"Jill" wrote in
:

"Patch" wrote in message
...

"Jill" wrote in message
...
The grout aroudn the tile in the shower/tub stall is cracking. The
bottom
parts are worse, and there are hairline cracks about half way up.
We
moved
into this house in December, and there was no cracking then.

There us one small bit where the grout fell off, and the crack was
filled
with silicone beneath.

When we moved it, we found grout patch and silicone in a box. I
wonder
if
there was damage that they just covered up.

What is my next step? Do I need to pull down the tiles?

~ Jill

You probably need to re-grout it. They make a tool that scratches
out
the
old grout so you can re-apply new. You don't need to remove any
tiles.
It's
not too difficult. The most important part is to seal the new grout.
Visit your local Home Depot or similar place, they can tell you how
to do it.

That's better news than what I expected. I thought that if the grout
was cracking, that water would damage the wall.

~ Jill




It will. We just had to have our shower torn out. 18 year old grout was
letting water get past it, and water soaked carpet in closet behind
shower got mildewed. I apparently was happening for some time..

If the wall behind the tile is damaged, then the only thing to do is pull
it all out and re-do.