Tile adhesive is a single component cement-based polymer modified adhesive that is used for setting up tiles and natural stones. This tile adhesive provides a very strong bond and elongates the life of the vertical wall cladding or horizontal tile flooring in your home.
With the advent of new technology in the flooring industry the size of the tiles has gotten bigger and bigger. At present, tiles with size as big as 32 square feet are also available in the market. Setting these huge tiles and stone pieces perfectly is quite a challenge for homeowners.
About 15 to 20 years back the size of the tiles was only in the range of 4 square feet to 8 square feet. Accordingly, it was pretty easy to set these tiles and stone pieces. But in the present scenario setting these big size tiles require a special tile adhesive and skillful labor.
These tile adhesives are not only useful for fixing the tiles but are also very useful for setting up granite, marble, sandstone, and other stone pieces. The tile adhesive plays a very crucial role in the wall cladding process, it helps to bind together the tiles and the wall surface and provides a long-life bond to this combination.
Where To Use Tile Adhesive
The polymer-modified tile adhesive is very flexible in nature and it can be used with various surfaces like a concrete wall, block wall, cement plaster, gypsum plaster, gypsum board, fiber cement board, and many other surfaces.
These tile adhesives have amazing qualities of adhesion and they can be used for even fixing new tiles or natural stones on the existing tiles and stones. This helps you to decrease the cost of renovation and maintenance if you wish to replace your old tiles.
These polymer-modified tile adhesives can be used for setting up many varieties of tiles and natural stones like granite, marble, kota stone, sandstone, et cetera. They can be used effectively for both vertical and horizontal masonry in the exterior and interior of homes and other places.
Tile Adhesive Price
There are many varieties of tile adhesives that are available in the market but not all of them are properly effective. So when you are buying the tile adhesive for your home make sure that you choose the right polymer modified tile adhesive to get the perfect bond for your tiles.
The polymer-modified tile adhesives are generally available in the packing of 20-kilogram bags to 50-kilogram bags under the various brand names. You must ensure that you buy tile adhesive of only a good brand for setting up your tiles.
A good brand tile adhesive can be easily bought in the price range of Rs. 70 per kilogram to Rs. 100 per kilogram from local or online market. Using the adhesive of a good brand will ensure using the right material for fixing the tiles.
How To Use Tile Adhesive
The process of using tile adhesive for fixing the tiles and natural stones in your home and other places is not a very complicated process. It can be done by masonry labor with even a little bit of experience in this field. You can get an idea of this simple process with the help of the following stepwise points.
- The first step is to prepare the surface is properly and it must have a uniform level. Fill all the hollow spaces on the surface with mortar.
- You must also ensure to properly rinse the whole surface with water to remove the dust and other loose particles. After that properly clean the surface to proceed further.
- Now prepare the tile adhesive mix by taking the appropriate amount of tile adhesive and water. Add the powder to water to make lump-free mortar with appropriate consistency.
- Then wait for 4 to 5 minutes and then mix the mortar thoroughly. You can do this with the help of a trowel or an electronic stirrer. This will prevent the forming of lumps in the mortar mix.
- Apply mix mortar material directly on the surface at about 3 to 5 mm thickness. Then spread the mortar mix with the help of a notched trowel. Make sure to not spread in more than 1 sq meter area at a time.
- Now press the tile or natural stone piece firmly against the surface. And then, hammer it gently with the help of a soft mallet to ensure the perfect bond between the tile and surface.
- Clean the excessive adhesive that leaks out from the joints and the corners and then repeat the process of application of adhesive for the other pieces to cover the whole surface.
- After the tiles have been properly set in the whole area you should leave the tiles as they are for at least 24 hours. This allows the adhesive to do its job and set properly with the tiles and surface.
Advantages Of Tile Adhesive
There are many advantages of using a polymer modified tile adhesive for fixing the tiles in your home. This is the reason it is gaining more popularity day by day in the flooring industry. Let’s have a look at some of the main advantages that this adhesive gives you in fixing the tiles in your home.
Strong Bond
The biggest and the most useful advantage that this polymer base tile adhesive gives you is the strong bond between the surface and the tile. The polymer-modified adhesives are specially made to give a lifelong bond between the tile and the surface.
Flexibility
The polymer-modified tile adhesive is quite flexible in nature and as such, it complements the expansions and contractions of the tile or natural stone with the heat and coolness of the temperature. This prevents tile breakage and damage with time.
Simple Application
It is quite easy to set the tiles with the help of tile adhesive as compared to the other method. The experienced labor can easily apply the tile adhesive with the help of a trowel and other simple tools.
Thin Layer
As compared to the cement-based mortar one can use a thin layer of polymer modified tile adhesive for setting the tiles on natural stones. This helps to save space in small areas like a bathroom.
Consistency
Industries prepare the tile adhesive in the controlled environment and it arrives at the destination in properly packed bags. As such the consistency of the tile adhesive is appropriate if we mix the right amount of water.
Any Surface
The modern tiles come with a pretty smooth surface at the backside too. And this can be an issue if you plan to use cement-based mortar for setting up the tiles. But with tile adhesive, you can give a perfect fix even to the tiles with a smooth back surface.
Unskilled Labor
One of the biggest advantages of the use of tile adhesive is that it does not require very skillful labor for getting the right results. Labor with a handful of experience in this field can also properly set up the tiles with the help of this polymer modified tile adhesive.
Cement vs Tile Adhesive
Traditionally, all kinds of tiles and natural stones were set using a mortar of cement, sand, and water. But with the advent of new technology, polymer-based tile adhesives have captured a lot of market share in this particular segment of the flooring industry.
Although many people still prefer to use the cement mortar for setting up the tiles and natural stones in their homes. This cement mortar is also pretty helpful in serving many purposes but it has some disadvantages as compared to the modern adhesive.
Let’s have a look at a comparison of these two tile binders so that you can decide which one is better for you.
| S. N. | Factor | Cement Mortar | Tile Adhesive |
| 1. | Price | It is pretty cheap as it is formed by mixing cement, sand, and water. | It is a special chemical and as such, it is comparatively an expensive option. |
| 2. | Hold | The hold of the cement may loosen up with time because of contractions and expansions. | The tile adhesive maintains a strong bond and withstands the contractions and expansions. |
| 3. | Thickness | It requires a thick cement mortar bed between the tile and the surface. | It requires a thin layer of polymer modified adhesive for a strong bond. |
| 4. | Labor Skill | It requires skillful labor to properly set the tiles with cement. | It requires experienced labor to correctly use the tile adhesive. |
| 5. | Mixing | It requires normal mixing of sand, cement, and water in appropriate proportions. | It requires intense mixing with the help of an electronic stirrer to get the proper mix. |
| 6. | Tile Breakage | There are more chances of breakage and damage of tiles with time because of expansions and contractions. | There are fewer chances of breakage or damage because of complementing bond between the tile adhesive and surface. |
