LESLIE: Now we’ve got Josh in New York who’s dealing with a grouting issue. Tell us what’s going on.
JOSH: Well, I tiled my bathroom and I set the tiles up and set the spacers in so that there would be grout lines. And once I mixed up the grout and put it in, pushed it in and wiped it off, set it to dry, it looks as though there are these little holes in where the grout is; almost like when a wave hits the beach and then the waves retreat and there are little holes in the sand where the clams are. They …
TOM: Sounds like it wasn’t mixed very well; you got some air bubbles in there or something.
JOSH: Yeah, yeah. I guess it’s just air bubbles and there are quite a few of them. What I’m wondering is, do I have to take one of those grout scrapers and scrape it all out and then redo it or can I just remix a batch and then go over it again?
LESLIE: Fill it in.
TOM: Hmm. What do you think, Leslie? Can he grout on top of grout? I’m not sure that ever works very well, for me.
LESLIE: I don’t know how well it’ll stick to one another. I’ve never tried it so I …
JOSH: I haven’t sealed it yet.
LESLIE: Hmm. It’s not like concrete where you know they don’t mesh together.
TOM: Right.
LESLIE: I would say it’s worth a shot, just to see, especially if you can get the mix better and you can fill in those areas and make sure you clean it up properly so you don’t get the clouding.
And where did you say this was? Is it a floor?
JOSH: On the shower wall.
LESLIE: Shower wall. A wall would be OK. If it’s a floor, I might say no just because of the movement you might get. I say go for it.
JOSH: OK. Well, that should be easy enough; as easy as grouting can be.
TOM: Grouting is a fun job.
LESLIE: Which some people find pretty complicated but it’s a matter of technique, as far the application: holding the float at a 45-degree angle so you really get it in there; not putting too much water when you’re wiping it away. It takes some finesse.
TOM: Yeah.
JOSH: Sure, yeah. This is my first project so I’m infinitely more proud of it than my neighbors would be of it but that’s OK. I’m learning, so – awesome.
TOM: Josh, you’ve got nothing to lose. Worse comes to worse, you could always get a grout saw and pull the grout out and start again. But this is a great first project. Congratulations and enjoy it.
JOSH: Alright, cool. Thank you.
TOM: You’re welcome. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
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