Epoxy trowel for tiles in the bathroom: grouting, instructions, two-component substrate

Traditionally, cement paste is used for sealing joints. Relatively recently there was an alternative to ordinary grouting - a trowelling mixture based on epoxy resins. This grout is called a two-component groove, because to prepare it, you need to mix the two main ingredients - the epoxy and hardener itself.

Attitude to the epoxy trowel among the masters of the finishers is ambiguous. Some consider its use as an unjustified waste of money, while others note the weight of the advantages of this new material. In today's article, we will talk in detail about the epoxy trowel for tiles, analyze its advantages and disadvantages, and give detailed instructions for use.

• Epoxy grout has excellent performance characteristics: it does not completely pass water, does not absorb dirt, does not lose color and does not react with chemicals contained in cleaning agents.
• If regular grout is recommended every few years to update, then with an epoxy grout about this problem you can forget. The service life of this material is about 50 years.
• Epoxy grout can be used not only in apartment conditions. Good wear resistance makes it possible to use it for finishing premises in which aggressive cleaning agents are actively used, for example, in industrial plants, car washes or in public pools.
• Grout based on epoxy resin has excellent astringent properties, so it is able to successfully replace the tile adhesive. Specialists use this quality of grouting when laying a mosaic or a panel of glass tiles - so the seams become almost invisible.
• Epoxy grout, solidifying, becomes similar to plastic - the same hard and durable. Therefore, it is resistant to abrasion and mechanical damage. In addition, interlining seams filled with resin-based mortar can be cleaned even with the toughest brush, without fear of damaging the coating.

• We have already mentioned that epoxy grout is much more expensive than usual.
• In order to well wipe the seams and leave no traces, you will need to purchase special tools and accessories for working with this material. If you want to seal epoxy grout, be prepared for these wastes.
• Epoxy grout very quickly seizes, so working with it requires certain skills. At inexperienced masters seams turn out thick and sloppy. To practice, start working on an inconspicuous stretch of wall or floor.
• A significant disadvantage of epoxy grout is that many people consider the structure of the frozen mixture to be unpleasant to the touch. For most manufacturers epoxy grout is granular so, grasping, it becomes like sandpaper.

As mentioned above, epoxy grout - this is not the most suitable material, if for the first time you are engaged in grouting joints. It is better to practice with the usual trowelling mix, and only then to start mastering the new building material.

The whole difficulty of working with an epoxy-based trowel is that it freezes very quickly. And, if the novice master zazevay, then correct the seam or clean the trowelling mixture from the tile will no longer be.

The work on the sealing of the intertint seams with an epoxy trowelling mixture takes place in three stages.

In the epoxy grout pack, there are two bags with mixing components. In one package is epoxy resin and colorants, and in the other - a hardener. When mixing, it is especially important to carefully observe the proportions. There is one important point: if you mix everything in one go, the resulting mass will solidify much faster than you finish the job. Therefore, the mixture must be prepared portionwise. Proportions should be calculated based on the instructions for grouting, as different manufacturers have different content of components in both packages and mixing recommendations are different.

At this point, you will need a rubber spatula, which is applied to the usual, cement grout and a special sponge to remove the epoxy grout( the usual sponge will not work, as the foam is quickly abraded and becomes unusable).The surface on which the grout is applied should be absolutely dry. Grout should be applied in small portions, gently smooth with a spatula and immediately remove the remnants of the mixture from the tiles with a wet sponge. To make the seam as smooth as possible, after about an hour it is recommended to wet it a little and correct it with a finger.

Even if you cleaned the tile well after each grout, the tile still forms a tile at the end of the tile. It can be removed with the help of special cleaning agents that can cope with the traces of the epoxy( so it is better to purchase them immediately, together with the trowel).

For this you will need a special, "shaggy" napkin, which also should be purchased simultaneously with the epoxy trowel. After you wash the tile, it will leave a thin layer of the substance that is part of the grout. It is almost impossible to see it, but you can feel it by touch. At once to get rid of it it will not be possible, but in due course he will be washed off.

• Some prepare a mix for grouting "by eye", ignoring the proportions prescribed in the instruction. In doing so, you can only spoil it.
• Leaving the rest of the epoxy grout on the tile, hoping to remove them after finishing the work, is also wrong. During this time, the composition will harden and clean it without damaging the tile, it will be very difficult.
• Quite often novice masters work with epoxy trowel, using the same tools as for cement grouting. This, of course, saves them money, but the result of the work does not justify this saving. Specificity of special use material of other tools and accessories.