MAPEI UltraCare Grout Refresh, Universal Grout Colorant & Sealer, 8 oz Bottle – Easy Grout Restoration & Protection, 5049 Light Almond

After twelve years, two puppies, two teenagers and all their friends tromping through the kitchen and dining room, my grouted tile floors were an eyesore! I considered ripping up the tile and putting down something new. I dreaded the noise, dust, and cost the project would have caused. I ran across this product while trying to pick out new tile and grout for a master bathroom remodel. I bought a bottle at my local home improvement store. The results were fabulous! The coverage and ease of use is incredible. My tile floors look brand new. I applied the product with a children's toothbrush. After the product dried, about 30 minutes, I went back and used a washcloth and Dawn soap to remove any grout refresh color that had got onto the tile. It came up easily from the tile, while staying adhered to the grout. This is an awesome product that saved me thousands of dollars. Depending on the size of your project, it is labor intensive, but so well worth it! Hint: I would make sure that you test the color before applying it in a large section. Colors can be tricky in different lights. I am an interior designer and had to try three colors before finding the perfect match for my tastes. Second, be sure you have knee pads or a low stool. I had a knee pad but found my knees and lower back ached for days after the project. However, I still thought the end results were worth the pain:)

It’s an excellent product. Though it’s a small bottle but goes a long way. My kitchen grout was pretty bad but this product did a fantastic job. I used a painting brush to apply it. It was very easy to apply and dried very quickly. It’s been 2 months since and it doesn’t fade or come off. The grout looks great and sealed. Gave new life to my kitchen floor. Great product! I’m really happy I bought it.

Works great. I apply it with a small paint brush that matches the width of the grout. I highly recommend you go over it with a clear satin or semi-glosss polyurethane. It resists dirt better and makes mopping easier as it won't absorb all the dirty water.

Wow. That was tough. I gave it 4 stars because it does work, but not easy. Let me start by saying I used it on 1 inch octagon tile, which I installed years ago on the bathroom floor , but have never been happy with the grout color I chose. So when I saw this, I figured it was going to be easy to change grout color from antique white to grey. Wrong. Not easy at all. Not for the faint of heart, or those who don't like hard work. This was tough. Involved many hours. The reason is, with the 1 inch mosaic , there are a lot of grout lines to address. Let's just say it makes grouting seem easy. First, clean the tile, and let it dry thoroughly. When you apply this stuff, don't try and do too much at once. I would say 4 square feet at the most. That is because while it applies quickly , it will take 3 times as long to detail it. At first, before I figured out the best approach , I followed the directions, but found that in places the old grout flashed through. The trick is to get it placed, and wait just the right amount of time, then begin wiping off the excess, trying not to wipe off too much. I found it beneficial to have two sponges. One to wipe quickly, one to detail the grout lines. Take your time, work slowly , keep a clean sponge. It's like grouting tile, just harder. It is incredibly time consuming, but beats removing the tile and starting over. I did have to go over some areas a second time as I wiped too much of the material off and the old grout was exposed. This is not a dye. It lays on top of the old grout. That is why the detail work was so tedious. Would I do it again? Not sure. The results seem good, not sure about the long term durability. I'm a building contractor, and this is not for the inexperienced.

It was easy and looks so good!

Last owner installed this back splash with what appears to be some type of concrete. It was brown and dark and didn't look nice with the color tile in my opinion. I was worried I would have to go darker so when I read the reviews here and saw how it was covering dark grout lines I figured it was worth a shot. Purchased in the frost color which looked like a light gray. Cleaned everything really good two days prior so it would have time to dry. Directions give two options for applying depending on the tile. One is a wet method where you let it sit for a few minutes and mist with water them wipe, second was dry method where you wipe immediately with a dry paper towel or microfiber cloth. I started with the dry method and after about five minutes realized my grout was absorbing the color so fast I could wipe with a wet microfiber without it smearing on the tiles and without it pulling from the grout. Picture 2 shows it after two coats, still drying. I used a stiff small stencil brush for application. I know people complained about the nozzle clogging. They probably shouldn't be attempting home improvements as the top unscrews and you have to unscrew said top to remove the seal. I did not use the nozzle I just dipped the brush in and carried on. First pass the color looked bright white, I used the stencil brush to really push it into all the nooks and crannies. Wiping with a wet cloth as I was going. I didn't have to worry about being neat, it wiped off extremely easy from my tile. By the time I wrapped around the entire back splash, about 20 minutes, the starting point had absorbed enough for a second coating. It dried true to color, covered the brown entirely and changed the entire look of the kitchen. All this completed in about 40 minutes, granted we have large rectangular tiles and there was not as much grout lines to work over so timing will vary. I used maybe 1/4 of the bottle. I could not recommend this product more highly. It did exactly what it advertised it would, it was extremely easy and super cost effective. Super happy with the end results.

Update: a few months in and all the grout paint is coming off where the water stream from the shower head hits the tile. I followed the instructions to the T. I cannot recommend this product. All my time wasted. We had our shower re-tiled 2 years ago, so our grout was in good condition. The problem was that I chose the grout color in a rush because the color I wanted was not in stock. It was dark brown. We used the same dark brown in our kitchen, which I like because we have an industrial look in there. In the bathroom, I wanted more of a "spa" feel, and the dark brown was not working for me. I considered having the dark brown removed and then replaced with the light gray that I originally wanted. I couldn't find anyone that would do it. I did some research and came across this product on Youtube. I watched several videos and read the reviews to avoid my own learning curve. It is time consuming, but if you follow the instructions of those who have done it, it is not difficult. My grout did not have a sealer on it, so the Grout Refresh was a good choice. I began using a tooth brush, but then switched to a stiff, wide artist's brush, which I like better. I used the "dry" method of covering the grout, letting it dry, then wiping the tile with a MOIST cloth and using an old credit card to scrape the excess off the tile. The concept is similar to scraping dried paint off of glass. If you don't let it dry long enough, you can remove some of the color on the grout joints. I abolutely love my grout now! I was able to get the look I wanted all along. My concern is how will it hold up to chemicals and scrubbing when I clean our shower in the future. I've contacted the company to inquire about this. At this point, I hight recommend, but follow the guidelines before and during application.

I bought black but it is like a medium grey. It will work but its not ideal.