How to Repair Broken Tile If You Don’t Have an Extra
If you’ve ever struggled to tile on a wall and then stepped back and realized your grout lines follow the curvature of the Earth, you know exactly how difficult tiling can be . And that struggle extends to tile repairs as well. What happens if you failed to save a few tiles that are no longer produced and now you have a cracked tile? You have several options if you cannot simply replace the damaged part .
tile stickers
The easiest thing to do if you don’t have spare tiles is to simply cover up the damage. Tile decals (also known as tile decals) are exactly what they sound like: decorative decals that stick directly on top of existing tiles. While they probably won’t work too well in areas that have constant direct contact with water (such as shower walls or floors), they can easily hide cracks and holes in areas that are just wet, and using a bond will make your tile the hiding looks like a deliberate design.
Tile filler or grout
If your tile damage is quite deep and/or wide, you can fill it with clear epoxy and then paint over (see below). This will create a strong and durable repair, although the invisibility of your work will depend entirely on your ability to match the paint to the tile (and your painting skills).
Alternatively, grout can be a great way to repair damaged tiles in a pinch. This will be especially good if your tile has veins or a pattern, because the grout may not match the color and sheen of your tile. But it will effectively fill moderately deep damage, and you can probably find grout of the same color.
Dye
Yes, tiles can be painted . While this is usually done to freshen up the look of an old tile without having to remove or replace it, if you have minor damage to the tile, you can top it off with an appropriate color paint. This will be especially effective for thin cracks or tiny holes; the more significant the damage, the more obvious the repair will be painted over. The trick here obviously lies in color matching – even a little miscalculation and your renovation will stand out, unless you decide to just paint your entire tile.
The best tile paints according to Family Handyman :
- For high humidity areas: Benjamin Moore Aura Bath and Spa Paint
- For DIYers: Majic Paints Diamond Hard RePurpose Tile Paint
- For durability: Rust-Oleum latex tile paint.
- To imitate granite: Giani White Diamond countertop paint
- For small scratches and dents: Soto Touch-Up Tile Paint
- For ceramic tiles: Rust-Oleum Tub and Tile Aerosol Paint
Create design
Finally, if you think none of these cosmetic approaches are going to help and you need to remove and replace the tile, you have one last option. You can remove more than just broken tiles and create a new pattern from tiles of the same size in different colors or patterned tiles. You don’t need to overdo it here; Swapping out a few tiles in a thoughtful pattern will help both replace damage and make a mismatched tile look purposeful.