grout, and in special instances, pick out the sand particles. Or perhaps not! But in all seriousness, I have this problem, and I totally appreciate bill_vincent's cut-and-paste response above. I guess I will use sanded grout and just have to be extra careful when I am grouting thin grout lines.
Andrea W
6 years ago
I heard that sanded grout will scratch the finish of polished/honed marble/limestone.

Need to know quick! Sanded vs unsanded grout - what to use?

bill_vincent

Comments (16)

remodelfla

ccoombs1

Related Discussions

elizpiz
Original Author

gshop

heimert

redroze

ci_lantro

elizpiz
Original Author

redroze

redroze

kdonald

TileExcellence

kbsl

rishrad

Andrea W

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Need to know quick! Sanded vs unsanded grout - what to use?

Comments (16)

Related Discussions

elizpizOriginal Author

elizpizOriginal Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

elizpiz
Original Author

elizpiz
Original Author