INSTALLATION
Before you install Tips:
General care – stone & tiles As long as you are confident you have selected the right type of product for the space and your lifestyle, caring for your floors and walls doesn’t have to be a chore. Here are a few essential steps. Firstly, keep floors as free as possible of loose dust and grit with regular vacuuming or sweeping. This will greatly reduce the ‘sandpaper’ effect that can occur on the surface and will reduce dirt getting compacted into the surface and joints. We recommend washing the floor with a damp mop – firstly, to remove the dirt that a vacuum won’t pick up, and secondly for hygiene. Avoid using too much water as this tends to spread the dirt from one are to another, whereas a well rung or fibre mop will lift it up. We strongly recommend that you use specialist cleaning products. The harsh, acidic household products can ‘bruise’ your stone and break down protective sealants or attack some coloured glazes on tiles. Ideally, use a product that is PH neutral, bio- degradable, and environmentally friendly. We recommend our All-Clean product. This can be diluted in water for a traditional mopping method or in a ready to use solution for use with microfibre mopping systems for floors and the same product with a mist spray and microfibre cloth for walls. Avoid using steam cleaners on natural stone – they may clean some surfaces, but the hot steam can remove the sealer and damage the surface over time. Maintenance – natural stone Using the correct specialist cleaning product will greatly reduce the frequency of more intensive cleans and reseals. General wear of the surface from foot traffic over time exposes capillaries, or tiny cracks and these can accumulate dirt and grime. Therefore, we recommend a more intensive clean every 3–4 years, with a heavy-duty product that will dissolve ingrained dirt and grease, such as our Deep Clean. A common misconception is that every natural stone surface need resealing every few years, but this will depend on the particular stone and its use. You can normally tell if a stone needs resealing by wetting the stone and leaving for around five minutes before wiping off. If the water leaves a mark by darkening the stone this will mean the stone is becoming more porous and would benefit from a top-up. You should first give it an intensive clean with a product such as Deep Clean, this will help to allow the sealer to penetrate.
The two most common methods are: Option 1: If the external works are a continuation of the internal tiling – lay a structural concrete screed, to the appropriate current standards, with the required sub-base. Ensure that adequate falls, cross falls and intersections are accurately created in the screed to fine tolerances, for good levels of drainage. The tiles can then be installed using a flexible thick-bed floor tile adhesive (suitable for external use) following the same tiling standards as internal flooring. A 10mm notched trowel will provide a 5mm finished adhesive-bed thickness. Leave 6mm wide expansion joints in accordance with current BSEN requirements and at changes of plane. You should fill these joints with exterior grade mastic, matched to the grout/joint colouration. Option 2: If you are laying external works as ‘slab paving’ rather than tiling – the appropriate sub-base should be laid and well compacted. For good stability this is usually an even 10cm-thick, compacted layer of type 1 granular aggregate (40mm to dust). For most domestic applications a sub-base of 10cm should be sufficient. However, the paving design must be based on ground conditions as well as type and frequency of anticipated loads. As previously described, falls, cross-falls and intersections must be carefully formed. You should incorporate a minimum fall of 1.25% (1 in 80) and crossfall of 2.5% (1 in 40) in the sub-layer construction to provide adequate surface-water run-off. Use a ratio between 4:1 and 6:1 of sharp sand, cement and plasticiser (to BSEN requirements). Prepare a base of mortar beneath the slabs – normally around 30-50mm thick.
If the stone has had a surface coating applied, it is most likely that this is all that will need to be reapplied, not the original impregnating sealer, unless the stone has become extremely porous. For stones with a natural finish, apply a coat of impregnating sealer such as our Stain Block and wipe off the excess after around 20 minutes and repeat if required. Do not allow any of the product to dry on the surface. Please note that it is perfectly normal for natural stone to mature with use and time and for its appearance to evolve as part of its intrinsic beauty. EXTERIOR SPACES Please note these are very general guidelines and not definitive instructions. The issuer of these guidelines cannot be held responsible for installation. It is always recommended that a qualified and professional tiler should take responsibility for the installation of all stone and tile products. We recommend that your installer has adequate understanding of how to install our artisanal materials to ensure the best results. These are brief guidelines for working with natural stones and man-made paving. This general guidance does not imply any guarantee by Ca’ Pietra. We always recommend that a qualified and professional installer should take responsibility for the specification and installation of all stone and tile products. Current and appropriate industry standards and codes of practice should be observed in all instances. However, if you do decide to install the stone or tiles yourself, we strongly recommend that you do plenty of research into materials and methods, and seek the best advice on how to carry out the installation. On receipt of your order When you receive your order, check that you have all of your tiles and that they are in good condition as any discrepancies cannot be resolved after installation. When you take delivery of your order Check that you have all your slabs and that they’re in good condition. Remember, with natural or handcrafted products there will always be some variations in colour tone, veining, surface texture and natural characteristics. Tip: Keep the tiles on a level, stable surface, stored vertically to avoid any risk of cracking.
• Wipe both sides of the tile clean with a sponge and clean water before installation to remove dust. This will ensure good adhesion. • Don’t install slabs in freezing or cold conditions. • Give yourself a dry run by laying your slabs or tiles as they will eventually be laid. This enables you to check you have the correct number and size of slabs and colour blending. • When installing a flagstone, it is important to ensure it is laid the right way up (one way to identify the top, is to look at the sides of the slab – which usually taper inwards, so that the top is slightly wider than the underside). If in doubt it’s always best to ask a stone expert. • With natural stones, randomly select and mix tiles from the different boxes or crates you receive to ensure a tonal blend across the entirety of the new surface and avoid any colour banding. General preparation The golden rule is: tiles must always be ‘solid bedded’ – in other words, avoid any cavities underneath the material. The bed should support the full slab, not just the corners or in dots/dabs. Do not ‘spot’ bed as this can cause ‘through bed staining’ and will weaken the integrity of the paving. (Please note that precise standards, falls, bed thicknesses and other specifications may vary dependent on the actual application. You should always refer to appropriate and current standards and codes of practice.) Cutting tiles Tiles can be cut using a diamond tipped blade – ideally a water-cooled machine for the cleanest cutting. There are different blades for natural stone and for porcelain so it’s important to have the correct one. Levelling your tiles Thin tiles (up to 1cm) should be levelled using hand pressure only. A rubber mallet hammer can be used for thicker, more robust slabs. Substrate preparation and installing the tiles There are several different methods of installation for external paving.
CA’ PIETRA
330
331
INSTALLATION
Made with FlippingBook Online newsletter maker