{"id":5073,"date":"2014-09-27T06:34:54","date_gmt":"2014-09-27T06:34:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aztile2021.wpengine.com\/?p=5073"},"modified":"2022-09-23T23:54:29","modified_gmt":"2022-09-24T06:54:29","slug":"grout-mortar-and-thinset-whats-the-difference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.arizonatile.com\/grout-mortar-and-thinset-whats-the-difference\/","title":{"rendered":"Grout, Mortar, and Thinset: What\u2019s the difference?","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Grout,
Featured Image: Grout, Mortar, & Thinset: Whats The Difference?<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Did you know there is a difference between grout and mortar? If you are a confident DIY\u2019er or even a newbie professional, you may get confused when the terms get thrown around haphazardly while discussing tiling jobs.<\/p>\n

\"Mixing
Image: Mixing Grout in a Bucket with a Drill Mixer<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What is Grout?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

grout<\/strong>\u00a0\/grout\/ noun: a mortar or paste for filling crevices, especially the gaps between wall or floor tiles<\/p>\n

Grout comes in nearly every color in the rainbow and it fills the spaces between the tile. Given the variety of\u00a0colors available, grout has become one\u00a0of the design elements of a tile installation. There are resin grouts and epoxy grouts, but it comes in two basic varieties that are used in residential applications:<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0Sanded grouts<\/em>\u00a0\u2013 Best for larger grout lines<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0Unsanded grouts<\/em>\u00a0\u2013 Best for grout spaces smaller than 1\/8\u2033<\/p>\n

Learn more about the difference between\u00a0sanded vs. unsanded grout<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Spreading
Image: Spreading Mortar on a Floor Before Laying Tile or Stone<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What is Mortar?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

mortar<\/strong>\u00a0\/m\u00f4rter\/noun: a mixture of lime with cement, sand, and water, used in building to bond bricks or stones<\/p>\n

Mortar is not pourable like grout, and other than a higher water content, mortar contains lime and grout does not.<\/p>\n

\"Spreading
Image: Spreading Thinset on a Floor Before Laying Tile or Stone<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What is Thinset?<\/h2>\n

thinset<\/strong>\u00a0noun: (also called thinset mortar, thinset cement, dryset mortar, or drybond mortar) an adhesive mortar made of cement, fine sand and a water retaining agent such as an alkyl derivative of cellulose. It is usually used to attach tile or stone to surfaces such as cement or concrete<\/p>\n

\"Travertine
Image: Travertine Floor Tiled Hallway from Arizona Tile<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Thinset, while it is also sometimes referred to as a \u201cmortar\u201d is an adhesive. It\u2019s a mix of cement, water, and fine sand. It holds your tile to the substrate and is used in\u00a0commercial applications<\/a>, \u201cwet wall\u201d applications (such as a shower floor), or with heavier tiling materials such as\u00a0Ankara Travertine Stone Tile<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Due to its cement ingredients, thinset should be made up in small batches as needed. It also should never be washed down a drain, as it will harden in your pipes.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Video: How To Install Tumbled Stone Tile From Arizona Tile<\/em>So while these words grout, mortar, and thinset are sometimes thrown around interchangeably, they each are different products used in different situations. Be sure to double check the manufacturer’s instructions on the tile you purchase for exact product requirements and installation guidelines.<\/p>\n

\"Bathroom
Image: Concerto Black Matte Porcelain<\/a> Bathroom Wall Tile From Arizona Tile<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Interested to see\u00a0what colors grout can come in<\/a>? Check out our\u00a0Just Imagine Visualizer Tool<\/a> to formulate your own tile mosaic and then customize it with the color grouts. Soon you’ll be a grouting Picasso!<\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Did you know there is a difference between grout and mortar? If you are a confident DIY\u2019er or even a newbie professional, you may get confused when the terms get thrown around haphazardly while discussing tiling jobs. What is Grout? grout \/grout\/ noun: a mortar or paste for filling crevices, especially the gaps between wall or floor tiles Grout comes in nearly every color in the rainbow and it fills the spaces between the tile. Given the variety of colors available, grout has become one of the design elements of a tile installation. There are resin grouts and epoxy grouts, but it comes in two basic varieties that are used in residential applications: \u2022 Sanded grouts \u2013 Best for larger grout lines \u2022 Unsanded grouts \u2013 Best for grout spaces smaller than 1\/8\u2033 Learn more about the difference between sanded vs. unsanded grout. What is Mortar? mortar \/m\u00f4rter\/noun: a mixture<\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"author":11,"featured_media":5074,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[226,182,184,236],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5073","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exterior-stone-projects","category-tile-slab-faqs","category-tile-flooring","category-bathroom-tile-projects"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nGrout, Mortar, and Thinset: What\u2019s the difference? - Arizona Tile<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Learn the difference between grout, mortar and thinset and how if functions within the home, from Arizona Tile.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.arizonatile.com\/grout-mortar-and-thinset-whats-the-difference\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Grout, Mortar, and Thinset: What\u2019s the difference?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Learn the difference between grout, mortar and thinset and how if functions within the home, from Arizona Tile.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.arizonatile.com\/grout-mortar-and-thinset-whats-the-difference\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Arizona Tile\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2014-09-27T06:34:54+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-09-24T06:54:29+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.arizonatile.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/spreading-grout.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Adria Harrison\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Adria Harrison\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.arizonatile.com\\\/grout-mortar-and-thinset-whats-the-difference\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.arizonatile.com\\\/grout-mortar-and-thinset-whats-the-difference\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Adria Harrison\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.arizonatile.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/4cf45c151041d7e8ccd3c1b331410060\"},\"headline\":\"Grout, Mortar, and Thinset: What\u2019s the difference?\",\"datePublished\":\"2014-09-27T06:34:54+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-09-24T06:54:29+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.arizonatile.com\\\/grout-mortar-and-thinset-whats-the-difference\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":522,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.arizonatile.com\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.arizonatile.com\\\/grout-mortar-and-thinset-whats-the-difference\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.arizonatile.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/02\\\/spreading-grout.jpg\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.arizonatile.com\\\/grout-mortar-and-thinset-whats-the-difference\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":[\"WebPage\",\"ItemPage\"],\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.arizonatile.com\\\/grout-mortar-and-thinset-whats-the-difference\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.arizonatile.com\\\/grout-mortar-and-thinset-whats-the-difference\\\/\",\"name\":\"Grout, Mortar, and Thinset: What\u2019s the difference? 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