Whether stone goes up on walls or down as floors and worktops, it needs fixing and finishing, maintaining and sometimes cleaning. NSS looks at some of the latest developments for achieving the desired effect
Ebor, the suppliers of stone working machinery and CaesarStone engineered quartz, have teamed up with Akemi, the makers of polyester and epoxy resin fillers and adhesives, to be Akemi’s exclusive distributors in the UK and Ireland.
Akemi products are used worldwide by the stone processing industry. With a range of 3,000 products, Akemi offer a solution to practically any stone related problem during the manufacturing process and for renovation, repair and restoration.
There are stain repellents, sealers and a variety of colour enhancers, such as Colour Intensifier and Darkener Super for a deeper and especially vibrant look.
The aftercare collection, including Care Kits and Triple Effect, the user-friendly general purpose worktop spray that seals, polishes and cleans the stone in one application, should ensure stone products remain in excellent condition.
Latest launches include:
- Colour Spectrum Bonding System that uses 15 different colour tubes of adhesive to provide a perfect colour match to any engineered quartz.
- The Stain Repellent Nano Effect that is a fast acting sealer for natural and cast stones. It starts to work within six minutes and is fully cured after three hours. It is food safe and will not change the colour of the material sealed.
For more information contact Ebor on Tel: 01706 863600. Email: [email protected]
Ardex UK now have their Ardex-Flex FS flexible tile grouts and Ardex-Flex FL rapid setting flexible tile grouts available in 32 new colours ranging from Classic Vanilla to Spring Jasmine and Autumn Red.
Ardex-Flex FS is for use with narrow joints up to 4mm, whereas FL has been developed for use with wide tile joints of 3-15mm.
Both products perform perfectly with all types of tiles, including most natural stone. They are suitable for use in swimming pools, kitchens, bathrooms, wet rooms and commercial locations such as shopping centres.
Key features associated with the grouts include flexibility, ease of application and dirt resistance, as well as being suitable for use with underfloor heating.
Charlotte Colucci, Marketing Communica-tions Manager of Ardex UK, says: “We have worked hard over the past 18 months to bring a complete system of cutting-edge tiling products to the market, including our range of Microtec Tile Adhesives and WPC waterproof coating system that enables you to tile after just two hours of application of the second coat.
“Now, with this extension to the range of colours of our grouts we are able to supply a complete system that offers both choice and the peace of mind associated with Ardex.”
For further information and to request a copy of the new ARDEX Grout Colour Selector, please telephone 01440 714939, email [email protected]
Over the past three years LTP have seen their turnover increase 300%, mostly in the stone sector. And now with 450 stockists in the UK and Ireland they have become one of the major suppliers of sealing, cleaning and maintenance products to the stone and tile market.
LTP manufacture their products in the UK, which has given them an advantage as the pound has fallen against other currencies and increased the price of imports.
They now have a sales force of six and with the increased representation are becoming even more familiar to the natural stone market.
They offer 25 products covering all aspects of cleaning, sealing and maintaining stone (and man-made) surfaces.
The company say their best selling product for stone is Mattstone, an impregnating sealer that leaves the appearance of the stone completely natural-looking. This is closely followed by Colour Intensifier & Stainblock, a single application product that impregnates stone and delicately enhances the colour.
New products are always under development and last month LTP launched two new enhancing sealers: Stone Oil and Stone Oil Antique.
With their increased exposure in the UK stone market, LTP now work closely with architects and end users to advise, supply and produce technical specifications to suit individual projects.
In spite of their rapid expansion, LTP remain a small business offering good after sales service, says Director Mark Atkins. “This personal touch is very important to us and it’s something we are determined not to forget as we expand.”
For more details Tel: 01823 666213.
Delphis specialise in products that they say work better than most but are made from environmentally-friendly, biodegradable ingredients.
The range includes Masonry & Stone Cleaner that they describe as “a super strength stone cleaner and limescale remover (sic) that has been specially developed from natural, fruit-based materials and special compounds”.
The product deters mould and fungal deposits, reducing the rate at which soils re-deposit. Delphis say it can be applied by spray or hand brush without need for special protection on anything from facades to fragile monuments.
The environmental friendliness in sourcing the ingredients, making the products and of the products themselves have made Delphis the first cleaning product company to earn the EU Eco Label, known as the ‘Flower’, which is the Europe-wide symbol for products that satisfy stringent environmental controls.
They even got a mention in the March edition of Exchange, the Mayor of London’s green procurement code.
Customers are always looking for novel finishes on stone and just lately D Zambelis have noticed an increase in sales in Antiquo, one of the products in their range from ICR Sprint.
It is not a new product, says Stella Zambelis, but it seems to have found a new audience. She says it enhances the look of stone by giving it a patina rather than a gloss.
What is new to the Zambelis range is Diluente, a thinner for epoxy adhesives so that travertine can be filled but the cavities still show. It was introduced to Zambelis by one of their customers who had used it and found it particularly good.
A company started in May 2006 called Vulcan Products, in Gloucestershire, is now handling the sales of Guard Industry’s products to the stone and tile industry in the UK.
Guard Industry UK showed the products that were developed in the 1990s in France at last year’s Natural Stone Show at ExCeL London and out of that has grown the relationship between Guard and Vulcan.
Scott Cooper, Managing Partner at Vulcan, told NSS: “I met Ian Rowe from Guard Industry UK at the Natural Stone Show. He was looking for a small, young, growing business with a lot of enthusiasm to take on the stone and tile side.”
Vulcan were set up to supply laser levels. The tiling sector proved to be good customers, so in the summer of 2007 Scott decided to concentrate on that sector and started sourcing and supplying a growing range of products. What he particularly liked about the Guard was that it was backed by a 10-year guarantee from Axa insurance company. It also had an impressive list of projects to its name – Notre Dame cathedral in Paris, O’Connell Street in Dublin and a replica crofters cottage in the harsh environment of the west coast of Scotland.
Scott also liked the fact that he was able to pitch the basic Guard product at a price below the market leaders.
For more information Tel: 0845 070 0854. Email: [email protected]
Waters Group are enjoying considerable success with the Integra gun injected epoxy modified acrylic that they introduced at the Natural Stone Show at ExCeL London last year.
Waters keep 25 colours in stock to match the most popular granites and quartz colours – and Managing Director Nicola Waters says it is being used with a wide range of products but is especially popular with quartz. More colours are available on request.
It costs £10.95 a tube, which is normally enough for two kitchens. That represents a considerable premium on the Chinese polyester glue Waters also sell, but the Integra product is many times stronger.
Waters also supply a rodding adhesive from Integra for glass fibre and steel reinforcement rods on worktops and have just introduced packs of six mixed colours at about £8.50 a pack for use with the polyester glue.
Waters were early on to the market with a nano impregnator for worktops that alters the surface energy of a material so liquid sits on top of it rather than soaking in. It is Konig’s NanoInduro. However, Nicola says there is a reticence towards it. It goes a long way, but is expensive. “There are a lot of companies developing nano products but a lot of people still don’t believe in it.”
There has been no reluctance towards another of Konig’s product – the RepairLux kit for mending chips in any natural or engineered stone in both interiors and exteriors. Konig will be exhibiting at the Stone+tec show in Nuremberg 20-23 May.
www.watersgroupltd.co.uk
Two new silicone sealants due to be launched shortly by Otto – the Ottoseal S130 and S140 – will contain Fungitect Silver technology to prevent fungal growth. Like the other Otto silicone sealants, the company say they will not leach oils into stone and will, therefore, be genuinely non-staining.
Unlike conventional fungicides, Fungitect in S130 and S140 cannot be washed out of the sealant and can therefore develop its effect over a sustained period.
That means it works in moisture-prone areas such as public showering and bathing areas, in swimming pools, sports facilities, fitness studios, hospitals, spas and hotel bathrooms, protecting the joints from mould development and lengthening maintenance intervals, with benefits to running costs.
Ottoseal S130, which Otto say is safe and environmentally friendly, is available in 10 standard colours. It is for stone and ceramic tiles in wet areas, while S140 has been developed primarily for swimming pool and other underwater joints, although it is also ideal for floor joints, they say. It is available in seven standard colours.
Otto products are sold in the UK by By Design, who are also now selling a new version of K-Grip, called 7A. It is an applied hard wearing non-slip product available in practically any colour required, used both to highlight and provide slip resistance to areas such as step edges.
By Design are selling it applied to studs that can be glued into paving to provide particularly safe tactile areas. Some 12,000 of them have been used in a shopping precinct in Leeds and there are plans to use them in Islington, London.
For more information contact By Design. Tel: 01708 377010.
Some stone naturally has weak points within it, but it can be fixed with a strong yet flexible adhesive, say Mapei, whose answer to the problem is their Elastorapid.
It is classified C2FTE – C for cementitious, 2 for improved, F for fast-setting, T for non-slip and E for extended open time. It is also classified S2 – highly deformable.
Elastorapid is suitable for use with both light and dark coloured stone, conglomerate marble and resin bonded tiles. Its flexible properties make it ideal for use on a wide range of substrates including those as deformable as plywood and floors on old beams.
Alternatively they have Keraquick (S1-C2FT) with its super fast setting polymer modified flexibility.
Mapei Ultracolor Plus is suitable for grouting stone. The flexible, fast-setting and drying grout resists mould, is water-repellent and is available in 26 colours.
The success of any installation hinges on the attention to detail and Mapei UK not only offer an extensive range of products, they also have a technical services department available to answer questions and a specification service to help architects, designers and contractors.
For more information Tel: 0121 508 6970. Email: [email protected]
AlthoughStonehealth are best known for their Torc (formerly Jos) and Doff nebulous spray and steam cleaning systems, they also supply a range of specialist chemical stone cleaning products.
They offer everything for tackling the wide variety of tasks that can commonly be encountered when restoring and protecting stone surfaces, from cleaning and stain removal through to paint softeners that break down paint coatings without drawing the residue back into the substrate, which can happen.
On many restoration projects, the initial general surface cleaning exposes staining that requires gentle yet effective removal – staining that is frequently within the substrate of the stone, such as that caused by iron or copper.
The project from which the pictures (left) are taken had such staining. It was a church building that was displaying extensive iron staining on the stone cills due to rusting of old, highly corroded window security protection.
The staining from the iron grills had migrated deeply into the surface of the stone, making it difficult to remove.
Stonehealth, who are always happy to advise on stone cleaning, had the solution – FeRid. A poultice of FeRid was applied and left for a dwell period to allow it time to work on the staining before being removed. The results are clearly visible in the before and after pictures shown here.
If you have a stone cleaning problem, call Stonehealth on Tel: 01453 540600
With the laws on chemicals tightening up in Europe all the time, many of the traditionally solvent-based products for treating stone are now available in water-based versions.
Combined Masonry Supplies have successfully sold Ilpa Drai products for many years and now Managing Director Richard Chandler feels confident about supplying the water-based versions to the public as care kits, something he flinched away from with the solvent-based products.
He still has reservations about aerosol products that have entered the market in the past couple of years, in spite of their convenience and ease of use, because he wonders what people will be breathing in.
For details of the full range of treatments offered by Combined Masonry Supplies Tel: 01274 730100.
Stone fixing with thick bed adhesives
By Amanda Searle, Head of Technical Services,Norcros Adhesives
Amanda will be discussing more issues relating to fixing stone in future issues of Natural Stone Specialist
There has been a large increase in the use of natural stone products as a decorative finish over the past five years. The nature of these products, together with the complexity and range of backgrounds in modern construction has in turn put greater demands on the adhesives and grouts used to fix them. In this article I will start by addressing the issues relating to floors.
British Standard BS 5385: Part 5, the code of practice for the design and installation of terrazzo tile and slab, natural stone and composition block floorings, states that although thin bed adhesives are suitable for some stone flooring, in heavy duty locations or with terrazzo tiles and slabs, a thick bed adhesive is required.
Norcros Adhesives have developed Norcros Rapid Porcelain Tile & Stone and One Part Flexible Adhesives, which are suitable for bed thicknesses of 3mm to 6mm, and Norcros Thick Bed Stone & Porcelain Adhesive, suitable for bed thickness of up to 25mm.
These adhesives are available in grey and white, making them ideal for fixing all types of stone including slate, limestone, marble and terrazzo. The correct adhesive choice would also be determined by the dimensions of the stone together with the type of substrate it is intended to fix to.
It is important to consider the intended use of the finished installation. For instance, in showers and wet rooms tiled systems cannot be guaranteed to prevent the passage of liquids from above, even when impervious grouts are used.
On suspended floors, water passing downwards may cause damage to walls and ceilings below, in the worst cases lead to flooding.
In accordance with the recommendations contained within BS 5385: Part 5, it may be necessary to apply a waterproof tanking membrane such as Norcros Wet Seal prior to commencement of tiling, which will prevent the passage of liquid.
Timber floors present their own challenges. it is essential to provide a rigid base that will carry the additional dead load without excessive deflection.
Anti fracture membranes such as the newly launched 1.8mm thick Norcros Permalayer (pictured right), provide an easy to install replacement for thick plywood overlays to strengthen floors.
Technical Line: 0870 609 2851.
Email: [email protected]
Microban tiled surfaces for safer homes
by David Wilson, Head of Technical Services, Building Adhesives Ltd (BAL)
In wet, humid environments such as bathrooms and kitchens, microbes can double in quantity every 20 minutes. Such bacteria build-up can cause mould, staining, odours and potential health hazards. Now, anti-bacterial technology used in the health sector for some years is available in grouts from BAL.
Microban is built into a product during manufacturing, becoming an intrinsic part of it, both inside and at the surface. When microbes come in contact with the product surface, Microban protection penetrates the cell wall of the microbe and disrupts key cell functions, so that the microbe cannot function, grow or reproduce.
This lasting protection is built into the BAL Microcolour grout range, manufactured by the UK’s leading supplier of professional tiling adhesives and grouts.
You can now walk into many good tiling stockists and pick it up from the shelf, choosing from a range of 14 vibrant colours.
While specific testing of BAL Microcolour grouts has shown sustained effectiveness against 99% of all known bacteria, it offers further advantages over standard grouts. It sets rapidly in just five hours, is efflorescence-free, water repellent and gives above-average bonding with a clean, smooth finish. It is particularly suitable for wet rooms and power showers.
The full BAL antibacterial range includes standard and wide joint grouts, flexible grouts, grout restorer, silicone sealants and tile cleaner. These all contain Microban technology which, because it is built-in, does not wash off or wear away, providing continuous antibacterial protection for the life of the product.
Anyone installing or replacing tiling should consider taking steps to limit the spread of bacteria. Used in conjunction with regular household cleaning, Microban offers the ultimate in protection.
Further information on anti-bacterial tiling products is available from BAL on the technical support and helpline: 0845 600 1222.
The impact of stone on tile fixing
by Gary Hardy, Technical Sales Manager, Bostik
Natural stone is a popular choice of material for tiling, particularly for its aesthetics, although its hardwearing properties are sought, too.
Its aesthetic appeal lies much in its randomness and individuality with no two tiles exactly alike and with a seemingly endless variety of styles, shapes and sizes available it is easy to achieve a contemporary, rustic or classic look.
Where once real choice was the preserve of the specialist tiling outlets, the popularity of the sheds and the wider ranges they now carry – and of course at competitive prices – has made natural stone a much more accessible product.
Although natural stone is available in various sizes starting with small mosaic, the large and very large format slabs, some measuring well over a metre square, are now appearing and finding application from domestic through to commercial.
Fixing natural stone tiles is relatively straight forward but you do have to appreciate that as a natural product it can vary in porosity and may well expand at different rates too – all this has to be considered with adhesive and grout choice.
The popularity and DIY-availability of undertile and underfloor heating systems has had to be considered in our product development as well as rapid-setting products for those projects where time is restricted.
Specifically with undertile heating in mind we have recently introduced Biscem Stone-Flex, a single part flexible adhesive that can accommodate the expansion /contraction cycle without cracking.
Recognising that speed is an important factor we developed a fast-setting product – Bis-Porcelain Rapidset, which, despite its name, is ideal for natural stone and will cure in just 2-3 hours.
Large and very large format tiles even have their very own adhesive – Technik LFT. The nature and size of these products demanded an adhesive that provided very high initial grab and excellent non-slip properties to bond these enormous, heavy and sometimes uneven tiles.
Additionally, LTF had to be suitable for use across a wide range of substrates – concrete, screeds, brick walls, plywood – as they are now being used in more diverse locations.
With natural stone the grout itself is often an important feature being used to accentuate and define the tile and we have introduced a variety of colours across many of our products.
We have also had to develop grouts for not only the more common standard joints but for the wide and very wide joints that are being used as a design feature.
Bostik Ltd, Common Road, Stafford ST16 3EH.
Tel: 01785 272727. Em,ail: [email protected]