moncoct wrote, "What Bill is touting is the combination of Hydroban used in conjunction with a Kerdi drain. " Actually I think he's touting that laticrete now has come out with their own schluter drain. Other liquid waterproofing products have been used in conjunction with the schluter drain, not to mention the plain jane low tech clamping drain for a while now. Nothing wrong with that in my book, a new player in a sector. I think that's good. But I also do find it interesting when sometimes people say X is the best. So if they are going to publically make that claim, I guess I'd like a little more information, like why is hydroban "the best" and not aquadefense or any number of other products. At boards like this where most are DIY types, one 'professional' can sway a lot of people if for no other reason than "Mr XYZ said so". The largest problem with most jobs isn't that the product failed, rather the installer failed. I think it's great that professionals share information with DIY types, but for a variety of reasons, most pros tend to get stuck on only one product. A great example is shluter's membrane, more commonly known by the marketing term, "kerdi". A lot of people tout that, yet either don't know or for whatever reason, don't mention the fine line of nobel's products that IIRC, were out there long before shluter's were. So people of no information just go off what very few people say and they don't know they don't have the whole story of their options. So why is hydroban the best and not aquadefense again? ;) "I don't understand the excitement over someone using a couple of exclamation marks in their replies to other posters. But that's just me. " It may just be me, but I've never seen him use exclamation marks and to have him use it at the end of what looked (to me) like a marketing thing. But I guess I've never seen him giddy. "What specifically do you think Bill's "attachment" is with Laticrete? " I do believe there is a family attachment, but that may just be me. And not to say that means anything in any way, shape or form, but I just thought it was interesting. So how is kerdi better than dal/nobleseal? A lot of people seem to think so based upon what they have read on the internet, so I guess I'm just asking questions. I found this thread by accident as I was searching for something about laticrete, so I'm also here by accident. Just thought I'd toss out some additional input for the DIY people.

Right, now I remember--I haven't bought that kind of jeans for years. IT used to be the only kind you should buy, iirc :) They're cool, but they're supposed to be washed before you wear them...and wrt installation error: I think we can safely eliminate that as a factor :) The Grout Colorant Epic is OVER, btw! I'm going to put some sealer over it all (mostly for the sake of the onyx, but some to soak into the grout colorant and maybe help it bond to the epoxy grout? but the onyx needs it anyway) and we can MOVE ON from this horrible sidetrack of our soon-to-be-ending remodel. (One on-topic tip about the laticrete spectralock: if you're going to match it to another laticrete product, esp. if it's really near it, do a TEST batch (same proportions, smaller units) to see if it matches. There's no way at present not to have to eat the cost of the grout if it doesn't match, but it's easier to go buy another color than to spend the next however many hours coloring all the grout by hand to match. I can tell you that "Light pewter" is much lighter than the laticrete sanded grout. Hence the Grout Colorant Epic. Not fun.)

cheri-- it depends. For installing terracotta tile (which is what you're talking about), you actually use TWO different sealers. The first is a grout release, which should be a water based penetrating sealer, such as Aquamix's Sealers Choice. The second is a top coat sealer, unless you want it to have the raw look to it, in which case, you'd just seal the whole thing after it's grouted with the same water based penetrating sealer. If the grout gets dirty before I seal it, do I have a problem? Or can I clean out the dirt before I seal or color it? OMG, yer gonna hafta rip it all out! (just kidding. :-) Did I get your heart racing?) Seriously-- if it gets dirty, hitting it with oxyclean and then rinsing it well will take care of it-- either way, for the colorant OR the sealer. Bill do you think it wasn't mixed correctly or used to much water when cleaning it? Or I heard tap water could make the grout lighter. Positano, there are more reasons for the grout to come out lighter than stars in the sky, starting with it being a chronic problem that grout charts are sometimes printed more "vividly" than the actual colors. Without analysing a piece of the grout, it would be impossible to say for sure, although your assertions are all possibilities.

I am a fan of bright white like Chantilly Lace or Super White BM. I found that going with a crisp white you can combat any yellow look. But, sometimes it is the lighting that can create a muddy or a yellow look. Look into the lighting in your space both natural and electrical lights. Here is a link to check out... [White Cabinets look yellow? [(https://www.houzz.com/discussions/white-cabinets-look-yellow-dsvw-vd~5224453?n=83)