Here’s an update on my efforts to bathroom tile repair.

After trying to dry out the wood subfloor and re-grout, I conclude that my efforts at tile repair did not work. The new grout has cracked and has wetness stains. It looks like one of two things might be happening, or maybe both.

First, the water damage to the subfloor may just be too severe. Even with three days of hot-air drying, the floor remains damp. When I re-grouted a second time, I tried to add a piece of Duradek vinyl to fill the space left by the damaged wood, and glue the tile to that. Didn’t work.

Second, my efforts at tile repair may be hampered by other sources of water leaking under the tile. As reported previously, I sealed off all the holes I could find. I also re-sealed the seams in the shower stall. But it is possible that some water might be leaking from the shower drain.

So, it looks like it is time to call in a professional. If I am really lucky, perhaps this will be easy for a professional with experience in tile repair. But I am starting to suspect it may be necessary to remove the shower stall to check for leakage.

The extra challenge is that my specific tile is no longer made, and we have no spares. So this might require re-tiling the whole bathroom. I have been looking on the Internet to see if someone has some old stock, but so far no luck. There is a replacement that comes close in terms of pattern but the color is lighter.

Previously, I have stated that the first phase of any DIY project is procrastination. But I better not do that for too long! The good news is that I have learned a bit about how tile and grout work.