Mapei Flexcolor CQ Ready to use Grout (1 Gallon, Avalanche)

I really like this product.

I bought this when I was tired of trying to figure out the best grout for my shower and let a Daltile salesman sell me this product. It was supposed to be close to waterproof, but once you buy it you find out it is not. I have done many tile jobs in houses I have lived in, so grouting is hardly new to me. It is one of the easier parts of tiling and my wife and I can grout and clean tile quickly.After reading all the horrible reviews after I bought it (check all the Flexcolor CQ colors for more reviews), I thought about returning it. But I convinced myself some people never have good experiences and some never read instructions. I read and reread all the instructions and looked at lots of videos. I applied in small (3 sq. ft.) areas and wiped down excess immediately and kept at it. It was too no avail—the tile looks dull and the haze is thick. A white scrubbing pad (the mildly abrasive ones that disappear as you use them) with an abrasive tool and a microfiber cloth will get a lot of it off the next day. Not sure whether I have to get tile haze remover from Mapei for this (I promise myself never to buy Mapei products again). I only did about 15 sq. ft. so far. I will apply Grout Release today to the rest of the almost 200 sq,. ft. of tile I have. They recommend that for bumpy tile, but even with subway tile the haze is very bad.Applying the grout is very, very time consuming on a wall. It is highly sanded and does not adhere to itself well when wet, so pieces of it constantly fall off the float. It is important to add and tape visqueen or other covering to floors and any other surface you don't want grout on because removing it is very hard. It does not easily get it into spaces between tiles, though because it is sanded it works on wide and narrow spacing. The previous owner did this shower and did a bad job—including walls not square or plumb, so tile spacing was very difficult. That is one advantage of this grout—it works from 1/16 to 1/2". It claims to be color consistent and does not stain though it doesn't matter much on subway tile. It took me an hour to do the small amount with constant cleaning. Probably a very, very small amount on the float is all that works unless you are doing a floor. Having to constantly go to the bucket for small amount slows you down even more.This product has been on the market for quite a while. Some love it and some hate it. The reviews on the internet show both contractors and homeowners have the same reactions of love and hate. There is hardly any in between. Maybe after doing this for 5 or 10 jobs, you can master it, but for contractors that means expensive calls backs and for homeowners that means aggravation, extra work and maybe more money. A good product for a masochist, someone with a variety of tile spacing because of poor initial construction and maybe to avoid color issues. For the rest of us, almost anything else has to be better.