Problem with new tiles...help!!

sarstu

Hi,

I'm having a problem with ceramic tiles I had put into an ensuite only recently. They are cream ceramic tiles and they seem to be absorbing water in the shower area. This happenend since the first time the shower was used, it is a new house and the tiles closest to the shower base are permanently a greyish clolour now as the shower is used at least a couple of times a day. other tiles higher up the wall are slightly affected at the edges to a lesser degree.

The salesman in the shop where the tiles were bought just gave us the grout and adhesive to suit and the tiles were fitted by a qualified tiler.

My question is, is this a common problem and who should i go back to, the tile shop or the tiler??? It's annoying as I spent alot of money on tiles and they've been stained in the shower since the first use, just have no idea what the problem is.

Any advise would be much appreciated!!!

10-10-20

Were the tiles and grout sealed once installed?

sarstu

No they weren't sealed. We got polished porcelain floor tiles in the kitchen and hall and were advised to have them sealed , but i was under the impression that ceramic tiles aren't porous and don't need to be sealed.

if they dried out, could we get them sealed then or is it too late?

buzzard

The most likely answer would be that the adhesive and grout where not waterproof, but then you got a tiler to do your bathroom and he should has noticed this.

Can you remember what brand of adhesive/grout you got ?

They could have gone off

Xcellor

sarstu wrote: »

No they weren't sealed. We got polished porcelain floor tiles in the kitchen and hall and were advised to have them sealed , but i was under the impression that ceramic tiles aren't porous and don't need to be sealed.

if they dried out, could we get them sealed then or is it too late?

I'd say your tiles are buggered mate. I was never advised that polished poreceline needed sealing and later the same year I decided to purchase more of the same tile to tile the dining and hall way... Then they decided to mention it. Thankfully most spills in kitchen are cleaned up right away so there isn't any staining... I since purchased sealer at 60 euros but cant be arsed to do it... mostly because I need to regrout.

I'm not an expert but have you tried bleach? This should lighten the tone. Try it in a small area first... I used this on some marked porceline tiles and it worked to reduce the bad colour (from suitcases that had scratched plastic onto it. )

listermint

Porcelain tiles do not require sealing. How long did you leave the grout to set before you started to use the shower? It may not have set properly. Also where the tiles meet the bottom of the unit Is there proper Tile cornering i.e Angle finish, as the water could be absorbed from the bottom upwards in behind the tiles.

oleras

listermint wrote: »

Porcelain tiles do not require sealing. How long did you leave the grout to set before you started to use the shower? It may not have set properly. Also where the tiles meet the bottom of the unit Is there proper Tile cornering i.e Angle finish, as the water could be absorbed from the bottom upwards in behind the tiles.

Porcelain do, ceramic do not.

johneym

hello,

hows it going.

Sorry to resurect this old thread again but I have a sinilar issue.

The plumber cut through the kitchen floor which is tiled.Iv taken out the cut tiles and their parts an laid a single new row of tiles yesterday. Now this new row of tiles appears to be stained.It appears like darkish shadow maps of various countries!! the tiles are ceramic, cream in colour. The adhesive I used was some I had left over from when I tiled a new heart a few weeks ago. Its flexible tile adhesive. Standard set and light pink in colour. I used very little as there was no room for it but the exact spots were there was a dab is where it stains.A few got no adhesive at all as I had still a bit of the plumbers channel under the tiles to fill with concrete, and I just laid the tiles then directly on top. These also stained which led me to think its a moisture based problem. I brought the tiles in directly from the shed where they had been for many damp years an all through the freezing weather and laid them directly.
Do tiles need to acclimatize?

Thanks a lot

Could this be just the moisture in the adhesive escaping through the tiles? Will it go away? If the adhesive is off would this happen?
Has anyone seen this before?

Thanks again,

John

Joey the lips

johneym wrote: »

hello,

hows it going.

Sorry to resurect this old thread again but I have a sinilar issue.

The plumber cut through the kitchen floor which is tiled.Iv taken out the cut tiles and their parts an laid a single new row of tiles yesterday. Now this new row of tiles appears to be stained.It appears like darkish shadow maps of various countries!! the tiles are ceramic, cream in colour. The adhesive I used was some I had left over from when I tiled a new heart a few weeks ago. Its flexible tile adhesive. Standard set and light pink in colour. I used very little as there was no room for it but the exact spots were there was a dab is where it stains.A few got no adhesive at all as I had still a bit of the plumbers channel under the tiles to fill with concrete, and I just laid the tiles then directly on top. These also stained which led me to think its a moisture based problem. I brought the tiles in directly from the shed where they had been for many damp years an all through the freezing weather and laid them directly.
Do tiles need to acclimatize?

Thanks a lot

Could this be just the moisture in the adhesive escaping through the tiles? Will it go away? If the adhesive is off would this happen?
Has anyone seen this before?

Thanks again,

John

Nope... porcelaine does not hold moisture. Sorry.

johneym

thanks Joey,

the tiles are not porcelain but ceramic

sky6

I have seen this type of thing before. In my opinion it also depends on the type of type of ceramic tile. for showers and around baths you should always use a polished tile. For two reasons It runs water off quickly and also won't hold on to dirt etc.
I think after allowing them to dry if they are still stained you could try brick cleaner which will clean them but you will have to re grout and then obviously seal them. Other than that it's a replacement I'm afraid.