FAQ | Mapei

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Mapecoat™ TNS systems can be installed on new or existing asphalt or concrete slabs. On fresh concrete, a layer of Mapecoat TNS Primer EPW is applied first to provide excellent adhesion under the selected hard or cushioned system. For existing slabs with cracking, either the Mapecoat TNS Reinforced or Mapecoat TNS Comfort Elite system can be used to prevent non-structural cracks from coming through the new surface.

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Why doesn’t MAPEI offer a solvent-based adhesive for synthetic turf installation?

MAPEI is committed to using innovative, sustainable and low-VOC materials to ensure that our products have the lowest impact on the environment possible. Because of this, MAPEI does not offer a solvent-based synthetic turf product.

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Does MAPEI offer any solutions for fast-tracked installations of synthetic turf?

MAPEI offers solutions for both sports and landscape installations. For sports installations we offer Ultrabond Turf PU 2K Accelerator, which can be used with Ultrabond Turf PU 2K to speed up the reaction of the product in cooler weather.

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Does MAPEI offer custom-colored court coatings?

In addition to a wide range of standard color offerings, our Mapecoat™ TNS color coatings, Mapecoat TNS Binder, Mapecoat TNS Finish 3 and Mapecoat TNS Line Tex can be tinted to match customer-supplied color samples and digital standards using our Colormap™ color-matching system.

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Does Mapefloor Finish 58 W [NA] (polyurethane, two-component coating) meet – or exceed – LEED, Cradle to Cradle, Red list, etc., requirements and guidelines?

Mapefloor Finish 58 W [NA] contributes to the following LEED credit:

IEQc2 Low Emitting Materials – We have SCS Indoor Advantage Gold VOC emissions certification, as well as SCAQMD-compliant VOC content.

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Does Mapecrete Protector FF (single-component polish guard) meet – or exceed – LEED, Cradle to Cradle, Red List, etc., requirements and guidelines?

Mapecrete Protector FF contributes to the following LEED credit:

IEQc2 Low Emitting Materials – We have SCS Indoor Advantage Gold VOC emissions certification, as well as SCAQMD-compliant VOC content.

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Does Mapefloor Finish 630 [NA] (acrylic, two-component coating) meet – or exceed – LEED, Cradle to Cradle, Red List, etc., requirements and guidelines?

Mapefloor Finish 630 [NA] contributes to the following LEED credit:

IEQc2 Low Emitting Materials – We have SCS Indoor Advantage Gold VOC emissions certification, as well as SCAQMD-compliant VOC content.

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What is the impact on a construction schedule when using Ultratop [NA]? Quick installation is always a plus.

Ultratop [NA] is a self-curing topping that is specially formulated for fast-track resurfacing, allowing Ultratop [NA] to be polished 24 hours after being installed.

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What is the proper way to hold a trowel?

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.

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Why should I be concerned about moisture content in a concrete slab?

Because you will be directly touching it with an adhesive and flooring material, both of which may not function properly when in contact with a damp substrate. For example, if your goal was to install a solid vinyl sheet flooring over a damp concrete slab using a wet-lay, water-based adhesive, once you covered the adhesive with the sheet vinyl there would be nowhere for the moisture in the adhesive to absorb into; the existing moisture would remain in its liquid state and the installation would be a mess. Another example would be to install prefinished solid wood flooring using a urethane adhesive over a damp concrete slab. The urethane adhesive would cure nicely because it cures by coming into contact with moisture, but the wood flooring would absorb moisture coming from the slab and cup, warp, curl or swell – causing a nightmare of a problem. The bottom line is that there's a reason for the moisture-limits statements of adhesives and flooring materials. As such, the installer should calculate the appropriate measurements for moisture to determine if he can proceed or if he needs to do something more to isolate that moisture from the flooring installation.

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Why are there so many trowel recommendations per adhesive type?

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" (19 mm) 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 trowels. Wood flooring, on the other hand, has a variable backing structure. Some may be smooth – 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-notched trowels.

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What does "working time" mean?

This term refers to the amount of time, after the open time or flash time (if any), during which the adhesive you just applied will accept the flooring material and still provide an adequate bond. If you leave certain adhesives open to the atmosphere for too long, they will skin over or cure out and not be wet/sticky enough to accept the flooring material. In other words, they will dry out. It is important to note that working time is often affected by the ambient temperature as well as the ambient humidity. For example, in arid conditions when the temperature is very high, working times will be much shorter for water-based materials but much longer for moisture-curing materials. Areas of high humidity and high temperature will have longer working times for water-based materials but potentially shorter working times for moisture-curing products. Cold temperatures are going to slow everything down whether the products be water-based or moisture-curing. For reactive adhesives like epoxies or epoxy-modified polyurethanes, temperatures will greatly affect the working time. Reactive adhesives are very sensitive to temperature, so cold conditions will extend the working time and hot conditions will speed things up.

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