seal porcelain before grout?

[Slippery]

I'm fitting some porcelain tiles that need sealing according to the box (wickes (customers choice))
Do these need to be sealed before grout to stop them getting stained, like stone or slate, or after?

 

[Time's Ran Out]

I’d test them!
Some of the surface holes in Chinese porcelain don’t show up till you grout.
If it’s polished take care as it often makes the surface greasy looking.

 

[Slippery]

Cheers John,
They are polished, do you mean the sealant makes them look greasy?
Would it be safer to seal them first then?

 

[Kieks]

I'm fitting some porcelain tiles that need sealing according to the box (wickes (customers choice))
Do these need to be sealed before grout to stop them getting stained, like stone or slate, or after?

I go before grout if it states to on the box. I got caught out when I first started out.

I had a 16 sqm kitchen floor that the client wanted in a chess board effect in 600/600 black and white polished porcelain tiles.

I tiled the floor and the customer was very happy. She decided to go with black grout, so I started grouting.

As I was washing down I kept seeing strange marks in the white tiles that would not wipe off. By the time I got to the end of the floor I realised what they were.

The were the word reebok from the sole of my trainers. Couldn’t get them out, it was a right mess.

Not only that but the tiles were no longer the lovely white, they were an off White now.

Looked at the box an it stated they needed to be sealed before grouting.

So be careful 😀

 

[Time's Ran Out]

I did a white porcelain a few years ago and there were a lot of posts on here about sealing. I priced the job just to tile it, the customer to seal it, then I’d grout it! He did one room and decided it was too much hard work to polish the tiles back up after sealing. If you add a couple of days of tilers wages to clean a polished porcelain floor they often want to do it themselves. The tiles were 60x60 cm from B&Q at £11/metre and 65+mts. Only 1 tile was marked out of the whole batch. Jasmin joint though - no dark colours.

 

[GoneGuy]

If the box states to seal them, then give them a seal before grouting.
Usually the ones from wickes have a transit wax that need removing then because of this they need to be re sealed.
Also mention to the customer that they will have to re seal the tiles a few times over the life span of the tiles fitted

 

[Time's Ran Out]

Or buy better quality porcelain.

 

[Slippery]

Or buy better quality porcelain.

I wish I'd have had some input into the purchase, they also bought about 4sqm of terrible mosaics with uneven depths!
I suffer from RSI when grouting already, not looking forward to grouting these!

 

[Ken Bruty]

To be honest Wickes polished porcelain are more trouble than they're worth mostly, I have had trouble with strange marks under the glaze in the past which don't come out when you remove the transit wax, so I try and point customers to decent tile shops instead.