Any tilers / tiling experts - re-grouting advice needed

[Bullpup]

Afternoon All

I need advice on re-grouting a shower please. The existing grout is starting to crack and fall out. At the same time the existing sealent is turning mouldy and needs replacing.

The problem with the tiles is that whoever originally installed them has left too small a gap between them and so a grout removal tool can't be used to rake out the old stuff.

What is the best way to proceed please?

By the same token, what is the best way to remove the old silicon as the so called solvent pastes don't seem to work.

When I get to the re-install stage what are the best grouts and sealers to use please?

Many thanks

 

[gavinda]

Can't help with the grouting part, but use a nice sharp Stanley for the sealant and remember to fill the bath up before resealing between bath and tiles.

 

[Kona lover]

Regarding the sealant - once you are ready to apply, gun it then take the cart out the gun, spray the sealant with water and a dab of fairy liquid and hopefully your cart will be empty. Then squeeze the back of the cart and pull along the sealant. The tighter you squeeze the smaller the bead will be. All the excess will then be in the cart.

Or gun it and trim a bit of say 8mm wood into a chisel shape and pull along the sealant.

 

[Kona lover]

Removing the old sealant will be a chore but cut out most of it with a Stanley then use a glass scrapper.
Get a high mod sealant which will say anti-fungal etc. However the only way to keep mould/black from coming back is to dry off the sealant with a jay cloth etc. I sealed my parents house about 8 yrs ago - still looks like new but only as my ol man goes around with a jay cloth

 

[Neil]

Removing the old sealant will be a chore but cut out most of it with a Stanley then use a glass scrapper.
Get a high mod sealant which will say anti-fungal etc. However the only way to keep mould/black from coming back is to dry off the sealant with a jay cloth etc. I sealed my parents house about 8 yrs ago - still looks like new but only as my ol man goes around with a jay cloth

There's a spray you can buy in most supermarkets, too - shower mould kinda thing. Smells like swimming baths. Spray that on your mouldy seals a couple of times, and they'll look like new.

 

[The History Man]

Did this sh*tty job a while back and had the same issue with tile gaps. Where they were narrow I stuck a fine drill bit in a dremel and cut a shallow channel between tiles using the drill held at an angle and dragged along the crack. It takes off a bit of the edge of the tile but when you grout it all gets covered and looks fine. You can get special tile grout heads but they don't last long.

Did that make sense?

 

[Kona lover]

Removing the old sealant will be a chore but cut out most of it with a Stanley then use a glass scrapper.
Get a high mod sealant which will say anti-fungal etc. However the only way to keep mould/black from coming back is to dry off the sealant with a jay cloth etc. I sealed my parents house about 8 yrs ago - still looks like new but only as my ol man goes around with a jay cloth

There's a spray you can buy in most supermarkets, too - shower mould kinda thing. Smells like swimming baths. Spray that on your mouldy seals a couple of times, and they'll look like new.

Wouldn't know about supermarket products as the wife does the shopping

 

[Neil]

Removing the old sealant will be a chore but cut out most of it with a Stanley then use a glass scrapper.
Get a high mod sealant which will say anti-fungal etc. However the only way to keep mould/black from coming back is to dry off the sealant with a jay cloth etc. I sealed my parents house about 8 yrs ago - still looks like new but only as my ol man goes around with a jay cloth

There's a spray you can buy in most supermarkets, too - shower mould kinda thing. Smells like swimming baths. Spray that on your mouldy seals a couple of times, and they'll look like new.

Wouldn't know about supermarket products as the wife does the shopping

It's great stuff, because it means you don't have to keep scraping out and redoing the sealant - which, personally, as a manly man, I try to avoid doing at all costs, so I can spend more time doing the real manly man things I actually like doing. I used it when I moved house, and had redone the sealant, and within a few months, it started looking all dirty, and recommended it to a few other people, who've been most appreciative.

Still, if you'd rather not use a rather simple spray, and carry on with the scraping, and the blades, and the sealant et al, when the sealant is really perfectly fine, there's just some funky mould sat on top of it, that's quite fine with me, I can avoid such suggestions for the delicate consitution of men fearful of women's work, and leave manly men to redo a tedious, thankless task - because hey, that's just how I roll...

I'm kinda an equal opportunities misanthrope.

 

[The History Man]

Spray on 50/50 bleach and water in an od anti bacterial spray thingy, leave, rinse if you just want to remove mildew.

Cliff.

 

[Neil]

Spray on 50/50 bleach and water in an od anti bacterial spray thingy, leave, rinse if you just want to remove mildew.

I'm a lazy, man's man - I just buy the stuff from the supermarket, 'cos I'm not afraid to be seen there - being a misanthrope helps, because I couldn't give a flying, um, thing, about what people might think if they saw me doing women's work by shopping in a supermarket.

Cliff.

I'm sure I read, somewhere, that he keeps his showers immaculate.