RESILIENT FLOORING VINYL SELECTION
Neil Sanders, technical director at F. Ball and Co. Ltd, provides a straightforward guide to choosing the optimum vinyl adhesive.
Contractors installing vinyl floorcoverings face a potentially confusing array of adhesives to choose from. These include adhesives with special features such as temperature tolerance, pressure sensitive characteristics and water resistance.
Standard, wet-lay adhesives are available for installing practically any type of vinyl sheet or tile floorcovering. The contractor simply applies the adhesive evenly over the subfloor using a trowel and allows it to dry slightly before placing the floorcoverings and finally rolling to ensure good overall contact.
There are also situations where it may be desirable, or even highly recommended, to use an adhesive with specialist properties. Adhesive selection should be based on the specifics of a flooring installation, and it is always advisable that contractors check the compatibility of adhesives and particular floorcoverings.
VINYL TILES OR PLANKS While wet-lay adhesives are fine where an immediate bond is not required, pressure sensitive adhesives are often the best choice for installing vinyl tiles or planks. They form an instant grab upon contact, so contractors don’t need to worry about tiles or planks moving about when they are working, making them ideal for where intricate designs or patterns are being created.
Nowadays, pressure sensitive adhesives are available with a range of additional features, including temperature tolerance, for use where vinyl floorcoverings will be exposed to temperature fluctuations, such as conservatories and areas where floor- to-ceiling windows result in solar gain. Over time, extreme temperature fluctuations will cause vinyl floorcoverings to expand and contract, which can lead to tenting and gapping at the edges of floorcoverings if a suitable adhesive isn’t used.
F. Ball’s Styccobond F49 Hybrid PS is an example of a new breed of high-performance, hybrid adhesive, with revolutionary combinations of properties, including temperature tolerance, moisture resistance and pressure sensitive characteristics. The water-based adhesive has the familiar characteristics of a pressure sensitive adhesive and develops the extremely high bond strength required to hold vinyl floorcoverings firmly in place in areas exposed to extreme temperature fluctuations (from -20C to +60C). The properties of this adhesive also make it moisture resistant, meaning it is suitable for installing vinyl floorcoverings in damp and humid environments.
MOISTURE TOLERANCE When installing flooring in an area subject to high levels of humidity or surface water, an adhesive with water resistant properties is essential. An adhesive that isn’t water resistant may break down and soften when it comes into contact with water, potentially causing floorcoverings to bubble or debond.
Epoxy or polyurethane-based adhesives used to be the only option for such installations. These adhesives are highly effective at making areas impermeable to water, so they are also suitable
20
for installing vinyl floorcoverings outdoors or in entranceways where surface water may collect.
The latest advancements in adhesives technology have enabled F. Ball to create a one-part, moisture-curing alternative for internal and external heavy-duty applications, which is also solvent and isocyanate free, and easier to apply and faster curing than traditional alternatives. Unlike reactive adhesives, it offers high initial grab – fibres in the adhesive limit lateral movement of floorcoverings while contractors are working.
FAST-TRACK SOLUTIONS Options are also available where contractors face considerable time pressures and a moisture resistant or temperature tolerant adhesive is not required. F. Ball has recently launched a fast- track, pressure sensitive adhesive for LVT, Styccobond F58 PLUS. Developed as a ‘transitional’ adhesive, Styccobond F58 PLUS transitions from a wet-lay adhesive when initially applied to a subfloor to become fully pressure sensitive.
The fast-drying formulation of Styccobond F58 PLUS enables LVT tiles and planks to be secured from just five minutes, while fibres in the adhesive provide resistance to lateral movement, preventing vinyl tiles and planks from moving around when working.
Available in 15L and 5L units, and with coverage rates of up to 6m2
https://f-ball.com per litre, the adhesive also offers over 20% more
coverage than similarly packaged products sold by the same number in kilograms.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44
