The nuances of choosing tile adhesive for a warm floor

Despite the fact that ten years ago, heated floors were a curiosity, today they are used everywhere: in the kitchen, in the hallway and living room, in the bathroom and toilet. This type of heating is convenient and efficient, in addition, the heating elements of the system are hidden under the screed and do not violate the overall design of the room. Ceramic or granite tiles, which are glued to tile adhesive for underfloor heating, are usually chosen as the finishing finish. It is more flexible than traditional adhesives, and does not lose its properties with a constant temperature difference.

Adhesive Features

In the process of operating a warm floor, all materials included in the multilayer construction either heat up or cool down. The same thing happens with the adhesive composition: when heated, it begins to increase in volume and forcefully press on the tile, and when cooled, it contracts, forming free cavities between the screed and the finish coating. As a result, the tiles crack and lag behind the lined surface, poorly retains heat due to voids.

As you know, there are three types of heating systems for underfloor heating:

1. water - pipes of small diameter with water heated to the required temperature pass under the screed;
2. electric - floor heating occurs with the help of electric mats;
3. infrared - the action of the system is based on infrared radiation.

Whatever the heating system, the adhesive composition for the underfloor heating must have special properties:

• resistance to temperature differences in the range from -30 ° С to + 150 ° С;
• the elasticity of the composition, allowing you to evenly distribute the adhesive on the surface;
• durability of connection of a tile with a rough floor surface;
• the ability to pass heat well from the heating elements to the finishing material.

All consumer qualities of the adhesive used to finish the floor with ceramic, granite or marble tiles, provide specific polymer modifiers that are part of the binder.

Varieties of glue for tiles

Tile adhesive for underfloor heating is one-component and is made of polymer or cement, and two-component, which contains at least two substances.

• Cement

The basis of this adhesive composition is aluminate (alumina) cement of the highest quality, which provides strong adhesion of the tile to the surface to be treated. Additional components are fine river sand and polymer modifiers, which are introduced into the adhesive to increase the flexibility and elasticity of the binder layer. Cement glue is considered universal, as it can be used to connect a wide variety of materials with concrete floor screed. It is a dry mixture, which is diluted immediately before work, following the instructions.

• Polymeric

The one-component composition has high elasticity and is used for laying ceramic tiles. The adhesive consists of polyurethane and epoxy or acrylic resins, sold in the form of a paste, ready to use. The working time of the polymer glue is 20 minutes, that is, the master has the opportunity to adjust the position of the glued material before the composition completely hardens.

• Two-component

The two-component adhesive contains polyurethane, epoxy resin and hardener.Before starting work, the components of the adhesive must be mixed, and it must be remembered that the composition hardens very quickly.

Tip

Two-component glue should be prepared in small portions in order to consume the prepared volume in a few minutes.

This glue has stable adhesion, dries quickly and is not afraid of temperature changes, therefore it is considered the best adhesive for finishing underfloor heating.

Any of the considered adhesive compositions can be used to finish the floor, under the screed of which there are heating elements. The binder can be applied directly to pipes or electric panels when finishing a floor with water or electric heating.

Important!

If a film with infrared radiation is used for heating, you must first protect the system with sheets of chipboard and only then glue the tile.

When choosing an adhesive for porcelain stoneware on a heated floor, it is necessary to carefully study the markings and recommendations of the manufacturer and make sure that the composition is completely suitable for work.

Marking

Each manufacturer tests the adhesive composition manufactured by him and on the package notes how many cycles of temperature fluctuations a binder can withstand without destroying the structure and losing properties.

On the label, the manufacturer notes that the glue is designed specifically for finishing underfloor heating. This is evidenced by the pictogram with the image of a zigzag with vertical arrows or with the values ​​of limiting temperatures.

When choosing tile adhesive for a warm floor, you need to pay attention to what coating the product is intended for: particleboard, drywall or exclusively for hard concrete surfaces. In addition, the packaging indicates which type of tile is suitable for the adhesive.

Application of glue for different materials

The choice of adhesive composition directly depends on the material from which the finish coating is made. When working with tiles, there are almost no problems with this issue, but for marble or porcelain tile you have to choose a special tool.

• Ceramic tile. Any adhesive is suitable for this type of finishing material if it is resistant to loads, temperature extremes and is not afraid of moisture. Cement compounds are considered the best option for tile adhesives.
• Porcelain tile. An excellent finishing material, often used for the installation of underfloor heating in the bathroom and hallway. It retains heat for a long time, has many textures and colors. Porcelain tiles have a large weight and do not absorb moisture at all, so the adhesive must provide high holding strength.
• Marble. The tile adhesive for the underfloor heating used for marble should be the same color as the stone. This is due to the porous structure of marble. Prolonged contact of the adhesive with the finishing material will result in a discoloration. For laying natural stone, it is better to choose two-component compositions.

Which glue is better - manufacturers review

Today on the market of building materials various adhesive compositions of foreign and Russian manufacturers are presented. In order not to get confused in this variety and choose a really suitable glue, purity.bigbadmole.com/en/ recommends that you familiarize yourself with the most popular brands.

• Henkel

The German chemical company Henkel produces adhesives known to the buyer under the name Ceresit. Mixtures marked as CM 14 Extra, CM 117, CM 115 are suitable for laying tiles on hard concrete surfaces. CM 16 and SM 17 can also be used when working with drywall and particleboard. Especially for gluing marble or limestone tiles, the manufacturer developed an elastic Ceresit CM 115.

• Knauf

Knauf, another world-famous German manufacturer of building mixes, produces universal tile adhesive called Knauf Flex. The composition can be used on any surface, both for interior and exterior decoration.If it is necessary to lay the tile on a warm floor with a water heating system, you should choose Knauf adhesive.

• Litokol

The Italian company Litokol produces several varieties of adhesive flooring adhesives, including Litoflex K80 and K81. These two compounds are absolutely identical in properties and differ from each other only in color: K81 is white, K80 is gray.

• Eunice Plus

Tile glue from the Russian manufacturer is suitable for finishing a warm floor with any kind of tile. The advantage of this composition is the combination of high resistance to temperature extremes and the strength of the resulting compound with a budget cost. However, the Eunice Plus adhesive is applicable only to hard concrete or gypsum surfaces, which is the disadvantage of this composition.

• Ilmax

Building mixtures from the Belarusian company Ilmax are represented by the brands Unifix 3100, Superfix 3130 and Whitefix 3140. Each of these adhesives can be used to finish ceramic floors with ceramic or marble tiles, both indoors and outdoors.

This is just a small list of manufacturers producing tile adhesive for underfloor heating. When choosing a suitable product, it is necessary to take into account the type of base and the characteristics of the material of which the tiles are made. From the markings on the packaging you can find out about the properties and characteristics of the building mixture.