Sanded Vs Unsanded Caulk For Shower

Unsanded caulk normally shrinks after application but the addition of sand prevents this.

Sanded vs unsanded caulk for shower. While you can use either sanded grout or unsanded grout for vertical tile such as bathroom or shower walls unsanded grout provides a better unsanded grout. Sanded grout is suitable for tile joints wider than 1 8 inches. The difference between sanded vs unsanded caulk is that unsanded caulk is smoother and more suitable for joints smaller than while sanded caulk is used for larger tile joints. While you can use either sanded grout or unsanded grout for vertical tile such as bathroom or shower walls unsanded grout provides a better working material.

As the name indicates that it doesn t contain any sand grains in it. Non sanded grout is thin with a smoother texture. Sanded caulk also may be chosen to match the look of grout. Great for tiling bathroom floors and most horizontal surfaces.

Sanded caulk is made of either latex silicone or acrylic with sand added to it for texture and bulk while unsanded caulk doesn t have sand. Unsanded grout is recommended for tile joints less than 1 8 inches wide. Great for shower walls backsplash or tiling other vertical surfaces. You gotta be quick and get it right the first time.

Due to unsanded grout s polymer content and extremely low porosity it does not need to be sealed. As the name implies sanded caulk has an extra ingredient. Therefore the primary use of sanded caulk is to fill large gaps where shrinking caulk could result in poor adhesion between the caulk and the tile drywall wood stone and so forth. I will be digging the sanded stuff out and recaulking again but with a non sanded version.

While grout is used to fill areas between tiles and other connected pieces of material caulk is specifically used for sealing these areas. If you have joints or gaps that are smaller than width use unsanded sealant. Unsanded grout also makes it easier to work with vertical surfaces such as tiled shower walls. Sanded caulk s added texture makes it much stronger and will fill the larger gaps more effectively than unsanded caulk.

In another bath i used a non sanded version and that is much better for cleaning. Unsanded caulk has a very smooth texture when compared to sanded caulk. It sticks better to vertical surfaces with less of the slump associated with sanded grout.