An off-white, ready mixed acrylic polymer based, thin-bed, water-resistant ceramic wall tile adhesive. Conforms to EN 12004:2007 Type D, Class 2.

Uses

AQUA-TILE is suitable for fixing all types of ceramic wall tiles, including mosaics and vitrified tiles. Ideal for internal locations such as bathrooms, kitchens and shower areas. AQUA-TILE can be applied to gypsum plaster, cement fibreboard, existing tiles, cement render, concrete block work, timber panels and plywood composite boards. AQUA-TILE has excellent grip properties, reducing or eliminating the need for battens or spacers.

Preparation

The substrate must be clean, structurally sound and free from dust, oil, grease and loose flaking coatings. The surface must also be sufficiently flat not to require an adhesive thickness of more than 3mm. Rough or uneven surfaces should be levelled with a suitable filler or plaster and allowed to dry prior to a 2-3mm application of AQUA-TILE. Porous surfaces should always be primed prior to application. PVA is not recommended. Products such as Bond It PRIMER & FLEXIBLE ADMIXTURE should be used.

Plaster: plaster must be dry and have enough time to develop adequate strength to support the weight of the tiles (at least 4 weeks). Tiles must only be fixed to a finish coat. Old or decaying plaster must be replaced and dusty or friable plaster must be coated with a bonding agent prior to application. Gypsum finishing plaster should be at least 4-6 weeks old, thoroughly dry and wiped clean of dust, efflorescence and loose flaking material. Porous masonry surfaces must be primed with Bond It PRIMER & FLEXI ADMIX. The maximum weight of tiles and adhesive on to plaster is 20Kg per m2 .

Cement Render: must be sound and dry and at least 2 weeks old before application.

Sheets and boards: All wood based surfaces should be dry, sealed on all exposed faces and edges and primed using a suitable primer. Timber boarding should be waterproof rated, 15mm thick and be screw fixed at 150mm centres to provide a stable background. All boards must be level, showing no edge protrusions and be fixed in place with a 0.5 to 1mm gap to avoid expansion stresses between the boards and around the wall perimeters.

Painted Surfaces: check the adhesion of the paint to the substrate, if loose the coating should be removed. Sound hard gloss paints are usually satisfactory but the surface should be scored to provide a key and reduce drying times. Emulsion paints, limewash or similar coatings must be removed.

Application

AQUA-TILE should be applied using a notched trowel (5mm x 5mm @ 10-25mm centres) to give a ribbed bed on the wall surface, into which the the tiles are firmly bedded with a twist and slide action to ensure full contact. Remove a tile occasionally to check on the standard of bedding being achieved. When fixing studded tiles use a trowel with larger and/or more closely spaced notches or butter the tiles with adhesive before placing them on the combed bed. The position of the tiles can be adjusted up to 10 minutes after initial fixing. Do not trowel out an area of adhesive greater than can be tiled over within a 15 minute period (about 1m2 ). The final adhesive bed depth should be in the range of 2- 3mm and grout joints should be at least 2mm, unless self-spacing tiles are used. Wipe any residue from tile face with a moist cloth and rake out excess adhesive from within the grout joints.

The spotting or blobbing method should not be employed to fix tiles. For tiles larger than 250 x 300mm, a cement based powder tile adhesive, such as Bond It CTA, should be used instead.

Drying Time

Final set will occur after 24-72 hours. However, drying times will be extended on impervious surfaces. AQUA-TILE should not be applied onto walls affected by penetrating damp, or when room temperature is below 5o C.

Open Time

Open time of the exposed adhesive bed is approx. 15 minutes, dependant on conditions. Do not apply more adhesive than will be used during this period.

Grouting

Grouting may proceed as soon as the tile bed is sufficiently firm, which depending on conditions can be from 24 hours after fixing on porous surfaces, such as plaster, or up to 3 days where tiles have been fixed to an impermeable surface such as existing tiles or waterproof boards.

Coverage

Depends on surface porosity and profile of tile back, however on a typical smooth plastered wall AQUATILE will cover at a rate of 2-3Kg per m2