So I have a problem. We have a shower where the walls are tile and the floor is your standard plastic flooring. It's probably 4 feet by 4 feet which means that the water runs right down the tile wall to the floor. This seems to cause problems as there is a constant flow of water directly on the tile running down the wall.

The plastic goes up about 5 inches at an angle similar to this http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&q=shower+floor+4x4&ix=sea&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.,cf.osb&biw=1333&bih=624&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=17943432265883037112&sa=X&ei=CgG1T4TjF4iO6gGdw43XDw&ved=0CK0BEPICMAE and then meets the tile wall.

When we bought the place, they only had grout down there connecting the wall and the plastic and it was starting to wear down and even led to some very minor water issues getting down to our first floor. In my research, they said that there should be caulk designed for a shower there. I did that, and it worked well, but I probably could have been more diligent in cleaning and clearing the area before I applied it. After about a year, I had to re-caulk the whole thing. Now, it looks like I'll have to do it again as there is already an area where the caulk is coming off the wall. Any advice on what to do?

I think I have these options.
1) Regrout and grout sealer the area like it was previously and then watch for issues and just be diligent.
2) Get rid of all the grout(some was still there and I didn't remove it when I caulked but I covered over it with caulk) and then just caulk and deal with redoing it every 6 months to a year.
3) Grout, then put caulk over it.
4) Call someone who does this professionally and let them handle it.
5) Use Rebath and have it so the direct water is hitting plastic instead of the tile.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Option Number 4

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Switch to Baths

Hopefully some real men have answers.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

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And while he's there, have him install a garbage disposal in the shower.

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Ok, get a blowtorch, a chainsaw, and a Drowning Pool CD

Option 3. Do it and do it right.

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This kind of stuff wouldn't happen if someone other than Ugie created the topic.

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Grout will not hold up at that joint between the plastic and the tile.

You need to clean all the old grout out and caulk at that joint.

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Call Elmhurst Steve.

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Waiting for the time when I can finally say
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You have a plastic shower! it moves! Only caulk will be semi flexible enough to last for awhile....grout will always crack

Rip it out and tile the place! Gonna run you $2000 to be done right. Need an "EXPERT" to do a pan the right way...very few know how to do it right.

it is my #1 test on tile guys.

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that's a shitty situation. depending on how rich you are and how long you are going to live there, you might want to follow bigfan's advice. otherwise do #3 and expect you are going to have to redo it every couple of years.

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Reality is your friend, not your enemy. -- Seacrest

Probably only 3 more years here.

Is grout + caulk better than just caulk alone for this?

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

no because the plastic will move and crack it.

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Depending on the situation. Should it "look" like it has grout? You don't want it to look like crap. If so, you are going to have to scrape all the old grout and loose caulk out of there.

any movement will crack the grout...even humidity changes with the house etc. That's why you need the caulk.

I'd use clear silicone as caulking is a mess to work with unless you are an expert. clear doesn't show the mistakes as bad.

Or you can just goober white silicone caulk allover the mess and try to hide it. it will look like shit though.

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Reality is your friend, not your enemy. -- Seacrest

they sell some grout with latex ..so it can expand and contract without cracking...i would probably just caulk it as needed until you are going to sell the house and get a new base then.....

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It doesn't really need to look like it has grout. I'm more interested in keeping water out of the wall than anything.

This is what I did the last time. It works out ok because it's a good color match with the plastic and the tiles are light brown. I'll let the next owners care about the looks.

Sounds like I should get rid of as much of grout and current caulk as possible and then just re-caulk it until I move.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

From what I have heard, when a wall is transitioning to another wall, you always use caulk. When you are transitioning within the same plane, you can use grout. If you put grout in a place where there is a 90 degree angle, you are asking for troubles.

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