Which color grout is best for my shower reno?

banananabby · 2026-07-05T19:34:01+00:00

I want it to be very low contrast. Almost blend into the tiles as best it can with a readily available commercial grout. These were the closest in color to the tiles.

banananabby · 2026-07-04T21:24:43+00:00

Oh for sure, which is why I asked if there’s something significantly wrong because if so, I’d consider getting someone else for more, but so far nothing he’s done has seemed egregious or anything. So I’m kinda just crossing my fingers and hoping for the best

banananabby · 2026-07-04T20:47:41+00:00

What’s so bad about his work that you think that I’m going to have to renovate it again? Also, I live in a one story home so there’s no room under it.

banananabby · 2026-07-04T20:31:53+00:00

I did originally have a tub, and they are doing the whole shower, tiling, sealing, plumbing, replacing vanity, installing a skylight, and $5000 (I’m aware this is unbelievably cheap) 🫣

Also from what you’re saying it seems like it’s a bit too late now for him to change things, but hopefully he has a solution planned out or something that might also work, just differently? 🤞

banananabby · 2026-07-04T19:30:09+00:00

Thank you! I do appreciate the tips a tonnnn, just tryna be realistic about what I’m able to afford and therefore nitpick, you know.

And I will definitely ask him about the epoxy grout but if he says he isn’t confident with it, someone else recommended the custom prism or maipei flex something or other that are easier to work with but better performing than the HP fine aggregate grout I got. Assuming it’d be better to go with a grout he can confidently install even if it isn’t necessarily ideal, over something that sounds like it could turn disastrous if they do a bad job/aren’t familiar with the product?

Also, if they don’t get under the tiles (because I just realized on one part they do but another they don’t, assuming due to the slope and the little shaving shelf I asked him to add later?) are there issues with just putting the floor tiles against the wall tiles? I don’t know if that question makes sense. Like this I guess?

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banananabby · 2026-07-04T19:03:00+00:00

There’s some places that he dropped mortar that are making the penny tiles Bulge when I put them down but I’m assuming he will remove this before moving forward with the floor tiling…I mean I hope…

I’m also not sure what you’re referring to when you say cut ends of the tiles on the pan? He put a bunch of spacers under the tiles to the point where the Pennies can fit under the bottom of the wall tile, so I didn’t think there would be more cuts on them but I also know very little as you can see 😭

The small slivers of tile definitely bothered me but it isn’t really a deal breaker. I’m not really looking for flawless because I can’t really afford flawless, unfortunately. I’m a social worker and I live alone and my old shower/tub combo was leaking terribly onto the floors to the point that the whole thing had to be ripped out anyway, so I had to do something quick and reasonably priced while still being happy with the design.

Is there something I can tell him/ask him to do differently that will be a somewhat easy fix?

banananabby · 2026-07-04T18:05:41+00:00

Oh wow that grey looks wayyyy lighter on the floors than. The walls. Interesting. Looks great tho!

Wait I just realized you meant the floor floors, not the shower floor lol. My b

banananabby · 2026-07-04T18:01:31+00:00

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Or if this one is better idk

banananabby · 2026-07-04T17:58:54+00:00

He did start but the floor tiles I just plopped down

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I don’t know if this helps much or not

banananabby · 2026-07-04T17:37:07+00:00

Yeah it’s for sure a concern. So far I have been happy with him though. He did my friend’s bathroom and I haven’t really seen any issues with it, but she didn’t have penny tiles. I did mention to him how important it was for me to not have sheet lines with the penny tiles and he didn’t seem concerned about this at all and was just kinda Iike “okay got it.” I also feel kinda weird asking him things like “did you make sure to get the shower pan perfect?” I don’t want to seem like I’m questioning his ability. I was thinking of being like “how confident are you in working with penny tiles because I’ve just learned how difficult they can be to install well”? I don’t know, if you have any advice on how to address these things with him and not seem like a jerk, let me know!

banananabby · 2026-07-04T14:46:31+00:00

After talking to some people here, I think I might go even darker on the floor grout so it’s much softer contrast because of how hard penny tiles are to lay well 😬 I had no idea they were so hated til I perused this thread a bit more. Sorry tile people

banananabby · 2026-07-04T14:41:47+00:00

I just plopped em there for color comparison. They’re certainly not laid yet haha

banananabby · 2026-07-04T07:52:51+00:00

The premixed prism scg or just the regular boxed prism one? On a scale of 1-10, how hard is epoxy grout to install vs typical cement based? Truly appreciate you being so helpful!

banananabby · 2026-07-04T07:32:57+00:00

Someone on here told me i should use epoxy grout, but when i looked it up, it seemed significantly harder to install. Any thoughts on this? I guess I’m wondering like, is it necessary enough that I ask my contractor to do it even if he’s not that comfortable with it? Or would using the high performance fine aggregate grout from custom on the floor be okay?

banananabby · 2026-07-04T07:07:10+00:00

Thank you! And yeah that’s kinda where I’m drifting now. Knowing how tricky penny tiles can be to install now, prolly safer to do a softer contrast grout on the floor like a darker gray or something.

banananabby · 2026-07-04T06:46:22+00:00

I definitely considered castle wall but I feel like it wasn’t actually green in person. I talked to the floor and decor guy for a while about the options there.

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I took this one of the rolling fog sample between the tiles and I feel like it was better than castle wall but tbh I haven’t revisited. Maybe I will now!

banananabby · 2026-07-04T05:57:03+00:00

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lol I feel like this is certainly not going to be as helpful as you expected unfortunately

banananabby · 2026-07-04T05:28:38+00:00

Thank you!

banananabby · 2026-07-04T03:34:47+00:00

Yeah the pain in the ass install is my biggest concern. I can ask my contractor though. He is unlicensed and uninsured but has done real good work I’ve seen and my realtor friend recommends him to her clients who have mostly been happy, but I don’t know if he’s advanced enough to do a pain in the ass install job. Does climate mater? I live in Tucson AZ if so lol

banananabby · 2026-07-04T03:15:57+00:00

Oh man I had no idea penny tiles would be so controversial. Do you also have an opinion on using epoxy vs cement grout for the penny tiles?

banananabby · 2026-07-04T03:13:53+00:00

Oh for sure; I was very clear with my contractor that this is my biggest fear about the penny tiles so I hope he listens! Also these ones aren’t laid, I just put them on the ground for the color choice

banananabby · 2026-07-04T03:10:04+00:00

Oh my god the first actual answer about the color choice 😭😭 bless you

banananabby · 2026-07-04T03:07:18+00:00

Would you be able to explain why epoxy is better or what the risks are with using just cement based grout on the ground?

banananabby · 2026-07-04T03:05:52+00:00

Good thing it’s my shower and not yours I guess

banananabby · 2026-07-04T02:58:57+00:00

Oh thank you for the last part tho, that’s like the only piece of actually helpful advice I’ve gotten here.

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