Bathroom Makeover - Part 1 Re-grout Shower Tile

Bathroom Reno Project - Part 1 - Re-grout tile

Our bathroom needs a complete overhaul. It's just "outdated".  We considered having it gutted and redone, but I decided to try my hand with some DIY work and see if I can give our bathroom a facelift. Luckily, we have a second bathroom we can use during my project that of course takes longer than most! :) Here are some before pictures.  I know the tub and tile look gross! No matter how much I clean and scrub it, I can get it to look clean! It probably doesn't help that along the bottom, most of the grout was coming out anyway!
                                

                                    

I looked online at a ton of DIY re-grouting projects to see if I can handle it.  Looks like I could!? (Hopefully!) One useful step-by-step instructions were from Angela Russell at The Coupon Project.  She inspired me greatly! 

I started by cleaning the tile/grout.  You then are supposed to remove caulking from the edges.  Low and behold, there is no caulking done for my shower! No wonder we have water problems.... 

The tile wasn't cleaned too well when it was grouted (is that a word?) the last time, so I used 2 handy tools for cleaning out old grout. I used a grout saw to saw away the old, chipping grout as well as my handy dandy Pampered Chef plastic scraper.  It worked really well in the small cracks and cleaning off the grout from the tile.  

I vacuumed up the grout a couple times throughout because I didn't want a huge mess.  For my shower, this took me at least 3 hours. I really wanted to make sure that I was thorough. Make sure you saw enough that you will be able to get the new grout to stay well!

Next I used bleach and water with a brush to clean out any loose grout between the tiles.  At this point, I flaked (when I saw what a mess I was making) and didn't take anymore pictures! 

Once the between the tile dried, I mixed my grout (I used Laticrete's SpectraLock Grout - make sure you get both parts!)and attempted using a floater to apply the grout to the walls...NOPE that didn't work...Shit now what?? I only had 80 minutes to complete this before it was to dry! AHH! 

  

So I went with the tried and true way that I learned on The Coupon Project website...use your finger.  Yup, I applied the grout with my finger and it took a painstakingly long time. I cursed myself and wondered why the hell I would do this to myself, stressing the whole time, not sure if I would finish before the damn grout would dry! Luckily I finished applying the grout with a HUGE mess of grout in the tub... damn I thought I would be neat! 

Using a damp sponge, I wiped the tile in circular motions to get off the grout from the tile and set the grout the way I wanted it in the tile.  The only problem I encountered was the mixed grout was pretty dry by the time I was finished with the first round so it was hard to do some touch-ups, but I managed.  

Here is the finished grout! 

Next up, painting the tub!