Grout colour advice for a bathroom?

December 23, 2019 10:09 AM

Bathroom reno! Two questions about tile: A - Which floor will look cleaner, dark grey or black? And B- Is there a grout sealant that will actually keep white grout looking clean in the shower and backsplash?

Bathroom reno is underway! Here are my beautiful Emily Henderson bathroom design inspiration pics: white picket backsplash, and fish scale blue tiles with white grout, and sky blue backsplash wall.

Here's what we have planned:
The main feature will be the sink backsplash in blue porcelain picket tiles, about 1.5' wide and 5" tall. Similar to this, in sky blue.
Shower: plain white subway tiles, 4" x 12".
For both the shower and backsplash, I would prefer white grout IF it would stay clean... but could handle grey or black grout if that's more practical.

Floor: large hex tiles, in either black or dark grey, with matching dark grout. We chose a dark colour because our cat litter box needs to live in this room, and we use dark grey newsprint litter, so we want the litter crumbs to be less obvious.

Plain white vanity and sink from Ikea. White fabric shower curtain. All fixtures chrome with simple/modern shapes.
Vintage style industrial light kind of like this.
Vintage wood mirror with a rounded shape.

Question A-
Should we do a black floor, or a dark grey floor? 8 inch hex tiles with matching grout, either way. Which will look cleaner?

Question B-
Is it possible to seal the white shower and backsplash grout so it will look clean for years, with daily use by a splashy family with kids? We're a bit messy and we clean the bathroom every 1-2 weeks. We definitely do not want to spray toxic leave-on cleansers in order to maintain a clean look, as we feel this will contaminate our kids' bathwater and our cat's tub drinks with harsh chemicals. Aesthetically, I would prefer white grout because I love how bright and happy it looks against white or blue tile... but I HATE dirty grout and I HATE cleaning grout.

My contractor swears that if you use a paintbrush and seal the grout lines with a $100 grout sealer, the grout won't get dingy. I want to believe him, but... is it true? If so, can you recommend a product? Money is no object, as long as we can get it in Canada.
Thanks!

posted by nouvelle-personne to Home & Garden (13 answers total)

Received wisdom is that true black and true white always show the most dirt. On cars, on floors, on clothes; pretty much everything. It’s just the general way of the world, because no dust or dirt or grime is white or black; it’s all shades of grey and brown.

So grey and brown and mottled tiles will always look cleaner than solid black, which will only look clean for 5 minutes after you clean it.
posted by SaltySalticid at 10:24 AM on December 23, 2019 [2 favorites]

I recently finished a bathroom reno with white tiles and marble hex tiles (white, taupe/tan, gray marble) on the floor. I used a taupe grout so I wouldn't have to obsess over keeping the grout clean. Use a silvery gray with your white tile and you will get the brighter look you want with less care. I'd go with the gray floor tiles - more forgiving than black and you can use the same silvery gray grout to tie it together. Don't use black grout - too harsh and I think it will look dated in a few years.

I used some grout sealer on white grout and it helped, but I still swear by colored grout.
posted by XtineHutch at 10:26 AM on December 23, 2019 [4 favorites]

I highly, HIGHLY suggest grey grout for both floor AND walls/shower.
posted by DarlingBri at 10:37 AM on December 23, 2019 [7 favorites]

I wish I had first-hand experience. That would mean a new bathroom was already built and the existing horrible, tiny, dingy one was renovated, but alas that hasn't happened yet. But as someone who used to work in hardware, and who has obsessed over building, renovating, decor, and design for the 30+ years since buying a house with "potential," I can tell you that both bathrooms will have epoxy grout. Pros: impermeable to stains. Cons: more expensive and harder to work with. If you go this route, I'd get someone experienced with using it to do your tiling.
posted by kate4914 at 10:43 AM on December 23, 2019

I would definitely go with grey on the floor, a true black looks dirty so fast. I personally don't have a problem with my white grout ever looking really dirty, I just spray on some warm water, soap and vinegar and then use a scrubby brush on the whole wall every few months and that's enough to keep it looking fine. We do have soft water though.

I think a dark grout with white tiles is rapidly going to look dated, and I personally think it makes the space look really busy. The suggestion up thread of a silvery light grey grout might be the best of both worlds for you.
posted by stillnocturnal at 10:44 AM on December 23, 2019 [1 favorite]

We have a dark brown tile floor, and I'm not sure I'd recommend a dark floor for "looking clean" ours shows everything. Our bathroom seems to be particularly dusty and even if I sweep every day the floor looks dirty.
posted by Ftsqg at 12:46 PM on December 23, 2019

We retiled one bathroom with medium-dark wood look tiles (maybe 6x24?) so they have a texture on them. Grey grout and the floor never looks dirty. I think the texture is key to making the dirt disappear.
posted by soelo at 2:27 PM on December 23, 2019

Downside of grey grout: you don't actually know how dirty it is until you scrub it. Which is its strength, of course, but still surprising every time I clean the bathroom.
posted by SPrintF at 4:15 PM on December 23, 2019 [1 favorite]

Ooh, I love some of these tiles that you're using! What a fun project.

Consider talking to your contractor about using epoxy grout. My experience is that epoxy grout does, as advertised, hold its color better. I installed floor tiles with epoxy grout, and then a contractor installed shower tiles with cement grout and sealed it. The floor grout held its color much better (though it's arguably an easier environment?). The contractor said the epoxy stuff was too hard to use (which I didn't agree with because I'd just done it myself on my second-ever tile install) and that it didn't make a difference (later proved wrong). I used spectralock (not "pro," I don't know if they make that any more).

For the floor, to hide stray litter and hairs and water droplets and whatnot, I'd avoid pure black and maybe even find a tile that has some mottling or pattern instead of a solid color -- something like this, or if you like the darker colors, like this or this.

Post pics for us to see how it turns out! :)
posted by slidell at 4:26 PM on December 23, 2019 [1 favorite]

We used grey grout when renewing out master bath. When its wet, it's much darker, and the shower looks like a mold fest until it dries.
posted by SemiSalt at 4:32 PM on December 23, 2019 [1 favorite]

Seconding epoxy grout as the gold standard though it will add $$$, and if your installer isn’t familiar with it might require a learning curve. It’s all I’ve used in commercial and institutional settings for years and will outperform any sealer.
posted by q*ben at 7:58 PM on December 23, 2019

Response by poster: Epoxy grout sounds amazing, thanks! BUT... my contractor has never used it. He is a very skilled general contractor, tidy worker, and GREAT with cement grout. He's not the world's best listener or reader.

How can he quickly and intuitively learn to use epoxy grout? Any online tutorials that would work? Is it worth taking the risk that he'd mess up a new material?
posted by nouvelle-personne at 10:24 PM on December 23, 2019

He could just take some scrap plywood and scrap pieces of tile and practice on it. I mean, nothing quite equates to the time pressure of a full scale installation. But if he is nervous, he could mix up the grout in smaller batches (by buying the mini packages) until he gets the hang of it. Or he could try letting the stuff start drying so he can see what it'll be like to work with after some time passes.

I just read the instructions and worked quickly and carefully and was fine. If he doesn't read, I guess he'll need someone to read the instructions to him and or show him what to do.
posted by slidell at 8:09 AM on December 24, 2019