Months ago, I think it was the day after the grout guys left and we were feeling a little let down by the results, I ordered grout dye. The grout is the only thing about our floors that we don’t love. Which is hard to swallow, because it is the only part we didn’t do. Would the grout still have been splotchy and light in parts if we did it ourselves? Very possibly–a bunch of you have said you had the same issue. But at least we wouldn’t be out a few hundred dollars and only mad at ourselves. Fortunately, the focus on the disappointing grout was short-lived. We really forgot about it altogether. Having a baby will do that, I guess. But now that things have settled down a bit, I thought I’d try that grout dye out in a small section to see if it was going to be worth it to do the whole floor.
I decided to work in the 4th bathroom (soon to be pantry) off of the kitchen since a few rows of tile in here will be covered eventually if I didn’t like the way this experiment turned out. Also, the grout in here is especially light and splotchy, which would make for a dramatic difference.
After researching a bunch of products, this one came highly recommended. It comes in a lot of different colors, but I ordered cocoa–a warm brown, similar to the grout color we originally chose for the floors–mocha. Ha! The instructions on the back are very clear and easy. You basically 1. apply a bead onto the grout lines. 2. Spread evenly in a back and forth motion, working the colorant into the grout lines with a toothbrush (I used a clean mascara wand).
Then you 3. let it dry for at least an hour (no more than 12). And come back and 4. lightly mist with water, set for 5 minutes and wipe off using a white nylon scrub pad.
The results were really good! Exactly what we envisioned when we first started this project. Here’s another look from a little further away at the before:
And now:
The expected wear of this product is 15 years. Years! This is different than the grout paint that I have used before in our last laundry room–this actually dyes the grout. Am I excited about going over every grout line in 1500sq feet? No. Not at all. In fact, as soon as I saw that it worked well, I let out a big sigh because I realized what I was facing, but I am going to take it a little at a time. I do think it will be worth the work, especially since Chris put so much time into the floors already. We want them to look their best! Stay tuned…or feel free to come over and help. Don’t forget the knee pads! ;)
27 COMMENTS
Kathy
3 years ago
I wanted to post a thank you for sharing your experiences. We had a 6×24 dark wood plank tile floor installed with electric radiant heating mats underneath and unfortunately got a tile installer that was, shall we say, less than ideal. Two major problems existed once he was done: haze all over the tiles that I had to use muriatic acid to remove, and grout lines that were much lighter than the sample color due to his using white thinset instead of black. Oh, and not to mention numerous chipped tiles that I didn’t notice because he had colored them in with Sharpie!! Ugh.
Thanks to your experiences, I decided to use the Aqua Mix Grout Colorant in the same color as our grout (Truffle) and am thrilled with the results. I did a sample area applying and wiping off but then decided it would be more efficient in the long run to use blue tape. It took FOREVER but it looks so great. It is slightly darker than the actual grout, but that makes it blend in even better with our tile. Like you, I hope it lasts as long as advertised! I’ve used their Sealer’s Choice sealer that’s supposed to last for 15 years on my kitchen floor tile and it has pretty much done that (and more, going on 16 years now) so fingers crossed.
Jordan
4 years ago
I remembered reading this way back when you posted it and went on a search because we’re about to install wood-look tile in our laundry room and I’m so nervous about the grout getting splotchy as has happened to so many people before! Is there anything you think you’d do differently? I know you guys didn’t install the grout, but are there any tips or tricks that you know of for avoiding the splotchy look? Did you end up dying your whole upstairs grout? If so… Mad props. What an undertaking :)
Julia
4 years ago
AUTHORI’m doing it in sections. The kitchen area is all done! But if I were to do it again, I’d probably use an epoxy grout. It doesn’t get splotchy although it is a bit more money.
Carol
5 years ago
I just received my wood tile today, was searching for some direction on the grout color and came across your blog. Love the detail you share! I am worried of going too light or too dark. At first glance my tile seems close to yours and I was leaning towards a mocha. Did you find the grout was actually lighter than the sample?
Julia
5 years ago
AUTHORVery much so. In retrospect, going with a black or dark charcoal would have given the most realistic results.
Cortney
5 years ago
Hello, after reading this remarkable piece of writing i am also cheerful to share my knowledge here with mates.
Kristen
5 years ago
So glad to see this post! We had our floors done a couple months back and had the same issue with the grout. I’m curious, are you planning on resealing the grout when you get done? Ours was mixed into the grout, but I’m wondering if the colorant on top still needs to be sealed.
Julia
5 years ago
AUTHORThis dye actually has a built-in sealer.
Lindsey @ A Pear to Remember
5 years ago
This looks WONDERFUL! In our new house (still trying to grasp that we are homeowners), the bathroom walls are awful. they are 2/3’s white tile and the top third is off white tile. The grout mismatches too. Since the bigger change is a little far off, having grout that doesn’t look like dirty teeth would help. Do you think this grout dye would work for bathroom wall tile?? Thanks!
Julia
5 years ago
AUTHORdefinitely!
Callie
5 years ago
Nice! (Although to be really silly and picky, it looks like the white balance is off in your two photos, since the leftover mortar on the wall also looks darker in the second photo, so it’s hard to get an accurate read on the color change :) but white balance is hard!) Now you just need a good TV show on a laptop to get you through the long hours of grout-dying!
Julia
5 years ago
AUTHORYes! My streaming laptop is most definitely in on this process. Still deciding on a series. Major, Hmmmms about the white balance. I had my white balance set to indoor light on my camera and these photos are straight from the source–no editing. But yes, white balance is hard! Especially in a room with no windows. Especially for non-photographers. ;)
Ashley@AttemptsAtDomestication
5 years ago
I like the darker grout way better! Looks good!
22209
5 years ago
It looks great! I assume you are going with this grout dye rather than the grout paint because it will last longer, but I’m curious how the grout paint you used before held up? Now that you know about the grout dye, are there still situations in which you would use grout paint? Thanks!
Julia
5 years ago
AUTHORGreat question! I think the grout paint is great for a short term solution. It’s a little cheaper, but I had to reapply it in a couple places while we lived in that house. I left it behind for the new owners to use, but I would honest prefer this grout dye over the paint for a long-term solution. The paint chipped away.
Gretchen
5 years ago
We did the grout renew on our whole first floor (light to dark) and so far so good 6 months in…had I known about this stuff I would’ve gone this route instead.
Lauren
5 years ago
As others have suggested, it really makes it looks so much more like wood than tile! What an awesome change. Good luck with the endless grout lines…
Alison
5 years ago
I love how the darker grout seems to bring out the ‘grain’ in the tile. Good choice, although I wish it would have worked out the FIRST time. Yep, knee pads will be your BFF for the next couple of weeks, but it will look great! :)
Susan
5 years ago
It’s details that make all the difference-and yes, you have heaps of work ahead, LOL, but it will be so worth it-not to mention easier to keep clean!
We’re in a place that has black/white tile in the bathroom, with WHITE grout! Who uses white on a floor? Honestly. I was about to get the paint-on stuff, but I like what you have used here too-thanks for the info.
Jennifer R.
5 years ago
To be honest, when I first saw the finished floors they looked great but the light grout just made them look like tile rather than wood floors. This totally changes it and gives the look so much more authenticity! This is awesome.
Steady wins the race, it doesn’t need to be done by tomorrow! I would set a goal of a room a week and then section off large living areas to do a section or so a week. It’ll get there.
Meagan Briggs
5 years ago
What a difference!! And yaaa thats a LOT of grout lines to fill. Press onward!
Jennah
5 years ago
If you need to get your grout lighter (we have ivory grout that has become stained and darkened over the years), I assume your only choice would be to either dye/darken all of it, or use a paint like you did in the laundry?
Julia
5 years ago
AUTHORJennah, they have light shades too! On the back, it says if you are going from dark to light grout, you may need 2 coats–but it’s definitely an option!
Jennah
5 years ago
Awesome! Good to know. We sealed it, but that was several years ago and it just gets stained over time. Next time, no light grout!
Emma
5 years ago
WOW, what a difference! A big task but oh so worth it, good luck :)