Grout sealer olive oil test

[Giorgio]

I need a grout sealer that resists oil indefinitely and doesn't leave haze on tile.


I did a side by side test using 511, 511 Pourous Pro and Hardball and StonePro Pourous Pro.

The olive oil eventually soaked into the cement with all sealants I tested except StonePro Pourous Pro. The Stone Pro repelled the oil until it eventually rained here and washed the it away.

Here's a couple quick pics

grout seal 1.jpg

• Giorgio
• Nov 24, 2018

Grout seal 2.jpg

• Giorgio
• Nov 24, 2018

 

[Mikey P]

Why didn't you use actual grout for the test?

 

[Giorgio]

Because my wife wouldn't let me experiment with our kitchen floor.

The Stone Pro Pourous didn't know the difference.

 

[BIG WOOD]

Why didn't you use actual grout for the test?

Sometimes I question your questions

 

[Bruce Humphrey]

I would think the cinder blocks would be much more porous then grout leaving you with a faulty test, just my observation.

 

[Dolly Llama]

why'd you pick olive oil?

why not pickled egg beet juice?

lta

 

[Mikey P]

Sometimes I question your questions

Most modern grouts have additives that concrete/mortar do not..


A polymer-modified, cement-based sanded grout that produces hard, dense joints that resist shrinking, cracking and wear. Formulated for durability, Polyblend® Sanded Grout accommodates 1/8-1/2 (3-13 mm) joints for interior or exterior installations, including floors, countertops, walls, ceilings, showers, fountains and pools.

• Use to fill joint widths 1/8 inch to 1/2 inch
• May be used for both floor and wall installations
• For use interior and exterior
• Easy to use, Just mix with water
• Hard, dense grout joints
• Polymer fortified for hard, durable, professional results
• Resists shrinking, cracking, powdering and wear
• Snow white color
• Resists shrinking, cracking, powdering and wear

 

[clean image]

How hard something is is not relative to how absorbent it is....

Cashmere white granite( if I remember name correctly). Very hard and super absorbent.

Also, the fact remains, a good majority of installers use more water than spec, furthering the absorbency rate.

Good test. Thanks for sharing

 

[Giorgio]

why'd you pick olive oil?

why not pickled egg beet juice?
lta

FANTASTIC QUESTION!

I used vegetable oil because it's the most common oil used in restuarants (guessing residential too). Any crappy sealer should protect against water based stains.

However, only Teflon based sealers protect against oil based stains.

I was informed by the manufacturer that Miracle Porous Pro would repel oil. Which it did for a little while. Miracle I can get locally so was hoping it worked.

StonePro I have to order but is well worth the effort because it is Teflon based and repels oil indefinitely based on my preliminary tests.

 

[Giorgio]

Did I say Teflon? I think I ment silicon. I forget scientific words like that. I just a dumb ol' carpet cleaner

 

[Acp]

gundlach. stuff is awsome works on wet grout. Someone turned me on to it and its really good.

nothing else compares unless you want color enhancing for slate jobs etc, then we use DuPnt

 

[Tom Forsythe]

Silicones do not repel oil, but repel water. Silicones lower surface tension to around 30 dynes/cm and fluorochemicals to 15 dynes/cm.. Water has a surface tension of 72 dynes/cm. and oil has a surface tension of 25 dynes/cm. Silicones can only repel water and fluorochemical repels oil and water. The percent of solids improve performance of both products, but more silicone does not lower the dynes/cm. so they are unable to repel any oil outside of the dense structure of the stone itself.
I have recently gone through a comprehensive repellency test for slate, grout, marble, grout, travertine and granite. I applied the same amount to each surface, but the porousness of the surface impacts the repellency. Slate is the most porous and granite the least porous. The same application on slate would yield 1 hour repellency yet would yield over 24 hours on granite. We will introduce two new sealers early next year which have been comparable in performance with existing impregnating sealers on the market.

 

[Mikey P]

granite the least

You obviously were not testing Seirra Nevada "mint chip" granite...
Hold a tile of this at waiste level and pour a few table spoons of water on it.
In about minutes your shoes will be wet.


Home Depot sells loads of it as countertop slabs

 

[Tom Forsythe]

Fortunately, most granite that I have seen and tested reflects the general accuracy of my statement. You do bring out a good point that there are variations in repellency among categories of natural stone, but there is also variations among the stone itself. When I sealed my own granite countertops, there were places where almost none of the sealer absorbed, but in veined areas sealer absorbed readily.

 

[Giorgio]

We will introduce two new sealers early next year which have been comparable in performance with existing impregnating sealers on the market.

That sounds great! I'd like to place a pre-order.

Btw, who's the manufacturer?

 

[Mikey P]

That sounds great! I'd like to place a pre-order.

Btw, who's the manufacturer?

Tom is the chemist for Bridgepoint...

 

[Giorgio]

Roger that.

Absolutely love Maxim Advanced!

We need a sales kit with Warranty Certificate and blotter cards and sales brochures same as Maxim please.

It practically sells itself.

 

[Tom Forsythe]

There are no plans to develop a kit at this time. My suggestion is buy slate in 4 in. by 4 in. squares. Treat some with impregnating sealer and leave some untreated. Add drops of oil and water on each to show the difference in repellency. You will need additional treatments on slate to mimic the performance you will see on granite. It is better to demo on slate as oil and water immediately penetrate an untreated stone. This saves time on the demonstration. Our new products are called Prestige with a water and solvent based version and will be released by the end of the year.

 

[Acp]

can the new stuff be applied on grout that is freshly installed or grout that is still wet?

 

[Mikey P]

There are no plans to develop a kit at this time. My suggestion is buy slate in 4 in. by 4 in. squares. Treat some with impregnating sealer and leave some untreated. Add drops of oil and water on each to show the difference in repellency. You will need additional treatments on slate to mimic the performance you will see on granite. It is better to demo on slate as oil and water immediately penetrate an untreated stone. This saves time on the demonstration. Our new products are called Prestige with a water and solvent based version and will be released by the end of the year.

Will either be Slop and Mop method friendly?

 

[Acp]

gundlach is, spray and walk away wet grout etc doesnt matter

 

[Dolly Llama]

or grout that is still wet?

Tagalong to that
but thinking "wet grout" as in mixed and applied to new floor.
Do the sealers made to mix w/grout work as good or better than topically applied sealers after grout has cured?

gundlach is, spray and walk away wet grout etc doesnt matter

I don't even know enough to be dangerous about this

how does it do that?
is the solvent heavier than water and sinks below to displace H2O
or a co-solvent soluble in water?

..L.T.A.

 

[Acp]

it penetrates the grout whether wet or dry so ya.

 

[Acp]

havent been using it for very long yet but so far it works really well.

 

[Tom Forsythe]

I would not seal new grout until it has cured. Water-based and solvent-based sealers can be applied to grout just cleaned as long as there is no water puddling. Any solvent sealer should be able to be applied using Mike's method (Slop and Mop Method). Water-based sealers do not respond as well to the Slop & Mop method. I am working on some additives to a typical water based grout sealer hoping it will make the Slop and Mop method doable. Our new Prestige Sealers were designed for stone applications for Aramsco's new stone partners, but will be premium products for grout applications.

Aerosol applications of sealers can be dangerous for the user as fumes can readily get into the lungs without proper protection. I remember an event a few years ago where a shower application creating a major health event for the user. Their benefit is that they leave most of the sealer on the surface with little penetration. This provides great repellency, but the durability of the protection is questionable in high use areas.

 

[Giorgio]

can the new stuff be applied on grout that is freshly installed or grout that is still wet?

The bag of grout mix should have the cure time printed on it.

I would wait till it's cured b4 applying sealer

 

[Tom Forsythe]

Water-based and solvent-based sealers can be applied to grout just cleaned as long as there is no water puddling.

A point of clarification. The performance of any solvent based sealer will be enhanced by applying over a dry surface versus a surface just cleaned. Adding fans to facilitate the drying will improve performance. It would be more important to wait for a stone floor to dry than grout.

 

[Acp]

The bag of grout mix should have the cure time printed on it.

I would wait till it's cured b4 applying sealer

You dont need to wait with Gundlach on fresh grout... but we only use it to seal after cleanings. The grout we install does not need a sealer thats the whole angle we take on our regrouting jobs. We only use Perma pool grout, its 100% waterproof made for underwater in swimming pools. Nothing better out there for showers, this shower will never need sealing again

 

[Mikey P]

What does a 25# bag cost?

 

[Acp]

What does a 25# bag cost?

Amazon product