Source
r/Tile•
InternetAnima

Can I silicone hair cracks in my bathroom floor tiles as a temporary fix?

Hi folks, I hope this question is allowed.

I recently bought a house that has some hair cracks in the tiles of one of the bathrooms. I suspect they happened due to the floor losing its level over time and there's also some missing grout.

I intend to call a professional tiler or a remodelling company to fix this long term, but in the mean time I'm concerned some water from the shower could get into these cracks.

Would applying grout where it's missing and using transparent silicone sealant on the hair cracks help as a temporary fix to keep water out?

Posted Aug 31, 2023, 4:29 PM UTC

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[deleted]•

[deleted]

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iampg•

Yes! You can do anything you want, and that will work short-term.

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InternetAnimaOP•

Hah thank you

I guess the question was whether it would offer some protection while we plan for a bigger renovation

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iampg•

Professionals and their marketing teach us that things have to be 'just so' to provide any level of protection. In this case, you just need to keep the water on the topside of the tiles, and silicon will definitely achieve that. It won't be super durable and probably won't look great, but it'll work!

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wellhiyabuddy•

Tile is not waterproof. That’s not the job it’s doing

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InternetAnimaOP•

Really? What job is it doing then? (not trying to be a smart-ass just in case, I really want to understand how this works)

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Odd_Improvement1861•

LOL!

“Keep the water on the topside of a porous material, and you’ll be fine!”

…damn professionals and their marketing. /s

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InternetAnimaOP•

Wait... but if tiles aren't keeping water out... does it not matter that they're cracked?

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mchvll•

Are the tiles in the shower or on the floor outside the shower?

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InternetAnimaOP•

It's the floor outside, but it does get a few drops when someone showers

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mchvll•

Doesn't really matter. As others have mentioned, tile isn't waterproof. Especially the grout will suck up water. Put some silicone in the cracks if it makes you feel better.

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InternetAnimaOP•

Got it, but what protects the subfloor then?

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