thanks for starting the new post.

now, we need to know who picked the grout,

who finalized the choice,

and what it specified in your contract.

What brand of grout was used?

what does your builder or tiler installer say?

can you answer all of these? ^

I'll tell you, you don't have white grout. you have antique white, bone, or some other creamy color, but you don't have white.

as for what can be done now, not much. scrape it out and redo it.

or, color it w/Grout Renew.

lets see the entire area. is this a shower?

They used Mapei white grout. I made the selections of grout color but not grout brand. The sample they showed me at design center was not bright white but off white. The builder forwarded my concerns to the tile company and we are awaiting response.

The grout color selections were limited. I actually wanted the brightest white “Avalanche“ but this was not an option.

which Mapei white? This white? 00? No, they did not.

where's the bag? did they leave any behind?

you can't just say, "I want white grout" and expect them to pick one for you. You have to choose the exact color. if you picked an off white at the design center, then that's exactly what you got. looks like your got bone or biscuit

I added a filter on this photo to have a better idea of what it should look like with white grout. My goal is clean sleek modern. And yes theres no way that color is white. I did some research and purchased some Mapei grout refresh as a last resort. But they will have to fix this and correct their mistake. I won’t accept this brown grout. This is far more than a slight deviation

ok, well color correcting the photo doesn't help us to see how it really is. I understand you want white grout.

but again, what does your contract choice say!!? How can you pick a color of grout, but not have the brand? you can't just say, "white". you need to pick a grout brand and a grout name.

at the design center, they should present you w/choices. then you pick that one and it should have a name.

Beth yes I can just say white when there’s only one choice/brand. This is a semi custom home. The gave me the grout color choices to choose from showed me the Mapei stick samples and I said white. There was only only white. Not Avalanche just plain White 00. They didn’t offer any specific brand it was only which color. I only know it’s Mapei because I ask them for the exact brand/color name so I could go see a tile sample with the grout at Floor and Decor. My contract says Mapei White.

I would’t only tell them “white grout“ if there were different options😩 I understand that there are different brands/shades of white grout. But in this case there was only one white one brand with my builder.

There was no bag left, by the time I got there they were finished and gone so I couldn’t confirm

Very familiar with Mapei grout. #38 Avalanche would have been the proper choice.

"selected white grout and it looks brown/yellow/orange/tanish."

Common complaint. Experienced Sales / Designer or Tile Setter should have pointed this out. With that said. Contract calls for white which was used. Just one of those things that will need to be discussed. Regrout on your dime?

Omg why would they even offer something that doesn’t look anything like it’s shown and hideous. Annoying. I asked them to use Avalanche because it’s was the whitest but they said that wasnt an option. I was even willing to pay an upgrade fee but it’ was NO they don’t have it

The color you actually wanted was not a option!! They sell it. How would it not be a option?

Sounds like someone wanted to sell what was in stock They made a larger profit and got a dissatisfied customer for saving $2. No logic there.

No they don't have it doesn't fly. A drive over to Lowe's would have resolved this. You offering to pay any incurred upcharge eliminates any reasonable excuse. I'm guessing you would of gladly gone to pick it up. Sorry for your situation.

that doesn't even look like white. even the plain old 00 white. Don't believe me? go to Lowes and grab a bag of the Mapei white grout and make up a sample with some left over tiles. it's not going to look that yellow

Avalanche is the whitest grout on the market. for them to say, "they can't get it" is ridiculous.

if you want this redone, you're going to have to prove they didn't use the 00 white.

Yes Mapei sells it but the build doesnt offer/use. Yes I would have even purchase my own and brought to them but no. Basically they are probably charging me the regular price on something they got at a discounted bulk rated. It’s my house but I couldn’t pick/buy my own grout color. These builders have strict dumb rules. Honestly they need to do away with Mapei White and use Alavanche.

I used Mapei Frost in other areas and it looks more white than the white smh

Yes Beth I totally agree, it’s definitely not white. I just hope that they don’t try to say it is and give any pushback. I’m so anxious and awaiting their response. hopefully accountability is their strongpoint

Looks exactly like this 🥴🥴 hate hate hate it

sorry, but that's not mapei 00 white.

go get a bag of it. get some of your white tiles. glue them on a wood board and grout w/the 00White. let it dry. then compare. if it's obviously diff, they owe you a redo. or a refund.

this is Mapei 00 white

this is from CleTile. they said they used Mapei Biscuit on this one

Avalanche:

Omg, I’m so frustrated. I’m definitely gonna send them this thread. That tile work looks so beautiful and is the look I was expecting to walk into🤦🏾‍♀️ love that creamy white look.

that's why I said for you to go get your own bag and mix it and grout it w/your white tiles. if they keep telling you "we used white grout" ,,, then what? so go get the Mapei white and take pictures of it while you do it. have any spare tiles lying around? any scraps that they cut? use those.

and I don't blame you . it's too yellow looking

White doesn’t stay white long. You’ve just skipped the first steps of it turning grayish brown and went straight to it.

😩😩 ohh no. I can understand yellowing over time but not yellow brown immediately. Let me enjoy the clean look initially, and figure out the over time down the road

I might have to do that Beth. I should have just grouted my own bath😒 I don’t see how the contractors just went home on slept like they did a good job at work that day. Like how did you just continue grouting when you saw the color. Its messed up let’s just finish smh. I won’t even be able to shower in that till it’s white

Tile Setter was given a work order. Used materials as instructed. Any color grout can be used with white tiles. As far as the installer knows a Designer selected the color to coordinate with a paint color, wallpaper or vanity. This goes back to you and whomever told you that you can't have the color you wanted. That was the time to insist. It may not seem fair but you share in part of the blame.

No I don’t I’m not a builder, nor tiler, nor design nor sales consultant. Zero experience with construction which is why I hired someone to build the house. I asked for a service, was shown a product, and given something else. How can I make the builder offer a color thats not offered? Please go to bed. If you go in for a bald fade but the barber doesn’t offer bald fades only taper fades. And you agree to the taper fade and come out with a bald head would you be at fault?? I can’t believe you made such an ignorant comment. Are you the person that did the tile🤔

***And let’s be clear I preferred the Avalanche because it was bright white and more white than the White, not because I thought the Mapei White would be yellow/tan/brown. Had I known White wasn’t white and didn’t look like the sample I would have never chose that,

On a tract home build with limited options, you were given the options that were allowed. And that’s it in a nutshell. You don’t get unlimited options when doing tract builds.

I feel your frustration. You are right. This is not white. It’s not what you selected and not okay. Tract or not this is nowhere near the sample.

Sorry you missed my point. Tile Setter does not select color or pass judgement on one's selection. Call Mapei and have them send you a color sample case with sticks of actual grout. Not a paper chart. Many tile retailers will also have them. No I'm not the person that installed your tile. I qualify clients / builders that I work for. Your builder didn't make the cut :) Good luck

Exactly Beth and AS. I just want what was agreed upon and contracted and to love the finished product. A credit won’t do because this is something that would bothering me every single day when it’s bath time. Just correct it

Then buy an epoxy grout colorant and color the grout whatever you want.

I don’t hear anyone blaming the tile setter? I hear a home owner upset they didn’t get what they asked for

Celadon. she shouldn't have to spend the time or money coloring the grout. It shouldn't be up to her to fix it. That's ridiculous. Why would you think it's epoxy grout? it could be regular grout.

mistakes are made all the time w/builders, design centers and project managers. if she picked white, she didn't get white. And if it specifies white, then the builder is the one who should fix it.

However , if it turns out, for some reason, that this is the white, then she can use Grout Renew. (but I still say it's the Biscuit color)

Thanks Beth and A S. From what I’ve researched this could have been improper mixing, applying grout too soon, etc. I don’t think the builder ordered the wrong color. I think it was an error with the Tilers. Which is why the construction manager said he sent them an email about the color. I wish these builders utilized consistent companies/contractors.

Celadon if this was a DIY that I messed up then you smart comment would be valid. However, these are trained professionals that are being paid to do a job. Why should I pay and fix their mistake? I’m confused.

Draea, I've worked with all sorts of grouts and colors. A pro tile person wouldn't 'improperly' mix it. you add water and mix it like cake batter. If you don't use enough water, it's too dry. if you use too much water, it's too runny. ( but it's still going to be the same color. ) After mixing, you let it slake for 10 mins. then you grout. Even if you only let it sit for 2 mins, it's still not going to change colors. There's no way to get it to change color unless you use muddy water. And even then, it wouldn't be consistent. you'd have light and dark spots. no. it's the wrong color.

the only other way to get a diff color would be if he used an AdMixture to the grout instead of water. But it's highly unlikely. If it's normal cementious grout, he would use water from the hose. What they mean about diff colors is if you partially grout one day, and don't finish. Then the next day you come back and mix up a new bucket of grout. (using the same bag of grout). The problem is, if you don't use exactly the same amount of water, the same temp of the water, and the temp outside isn't the same as yesterdays batch of grout, that grout will slightly differ in color. But it's not going to suddenly go from white to tan! it's just that those two white shades will be slightly diff right next to each other.

Wow, this is unbelievable smh. This situation is driving me insane. I need answers and resolution asap. I wish I had as much knowledge as you do on this matter. I go to the site almost everyday and still missed being there when this huge mistake was being made and didn’t get a chance to confirm not only that the correct color was purchased but that the tilers were actually using that specific color. I appreciate y’all’s responses/help. I’m sure they wouldnt put anything like that in their model homes so hopefully they won’t be ok with it in mines. They 2 model homes actually have white tile and grout so they can’t say that’s how it looks because we will walk right over to the model home to compare

In the model home. So they clearly know how to get it white. All of this, the samples in store + what it looking like in their model and inventory homes was my determining factor in choosing the white.

Oh wow. yep, that's the white grout you wanted! Sorry you're having to go through this. very frustrating. But, don't borrow trouble just yet. hopefully the manager, or builder, or whomever will see what's happened and fix it for you. keep us posted.

Yes imma think and hope for a positive outcome. Will update

Drea, did you ever get to a resolution? I just had tile in varying shades of white installed in my new home and grouted with Ardex Polar White. The grout looks very similar to yours - almost a pale salmon / bisque color. Trying to figure out what might have happened as the sample stick is a pretty true white.

@Creative Tile Eastern CT
You said you’re super familiar with Maipei grouts…I have bedrosian cloe tile and a sample of white 00 and avalanche grout and I’m trying to pick…does the white 00 appear yellow in some conditions? My counter is a soft white, almost yellow, so I also worry about a bright white making my counter even more yellow. But fearful of a too yellow grout!

What are your thoughts on Mapei white 00?

Thank you!

Curious what you went with. I have Cloe white tile and have been trying to decide in a grout color.