Cement tile ASTRA - series VIA - hexagonal Ø16 - jeans blue/green blue/grey blue/white

Cement tiles

Even today, tiles are still made by hand, slab by slab. A coloured mixture is made from marble powder, white cement and pure colour pigments, which is filled with a carrier layer and pressed together under high pressure. This produces solid and hard-wearing tiles with a slightly porous surface and a colour and wear layer that is around 3 mm thick. Due to the manufacturing process, the cement tiles have their typical unmistakable characteristics: a silky smooth surface, elegantly iridescent colours and slightly uneven edges.

Surface

In the case of cement floor tiles, deviations in pattern, colour and shape as well as fine hairline cracks and salt and lime chips may occur to a small extent. The tile thickness may vary slightly and must be levelled out during installation. Due to the production process, circular filling points may occur when filling the moulds. These are characteristic of cement tiles. These are not defective goods.

Suitability

Installation in directly wet areas is generally not recommended, however. Floor coverings in showers must fulfil at least slip resistance class R10 and B. Cement tiles fulfil slip resistance class R9 and B. Additional measures would therefore have to be taken to fulfil the legal requirements. Particularly high demands are placed on the protection of cement tiles in wet areas. Aggressive acidic cleaning agents can attack inadequately protected cement tiles. Care products such as hairspray, shampoo and shower gel often have a pH value that is pleasant for human skin but can become a problem for cement tiles. The frequent alternation of moisture and drying is very stressful. Limescale marks that develop over time cannot be adequately removed and make the surfaces rather unsightly over time.

Cement tiles are also suitable for underfloor heating if the floor is heated evenly and at a normal water temperature (22-28°C). Excessive temperature fluctuations should be avoided. The combination with electric underfloor direct heating systems, which are laid in the adhesive bed of the cement or terrazzo tiles, is not recommended due to the greater thermal stress.

If cement floor tiles are laid on dry construction substrates, cement-bonded dry construction boards / screed elements should be used.

Cement floor tiles are only partially frost-resistant and are not suitable for outdoor use.

Maintenance

Good things take time - a patina only builds up over time and protects the floors maintained in this way.

Basic cleaning

Laying

Before the individual panels are inserted into the adhesive bed with as few joints as possible (joint width 1-2 mm), the packages should be mixed together to create a harmonious interplay of colours. Individual slabs may show stronger colour differences, this is part of the laying pattern. However, before laying tiles with very different colours, this should be agreed between the installer and the client. The narrow joint width is a special design and should also be explicitly agreed between the client and installer.

The substrate must be clean, level, load-bearing, dimensionally stable, dry and free from adhesion-reducing substances, stable and free from cracks. The substrate should be treated in accordance with the adhesive manufacturer's instructions. In order to bind the residual dust of the substrate and reduce the absorbency of highly absorbent substrates, the substrate should be pre-treated with a primer as required. (e.g. Oktamos UG 30 from Kiesel)

A particularly fast-setting and hardening, highly stable and mouldable mineral flexible mortar with crystalline water binding must be used as the tile adhesive. (e.g. Servoflex K-Schnell SuperTec from Kiesel). Firstly, a contact layer of the flexible mortar is applied to the substrate with the smooth side of the notched trowel. A layer of adhesive is then applied with a 10 mm notched trowel, which, when pressed down and carefully aligned, creates an even surface without any overhangs. The buttering-floating method should be used to ensure a fully saturated, void-free installation. The open time/correction time of the adhesive must be strictly adhered to: the boards must be pushed into the fresh adhesive bed and pressed into place. Care must be taken to ensure that no skin has formed on the surface of the adhesive. Never mix too much adhesive and do not apply more adhesive than can be processed in this time. Do not use leftover adhesive that has already thickened! During installation, care must also be taken to minimise the penetration of moisture into the boards. Rewetting of the tiles or an uneven moisture content in the covering, e.g. due to the surface drying too quickly, can lead to cupping.

Cement floor tiles are best cut with a diamond blade. Even
mitres can be designed so precisely that clean joints on outer edges are possible. Cutting should be done dry.

If the laid floor still needs to be covered, this should be done with a breathable material (no cardboard, as this can leave marks and discolouration).

Grouting

Before grouting, the flooring surface should be slightly pre-wetted to prevent the joints from burning out. The grouting mortar is mixed on site from trass cement 2:1 with the finest quartz sand (grain size 0 - 0.3 mm) with the addition of water to a yoghurt-like consistency and applied to the swept tile floor. The mortar is pressed into the joints with an epoxy resin grout board and worked in until the joint no longer falls (i.e. the mortar completely fills the joint.)

CARE: Do not use ready-made grouts that contain a plastic component, as these can form an irreversible grey haze! The required quartz sand and trass cement can be obtained from building materials stores.

Once a section that is easily accessible has been completed, the laying surface is completely cleaned by wiping with a slightly damp tiling sponge. However, the tiles should never be washed off! This could lead to cracking due to swelling and shrinkage.

Silicone joints should be applied after the impregnation has been applied. Use a natural stone silicone to avoid discolouration. Always use the smoothing agent specified by the respective natural stone silicone manufacturer. Remove excess smoothing agent immediately without disturbing the joint!

continue to apply oil until a thin excess remains. Immediately polish the excess oil into the surface with the vibrating polishing machine. Work in easily accessible sections of approx. 3 panel rows towards the exit. Oiling and polishing is best done in p

A clean, dry surface is the basis for impregnation. The floor should be thoroughly cleaned again before impregnation. After sweeping or vacuuming the floor, possibly also removing mortar and paint residues, the tiled surface should be wiped with a slightly damp cloth. Coarse building dirt can be scrubbed off with scouring powder after pre-wetting and then wiped sparingly with clean water. Acidification is not permitted! Allow the cleaned surface to dry well again.

The thoroughly cleaned tiles have a dull appearance. The surface shows an open-pored structure in the macrofine area. Closing this structure gives the floor its desired appearance. The following generally applies to both impregnating agents and dirt: What penetrates first is also visible.

Two different products are available for impregnation, which can be used as desired: VIA Board Oil or VIA Mineral Impregnation

Design 1: Impregnation with Board Oil

VIA Board Oil is a deeply penetrating, open-pored natural product with high filling power and fast drying. Surfaces treated with VIA Board Oil are free from toxins and allergenic terpenes. Before impregnation with VIA Tile Oil, the tiles must be clean and completely dry

Surface polishing

The moistened surface is treated with three different pads in succession. The pads have three different grain sizes and are marked with different colours.

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• Wet the surface with the white pad (coarsest grain size). The white pad removes minor scratches and leaves a silky matt, clean surface. This pad is not required for freshly laid floors.
  
• Moisten the surface with the yellow pad (medium grain). The surface is compacted and forms the basis for subsequent polishing.
  
• Green pad (finest grain) The damp floor is worked over several times until it is dry. A closed surface is created. This pad is also suitable for daily floor maintenance.

Stain treatment

Where to buy additional products

• 711.0000.GRU - VIA board primer * 5 kg * Consumption approx. 0.15 -0.25 kg / sqm


• 711.0000. KLE - VIA panel adhesive * 25 kg bag * consumption approx. 25 kg / 4-5 sqm


• 711.0000.SAN - VIA quartz sand * 5 kg bag * sufficient for 100 sqm installation area


• 711.0000.OEL - VIA panel oil * 1 L * consumption approx. 1 L / 30-40 sqm


• 711.0000.MIN - VIA Mineral Impregnation * 1 L * Consumption approx. 1 L / 10 sqm


• 711.0000.SEI - VIA Slab Soap * 1 L * Application 1 tbsp. to 10 L water


• 711. 0000.DSG - Diamond sanding pads large * 1 set * white/yellow/green - diameter 402 mm


• 711.0000.DSK - Diamond sanding pads small * 1 set * white/yellow/green - diameter 201 mm