Was too tired to finish the tile so I'll pick up here.
Anyway, I made a mistake reading the calendar and J came back a day earlier than I expected so the house was a disaster (I'm always scolded for not "working neat" or cleaning as I go - something I'm working on). The good part of that is that I don't think I could have done the grout without help.
So, epoxy grout: it's super durable and will most likely last the life of the project without ever needing attention. It cleans well and looks good but it's a royal ***** to do.
Just like all epoxy's it has two parts; a resin and a hardener. When you buy the kits they come pre-measured but it's generally two parts resin and one part hardener.
Once you have put the two parts together the clock is ticking - it's like a James Bond movie if James Bond had to tile a backsplash which, at this point in the genre, probably isn't too far away. You have
one hour to finish your project. All tools from this point forward are sacrificial and all clothing will need to be destroyed. There's
nothing to save you now.
The grout powder is now added and you can measure it like the package but you're looking for a pancake mix texture. When I taught the kids to make pancakes I tried to impress upon them how, for
the rest of their lives, the consistency of that batter would forever be used as a reference. Needless to say this was lost on them.
I knew from experience when doing the bathroom with Jorgé that you have to work fast so to try to slow the reaction I put the grout into an ice bath in an old cooler. Another option which I didn't try is to scoop up some of the mixture and put it in the freezer to use as you go. We weren't doing a large backsplash so how could we
not finish in an hour? Oh, be sure to have
at least two buckets of clean water and multiple clean sponges. I like the ones with a white scotchbrite or scrubby on one side. And DON'T rinse this stuff down the drain.
The grout has the consistency of sticky toffee and is no fun to work with. It doesn't spread very easily, it's a little slimy and it's super sticky. It's
awful to work with. Judiaann immediately became a grouting expert and suggested that it was a mistake to use it and I should have picked something else. Her other skill is to point out the very last turn of a trip which I have planned and navigated without assistance for hundreds of miles.
But she's right - epoxy grout is awful to work with. I think moving forward I may consider going back to something traditional and as I have extra tile I may do the laundry room sink backsplash and just use regular grout and put some fun back into the process. The other option, which I considered but didn't do, is to divide the epoxy up into very small batches. I would recommend that.
I would put the grout down and she would wipe it up. I would go back and help her by taking off the heavy stuff. Add a little dish soap to the water to help and when the sponge gets too clogged and sticky toss it in the trash and start a new one. Oh, and work as fast as you can. We were halfway at 45 minutes and I worked as fast as possible but the grout becomes very stiff and even harder to work with. You end up smearing it into the tile with your fingers as you become more desperate.
The detritus of an epoxy grout session. You probably won't be able to clean the tools so don't use nice ones. You'll need the stiffest grout float you can find as the epoxy is stiff. Unlike regular grout where you can wipe off the haze later epoxy grout is less forgiving so do your best to get the tile clean right away. I did find that acetone worked to take off any missed spots within the hour after finishing.
You don't grout the space between tile and counter so I used a piece of plexi strip as my spacer and removed it once the grout was done and dried. That space is filled with caulk and while there are a million tools designed to help you get the best, cleanest caulk line the one that works the best is a finger dipped in water. I use my little Festool light to angle light back at me so I can be sure to see if I've missed any.
It's amazing how the tile transforms what felt like an unfinished room into what now feels like the 1st Avenue stop on the L train... er, a kitchen. I still have to do some more trim in and around the kitchen but it's a big difference and gets me so much closer to done.
Gregor
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