Using Grout Instead of Caulk: Possible or Not?

Are you just going to fill in the gap and crack both in your house’s exterior and interior? But confused between caulk and grout? In such a case, before making any decision, you need to know the difference between them and their appropriate place of application. 

Caulk vs. grout is a very popular question among homeowners because some want to know if they can use grout instead of caulking.

The short answer is no. You can’t use grout instead of caulk and they have a few reasons. Let’s take a look at why you can’t use it.

Caulk and Its Usage

Caulk is a material that fills 1/4-inch gaps, cracks, and holes in various components. But doors, windows, and wooden surfaces are the most common.

Caulk Usage

1. Not only on the interior but without caulking, a home’s exterior would not be completed because caulking gives a home a professional look with durability.
2. The caulk also seals the joints between materials like glass, steel, masonry, and concrete. These seals are necessary to keep out rain and dirt from home and stop air leaks.
3. To make the caulking process long-lasting, a few things need to be kept in mind, such as before using the caulk and cleaning the old caulk properly. Otherwise, the caulk will crack soon. Use a good-branded caulk to make caulking usage long-lasting. 

Tips:

While caulking with a gun, don’t pull the gun. Just push it.

Grout and Its Usage

Grout is a mixture of different things, like water, cement, and sand. Usually, it is used to fill spaces under machines or other structural elements. It seals joints and holes in surfaces and strengthens structures that are already quite stable.

Grout Usage

1. Grout is a thick liquid to strengthen or fill cracks in concrete or other structures. Furthermore, it repairs cracks and prevents water leakage from water pipes, canals, and tunnels. Moreover, it fills gaps between tiles and stabilizes the soil.
2. Like cement, grout is a powder you must mix with water before using. Epoxy, urethane, and acrylic grouts take a different time to dry, so we’ll have to choose carefully when deciding which one to use.
3. Grout is good for filling gaps and cracks due to its flexibility and lack of acidity. There are several types of grout on the market, including tile grout, flooring grout, non-shrink grout, structural grout, and so on.

Tips:

While grouting, hold the grout float at a 45-degree angle.

What Should You Know More About Grout and Caulk?

Before applying caulk and grout you should know about the basic differences and facts of them and here it is:

• Since caulk is flexible, it can be used to join together two different kinds of materials in a smaller place. On the other hand, grout needs enough space to stick to a surface. Furthermore, using caulk on big projects is not a good idea because it shrinks over time. Instead, grout is a better choice.
• Grout is strong and stable and stops tiles from cracking or breaking at the edges and corners in a short period. But, in the case of caulk, it takes more time to cure than grout.
• You can use both sanded and un-sanded grout in any place. Sealing the spaces between tiles will depend on how big the spaces are. But you cannot use all types of caulk in every place. Different types of caulk require a particular place to be used. For instance, silicone caulk works well in a high moisture place.
• Therefore, grout and caulk come in different colors, so you can match or go with the color of your tiles.
• Grout and caulk are also quite different regarding application complexity and the instruments required. To do caulking, you do not need special skills, but grouting requires skill.

Tips:

To make both caulking and grouting processes long-lasting keep them clean (bleach) and moist-free.

Why We Cannot Use Grout Instead of Caulk?

As a general rule, caulk should not be used as grout, and vice versa, in most cases.

Before using grout or caulk, keeping a sense of the environment is very important. Grout has a strong tradition as an adhesive and in case, caulk is also good. But they both have their own expertise that users cannot deny. Both of them need care and proper application but are actually different than one another.

Grout only fills in gaps between tiles, it serves an aesthetic look to a home and protects places that are quite attracted to dirt and moisture, as well as it is also best for the locations where brickwork can break. Even if the tiles have adhered to the floor or wall with cement or paste, they must be secured with a grout layer.

On the other hand, caulk fills the gap between any surfaces, though caulk type and brand vary from place to place. Such as bathtub, kitchen, crown molding, door trim, door frame, window, etc. requires the different caulk.

Here are two reasons why you cannot use grout instead of caulk or caulk instead of grout:

Material

Caulk is made from polymers like silicone, latex, rubber, and polyurethane, which can bend and fix material movements. Moreover, Caulk is a water-based adhesive used for sealing gaps and cracks in the interior and exterior surfaces of buildings.

On the other hand, grout is a form of white Portland cementitious material, which is very solid and hard to remove. And it is a combination of water, cement, and sand used to build with concrete and other surfaces.

Grout doesn’t bend as fast as caulk, and grout is not as flexible. So, using grout instead of grout is a big no-no. Because caulk requires flexibility.

Applying Method

While doing grouting on tile joints, use a grout float to spread the grout over the tiles and press the grout to stick it into the right place. Once it’s set, use a sponge to remove the excess grout. After getting rid of all the extra grout, you can repeat this process numerous times. 

On the other hand, while using caulk on a particular surface you cannot press that applied caulk until it becomes dry. Otherwise, it will be removed. So, as you can see, the applying mechanism of grout and caulk is different.

Hopefully, you people just got the idea of where you should use caulk and where grout. For a small project use caulk and for a bigger one use grout. So, we got that, the general idea is that these are two different products used for different purposes.