I think it is worth exploring why it is happening. I had a similar issue in the spring with my nearly built shower. It was a draining issue but grout was the first possibility explored but than my wall joints by the floor began to stay dark too which is when we all knew it was more than a case of bad grout. Are your wall joints wicking water at all?

Unfortunately my issue's solution was a total redo so you need to document everything in case you have a fight on your hands, I did not but some have had contractors bail. If you have progress pictures they are very telling usually and helpful with troubleshooting the causes as well as fighting any possible financial fight with contractors. Put out an email to your contractor stating the issue and keep record of conversations.

now that my shower is properly done my grout is dry within an hour not days....it was worth the trouble to ask why!

You had a new shower leak and that is a huge cause for concern. What caused the leak and how was it repaired? Any in progress photo's would help greatly. What wall board was used? Plug the drain and fill the base with water. Let it stay filled for a couple of days and watch for leaks.

It could be that the shower floor is not properly sloped. It is too flat around edge, so it is holding water. The problem areas look even (in the picture) - like the width of a float, the entire floor needs to slope towards the drain.

So many challenges with this simple project combined with a pregnant wife made for a nightmare. Wish I had taken progress photos, but unfortunately didn't think of it.

To address the initial leak a hole was cut in the ceiling below the shower to observe the source of the leak. It was identified that the leak was occurring around the drain of the shower. A section of the floor around the drain was removed. The area was resealed and a new drain installed as the old drain was not secured correctly. A water test was conducted and the leak actually was worse, but was no longer leaking directly from the drain, but from the actual pan. The entire tile floor was removed including the first layer of wall tile. They then put on a new liner type material (a mesh of some sort), re applied a couple layers of Red Guard, and conducted another 24 hour water test. There seemed to be no indication of a leak.

The wall board used was a cement backer board. The process that was supposed to be used for ensuring waterproofing was:

-- 30 pound felt liner down

-- Concrete layer sloped towards drain

-- PVC liner membrane over pan, 6-12 inches upon side of shower

-- Fill with water over night to ensure not linking

-- Cut out opening

-- Mortar concrete base on top of membrane

-- Membrane goes up and over curb

However, what was actually done could have been different. I do know that the contractor's process was not working (obviously as my shower leaked), but I also know at they same time as my project they had at least 3 others leak as well...very concerning.

My absolute fear around the grout issue we are now seeing, and as I think geoffrey_b might be hinting to, which is that there is still a leak occurring and this is causing the grout to remain wet.

All I really want is for this project, to be done with...started in February of 2016 for just a shower tile job.

The feedback from the contractor is that they think this is associated with the sealer or how the sealer was applied. While I am in no way an expert, my thought is that the area is too uniform around the perimeter to be an issue with the sealer, and is likely another problem such as the slope of the pan like geoffrey_b indicated.

My take away at this point is that I am not over reacting and this is actually indicative of issue that needs resolution.

Any other input is always appreciated!

Thanks!

Just a quick update on our project. The contractor's thought was that it was an issue with either the grout or the seal and came out and removed the grout from about 1" around the perimeter of the shower (stopped maybe halfway around as I think the task became a bit too tedious with the small hex tile).. He then applied a seal into the cavity where the grout was removed, re-grouted those areas where it was removed and applied a 5 year seal on the grout again after waiting 5 or 6 days for the grout to cure..

We waited 72 hours from the seal to shower and unfortunately we are still seeing the discoloration primarily around the perimeter of the shower that lasts 48+ hours.

By no means am I an expert, but my personal thinking is that is an issue with the pan. I've requested that we take the following action. Wait 4-6 weeks to see if letting the grout fully harden has a positive impact (I actually think it will have the opposite as I believe the bed is going to continue to get wet and the area will increase in size or stay discolored for even a longer period of time), if discoloration continues then, as Creative Tile Eastern CT mentioned, we have a tile tile contractor/expert come and assess the situation.

I'll keep this post updated as it progresses, and always open for ideas and feedback as well.

Thanks.

To me, Unsanded grout is a deal-breaker. Fine for some backsplashes but NOT for ANY floor. It washes out too many times to count. I just did 1700 sq. ft. of a "wood look" ceramic tile....and it washed out the colour in MANY places. We repaired those areas, but the HO still wasn't satisfied. Anything from 1/8" on should have sanded grout. Anything else....you'll be fighting it forever.

"He then applied a seal into the cavity where the grout was removed, re-grouted those areas where it was removed and applied a 5 year seal on the grout again after waiting 5 or 6 days for the grout to cure.."

Sounds half-a**ed. Seal in the grout lines before grouting?

No need to wait. Find a pro now. As expected here come the band aids. All of which are just more things done wrong.

This is an interesting read as I recently purchased a home with the same issue which led me to this thread. Ironically, the photo that popped up is my exact tile. Any current feedback on this would be much appreciated if you still receive notifications on posts here. Thank you!

They came out a couple times to scrape various levels of the grout out. This helped, but did not fix the problem 100%. We still have grout lines that are dark/wet all the time and some grout is cracked (suspect this is because they didn't scrape out enough). We ultimately kicked out the contractor and asked that they never come back. They were the most unprofessional company I have ever worked with and after almost 2 years on a shower, I was done having them in my home. Unfortunately we just live with it today.

Our shower was finished 10/30. I waited 2 weeks to use because we were waiting for shower doors. Contractor does not know why this is happening- first time using these tiles. Any idea what is going on here. Shower was last used 36 hours ago.. Thanks for your help

First thoughts are, there is an improper slope. Put a level on the floor and see if it slopes noticeably toward the drain. If it does, then the waterproofing is highly suspect.

Thank you. Something made me just touch it and it is were. There was no seal put on

I agree with Avanti, this would only occur if there is still water, so it would be a slope or drain related issue. Lack of seal would not cause this. Alternatively it may also be grout that was not properly mixed/ratio.

Thank you for your response. If we don’t do anything with this floor, will we have a problem down the road

I am definitely not a pro, but if it is a large portion of the floor and staying wet for a week+, then I would say yes. To me that would indicate a good amount of water not draining and standing water with no place to go is never a good thing. Alternatively if it is that the ratio of water was incorrect when mixing the grout, then the grout will be weak and crack/crumble fairly quickly.

As I mentioned in some of my comments from my original post, after 2 years with our contractor we gave up as they were useless, but our area at the end of the process was relatively small and it was clear they were not going to fix it. I would press hard for them to fix the problem, it really is the right thing to do. May require them to rip out the floor and pan, but a good contractor should accept that and you will be much happier.

Hi Carl,

I know it's been long since your last post..

I just wanted to see if you're still having the same issue w/ your shower floor (where grout remains wet days after showers), how long have you had this issue, does it ever become / lead to other issues? thanks a lot!