TILE

Ceramic tile is an excellent heat absorbent; but can also be very cold when there is no insulation or contact with sunrays. STEP WARMFLOOR will take away the chill from cold floors and give your tiles pleasant warmth. For optimal results, place insulation in the floor.

The physical properties of concrete or wood subfloors are different from stone or tile finish floors. Materials react differently with changes in temperature and moisture. It is therefore important to determine the linear thermal expansion of a given material and choose the proper control/expansion joints and anti-fracture/crack suppression membrane systems to reduce failure from substrate shrinkage, thermal cycling, load bearing, expansion and contraction.

STEP WARMFLOOR is strong & flexible, and can be installed on any structural sound substrate. The heating elements shall be covered using mortar bed, thin-set or cementitious backer board. When skim coating with a notched trowel over the elements, be very careful not to scrap the electric insulation on the plastic. Setting and grouting materials are available in many forms to meet the requirements of the different kinds of tile and types of exposure. Thermal movement, coverage and tolerances should be taken in consideration; the larger the tile, the greater the total change in dimensions. A mosaic installation will produce little stress on the setting material from thermal movement but will have a larger exposed grout surface. Specify latex modified materials.

STEP WARMFLOOR heating elements can also be installed under marble, granite, limestone, slate, quarry, terrazzo, etc. Sealing is recommended for most stones. The type of sealers used is based on the porosity, texture, hardness and type of tile and
where it is installed.