Frequently asked questions for Tile adhesive and Levelling compounds

Do i need to use a notched trowel when installing tile adhesive?

Nearly all flooring adhesives are installed using a notched trowel. The size of the notching is important because it limits the amount of adhesive applied.Have your notch too large and you will spread too much adhesive. This can cause excessive indentations to show through sheet goods and trowel mark show-through or bleeding at tile joints. Always check the adhesive label for the recommended amount of notching.

 What do you mean by working time?

Working time is the amount of time recommended for the adhesive to set before it is covered with the flooring. Working time is affected by temperature, humidity and porosity of the subfloor. Placing tile into the adhesive too soon may cause the tile to move and adhesive to ooze up between the tile joints. Placing flooring into the adhesive after the working time has passed will result in a failed installation as the flooring will not bond.
 
What does "dry to the touch" mean?

Dry to the touch means when you place your fingertips lightly on the adhesive ridges, no adhesive transfers to them.

I applied a levelling compound 24 hours ago, why isn't it dry yet?

There can be a number of reasons as to why this can happen. 90% of the time it relates to site conditions, such as room and product tempereture, lack of air flow, dew point etc. These conditions will have an effect on ALL types of levelling compounds overall.

When using levelling compounds and flexible tile adhesive, do you have to prime the substrate?

It is imperative that you prime the substrate prior to the leveller's application.
We strongly recommend that you prime wood, non-prous and highly porous surfaces.

Why do i need to use flexible tile adhesive and flexible self levelling compound (latex) when i am fitting tiles over underfloor heating?

Due to the nature of underfloor heating, the tile adhesive and or levelling compound around the underfloorheating cables will be continually expanding and contracting. Over time this would cause a standard adhesive or leveller to crack and the tiles would crack.

How much adhesive or leveller do i need?

see this page for full details about how to work out your requirements