FAQs

Yes, MAPEI's Type 1 adhesive and Premium Mortar for tile and stone can be used to set tile over cement board and fiber cement board.

Important: If Mapelastic AquaDefense membrane has been used to waterproof the cement board, a premixed adhesive cannot be used.

The type of stone, tile and grout that you have will determine if sealing is necessary. Glazed ceramic and porcelain tiles have almost no porosity and are highly resistant to staining; therefore, sealing is not required. However, it is beneficial to seal unglazed, polished porcelain floor tile. If either the tile or grout is considered porous, such as natural-stone tile, terra cotta, Saltillo, brick or cement-based grout, sealing is recommended.

After creating a slope with a fresh mud bed using MAPEI's 4 to 1 Mud Bed Mix, the area should be allowed to cure for at least 24 hours per inch (centimeter) plus one day before application of MAPEI's Mapelastic AquaDefense. For example, if the mud bed is at 2" (5 cm) depth at its highest level, then you must wait three days before the application of Mapelastic AquaDefense. Curing time is based on a temperature of 73°F (23°C). Cooler temperatures will require longer curing times. If your project is on a fast track, consider Planislope RS mortar, which can receive waterproofing in a matter of hours.

It is offered in 13 colors, which can be viewed on our Website

It is offered in 13 colors, which can be viewed on our Website

It is offered in 40 colors which can be viewed on our website.

For most trowels used for floor-covering installations, the correct angle to hold the trowel is 45 degrees to the floor. There is a reason for this angle. First, the angle creates a bit of a hydraulic pumping action by compressing the liquid adhesive and forcing it through the notches. If you were to hold the trowel at a 90-degree angle to the subfloor, you wouldn’t get the compressing action and would just cut through the adhesive on the floor. Without the compression from the 45-degree angle placement, the adhesive may actually skip through the trowel notches and leave you with an undesirable result.

Adding air to the concrete (air entrainment) allows the concrete to withstand freezing and thawing cycles as it provides room for the water present in concrete to expand without putting stresses on the concrete itself.

ACI provides guidelines as suggestions or recommendations on the water content to provide the desired compressive strength. Never add more water than what is necessary to provide the desired workability. More water equals lowered strength.

The best time to apply a sealer to the grout is after the grout has cured a minimum of 24 to 72 hours, depending on the manufacturer's instructions.

MAPEI's Ultracolor Plus FA and Ultracolor Plus Max grouts are a great choice for grouting installations of pebble stone and river-rock mosaics.

The reason for so many trowel types is that there are so many flooring types. Think about what is being installed: Everything from thin vinyl sheet to 3/4" solid hardwood flooring. Each flooring material has unique properties. For example, a thin vinyl sheet is very flexible, so you don’t want heavy trowel notches on the floor as they will show through to the surface of the vinyl (an effect called “telegraphing”). So for thin resilient flooring, we typically recommend very finely notched towels. Wood flooring, on the other hand, has a variable backing structure. Some can be smooth and others grooved or cross-cut, so you need a trowel notch that can lift and shape the adhesive in such a way that it comes into solid contact with the flooring material. Further, wood flooring is very rigid and does not bend or conform to the subfloor. Therefore you need to use a trowel notch that accommodates for subfloor flatness and still brings the adhesive into contact with the back of the flooring. Using a thin-notched trowel for this would not allow for proper adhesive transfer. The same thing is true of broadloom carpet. Typically broadloom carpet has a rough-textured backing. In order to get proper performance out of a carpet installation, you need to make sure that the adhesive gets into this texture and that is why this application includes recommended trowel notches that create high ridges. In summary, smooth-backed flooring materials are typically installed using finely notched trowels while texture-backed materials get installed with larger-notch trowels.