What do we prefer: Cement Vs. Tile Adhesives?
Cement is a popular binding material that sets, solidifies, and adheres to various other construction materials to bond them together. On the other hand, tile adhesives are ready-to-use substances that are simply mixed with water, and they are ready for laying tiles.
Cement is a highly porous material that more than 90 per cent of its pores are interconnected. So, when you use ordinary cement slurry made with a mixture of water and sand, it creates an uneven surface and leaves voids beneath the tiles upon drying and shrinking. This causes inefficient bonding which translates into cracks over a short span and ruins the aesthetic appeal due to the de-bonding and cracking of tiles.
Besides, making a cement slurry consumes a lot of time and materials like sand and water, and creates a messy floor at the place of construction. This is not the case when you use tile adhesive. It forms a fine paste that distributes evenly across the tile to provide a consistent & even bonding and a sturdy foundation throughout the entire surface.
Furthermore, tile adhesive does not require water curing, allowing tiles to set faster. So, working with cement is time-consuming, inefficient, and inconvenient as compared to tile adhesives.
Rohith Industries offers all the range of the products recommended as per BIS IS 15477: 2019 as listed below. Adhesives have been classified into five types namely, Type 1, Type 2, Type 3, Type 4 and Type 5 as per BIS 15477: 2019, a standard specification for “Adhesives for use with ceramic, mosaic and stone tiles -Specification’ from ‘Adhesives for use with ceramic tiles and mosaics”.
This standard prescribes the requirements for adhesives used for fixing tiles of different porosity and classifies the tile adhesive into different types suitable for their proposed application. This standard covers adhesives for installation of ceramic (vitrified and non-vitrified), porcelain, clay, glass, glass mosaic, metal, natural stone and engineered stone tiles.
The suitability of a tile adhesive largely depends on the following factors of tiles to be fixed:
(a) The porosity/density;
(b) Size of tile;
(c) The nature, surface and location of the substrate; and
(d) The area of application, interior or exterior submerged conditions or wet areas.
As per the BIS recommendations, all the interior and exterior wall installations of stone tiles above 3 m height shall be clamped for safety, where the background is not robust enough to support the load of stone tile installation.
Understand the Terminologies for Tile adhesives
Fine Thin Bed Fixing
A process of tile fixing into a bed of an adhesive average of 2 mm in final bed thickness.
Thin Bed Fixing
A process of tile fixing into a bed of an adhesive average of 6 mm in final bed thickness.
Medium Thick Bed Fixing
A process of tile fixing into a bed of an adhesive not less than average 6 mm and not exceeding average 12 mm in final bed thickness
Open Time
Maximum time interval after application at which tiles can be embedded in the applied adhesive.
Adjustment Time
Maximum time interval after which tiles positioned in the adhesive layer can be adjusted without significant loss of adhesion.
Shelf Life
Time storage under stated conditions during which an adhesive is expected to maintain its working properties.
Slip
Downward movement of a tile embedded in the combed adhesive layer on vertical surface.
Deformability
Capacity of hardened adhesive to be deformed by stresses between the tile and the fixing surface without damage to the installed surface.
Transverse Deformation
Deflection recorded at the centre when a beam of hardened adhesive is subjected to three-point loading.