# Forum Home Renovation Waterproofing  Does cpc "shower plug" product allow grout to continue to cure after application?..

## DBR

Gday guys i have made two rooky grouting and waterproofing errors... 
Firstly as i was under pressure i grout repaired my shower sunday morning at 9am ( i.e. it already had grout i just had to top it up by about 2mm as it was receding) and then put the bathroom heat light fan on all day to warm the bathroom and dry the grout quickly ( apparently this is not a good idea??). 
then instead of waiting the prescribed 24 hours, given that the grout appeared dry i applied cpc shower plug product to waterproof the bathroom last night at 8pm.. 
That was last night and this morning i checked and if i dig my nail into the grout deep i can remove the grout by scraping with my bare hands.. 
Should i be worried? will the grout continue to cure along as the sealer cures?? 
Interested in your opinion Would hate to think i have to do it all again.. 
thanks

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## Bloss

cpc is a penetrative silicon waterproofer and will work only if the grout has dried completely - the destructions clearly say at least 24 hours and adding heat to dry out the gout (which can create fine shrinkage cracks . . .) fast doesn't replace time. 
A common error is to have the grout mix too wet & runny and/or to remove excess too soon (the grout should have started going off - started to harden) and to use to much water when cleaning excess - in effect adding water back into the grout mix and weakening it. 
Hard to tell without actually seeing the result in person, but since you seem to have coated a still damp surface with product that is supposed to resist damp it seems you have locked in the remaining moisture in the grout, which will therefore likely stay soft and unset. 
Wat a day or so and see what happens as you might get lucky, but I reckon you'll need to scrape all the grout out and start again . . .

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## DBR

> cpc is a penetrative silicon waterproofer and will work only if the grout has dried completely - the destructions clearly say at least 24 hours and adding heat to dry out the gout (which can create fine shrinkage cracks . . .) fast doesn't replace time. 
> A common error is to have the grout mix too wet & runny and/or to remove excess too soon (the grout should have started going off - started to harden) and to use to much water when cleaning excess - in effect adding water back into the grout mix and weakening it. 
> Hard to tell without actually seeing the result in person, but since you seem to have coated a still damp surface with product that is supposed to resist damp it seems you have locked in the remaining moisture in the grout, which will therefore likely stay soft and unset. 
> Wat a day or so and see what happens as you might get lucky, but I reckon you'll need to scrape all the grout out and start again . . .

  
Gday Bloss, mate, well i have some great news After completing the job i thought i was wrong as well- and ideally i was,,,, but I just rang the seal a plug company and they outlined that even though their product says wait 24 hours, they said you can actually wait only 4 hours.. they just say 24 to well and truly cover all situations.. I waited 10 hours so it should be ok. 
I did make a very wet slurry but it wasn't to the point where it would run off the applicator (drip)... 
In terms of the drying of the grout with a heater on- i also rang DAVCO grout company and they said the heat fan light is ok,, in fact they said so long as the temp is between 4 and 35 degrees it will be fine. 
so the only issue is that i have used 6-12mm gap grout in 2mm gaps. - hope that will be ok... 
Apparently grout takes many days to cure- so that is why this morning it was still rather weak in places- would this be true? 
thanks mate

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## OBBob

So what are you planning to do about use of the shower? It may all cure in time as hoped above ... but water could well wash it out if it's not yet fully cured.

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## DBR

> So what are you planning to do about use of the shower? It may all cure in time as hoped above ... but water could well wash it out if it's not yet fully cured.

  
Cheers mate,, 
Well I'm going to basically let the tenant use the shower from tonight onwards,, then i will check next weekend when she moves out for the weekend again.. If the grout has eroded then i will scrape off as much as i can and regrout,,,,, if not and if by next weekend it has cured i will just leave it.. 
I have been told that it takes grout about 6-7 days to cure to a hard state,,, so i hope that that is the reason why it comes off under my nail at the moment..       My main concern now is that the tiler gave me 6-12mm gap grout and i am doing the shower floor which is 1 to 2mm thick gaps. 
ahhhhrrrhhh hopefully this doesnt become a problem- due to coarse aggregate..   
I guess time will tell and if by this coming weekend i can scratch my fingernail along the grout and it doesnt remove any then i am happy If not ill have to spend an hour scraping and applying new grout...

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