Sealing grout in a new home
 

Experience tells me that we need to seal the grout in the shower. TV warranty dept. tells me not to until after the one-year warranty period is exhausted: if the grout in the shower is sealed, it makes it harder to repair/replace due to discoloring of the grout.
Do any of you DIY-ers recommend sealing the grout in the shower immediately ?

As well, we have tile in other areas of the house. Do you DIY-ers recommend sealing that grout ?

As a big time DIYer, the discoloration would depend on the sealer that you use. There are 2 basis types, one dries the same color as WET grout, the other type dries the same color as DRY grout. Now speaking from experience, DO NOT USE the 511 brand "20 year" grout sealer. I bought this product (2013) and we spent several days sealing all of the grout before we moved in (brand new house). Fast forward 3 or 4 years and the kitchen grout is stained and cannot be cleaned. After lots of emails to this grout sealer company they stated 'heavy traffic areas need to be resealed every 2 years'!! this is NOT stated anywhere on the container.
I would not worry about "matching" the grout, if you need a repair, have the repair done, wait a couple of weeks, and then treat the SAME way you treated the original grout, the result should match.
Due to problems with the 511 product, I purchased Grout Shield, and spent 2 weeks 2-3 hours at a time and completely resealed all of the grout in the house (an expanded Gardenia). This product looks more like paint, and they match your original color so well that I actually missed areas which we found the next time the floor was moped, the 511 product had failed and the grout looked wet. I was able to touch up with a small brush.
Hope this helps and if you would like to discuss at length, send me a PM with your phone number and I will be glad to give you a call.

Thanks for the message. Not moved in yet. Will wait till we get there for further inquiry.
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I used the 511 product about a year ago, two coats, kitchen .bath, entry and hall ways so far my experience has been good, water beads on the grout, food spills clean up without staining, it smells pretty bad I wore a chemical respirator and tried to spend as much time out of the house as I could, windows open In my case it only slightly darkened the light grey grout, hardly noticeable

I think I deleted the emails, but they specifically stated in these that 'high traffic areas' aka kitchen need to be reapplied every 2 years. I am glad you are having a good experience mine was not.

I sealed my grout the day I closed. I have pets and if they soil the grout, I have a bigger problem.

I had the builder email me the grout type, mfg, and color. It was Mapei brand grout. If I ever need work done, all I will require is the use of the same materials. If they don't match, I won't hold the builder responsible. Once it cures, I'll reseal and it should blend and match.

I used a solvent based 511 product , do they make a water based 511? that I think could be the difference , solvent based being more difficult application process but better long term results, wear a chemical respirator . chem resistant gloves, terrible smell that takes day to dissipate, like you said "lasts up to 20 years" ya right LOL

Follow-up: After checking with some contracting companies, they agree that today's grout, at least the last 6-7 years, has more of a plastic base. Even the shower grout does not need to be sealed.
Any comments ?

All of the new homes use a polymer grout, and do not need to be sealed. You can easily test this yourself - put a drop of water on your grout, if it sinks in quickly, you should seal. If it beads up, you're fine. We had someone come in to clean our tile and were going to get it sealed. They showed us that it didn't need to be sealed, and explained why. They were more than willing to seal it anyway, or course! :)

Our home was built in 2017, and grout used was Mapei Ultracolor Plus. If you look it up, it is polymer, and designed to repel liquids.

Grout sealing
 

I have lived through many tile jobs and have never sealed them. There is no trick to it. Rinse, squeegee the wall and floor then Dry with the towel you just used to dry yourself. The floors looked great because everyone were taught to be respectful and careful of their environment and clean up anything they spilled immediately. Didn’t have any pets and all their problems so rugs looked great too.
Having a water softener eliminated the lime and ferrous iron issues. But that’s just us.

THANKS for reinforcing what I was told.

I was told the same thing 4-1/2 years ago. I have not had any of it sealed and all is good.

No need to seal grout in shower. New house? Do not seal floor grout for a year, in case you capture mold spores in grout. Personally, I have sealed grout on my kitchen backsplash but not floors or shower.