Public Transport facilities including airports, bus stations and rail stations all require tiled flooring that comply with certain aesthetic and functional standards to maintain a high customer experience. Clients expect their tiled flooring to remain crack-free for many years.

All hard flooring moves independently by expanding and contracting at different rates so it is a requirement for flooring installations to have movement protection. Judith Mawtus from Dural UK ltd offers some practical advice, “A time saving solution to this problem is to lay decoupling matting directly over the subfloor. It can be put in place as soon as the subfloor is dry enough for a person to walk over it. Air channels in the matting allow the subfloor rafts to continue to dry out in a controlled way by preventing the top layer of the screed drying quicker than the bottom. This slow drying period leads to a stronger subfloor. The edges of the subfloor will curl upwards if the top dries quicker leaving an uneven surface. “

Decoupling matting prevents the subfloor shrinkage and cracking from being passed into the newly laid surface tiles.

Tiling directly onto the rafts when they are not chemically dry and without matting will almost certainly cause random “lightening flash” cracks in the surface tiles and they could potentially “tent” or pop off the subfloor.

Movement Joints and decoupling matting are specified on all types of transport projects and other projects where there are large expanses of hard flooring, projects such as retail, commercial and large domestic dwellings.

Decoupling matting and movement joints are both designed to cope with heavy stresses and distribute them evenly between the subfloor and floor covering.

It is advisable to use expansion joints that are designed to exceed BS5385. For a seamless designer look they can be specified in any of the RAL colour scheme range and if a tile sample is sent to the MJ manufacturer then an exact colour match is achievable even if the tile has a speckled effect. This upholds the beauty of a seamless tiled flooring scheme.

By incorporating decoupling matting and movement joints into early design concepts, architects and contractors are given confidence that their clients will have seamless tiled flooring that will remain permanently crack-free.

Specifiers and installers know that movement joints need to be used to absorb the natural movements in the floor.

ABOUT US:

Dural UK specialise in producing hardware for the perfect finish for all types of flooring. We provide complete solutions for all aspects of flooring including profiles for resin flooring, stone carpets, parquet, laminate, carpeted and tiled floors. Our product range includes Movement Joints, CI+ Anti-Crack Matting, Resin Flooring Profiles, Stair Edgings and Wetroom Linear Drainage Solutions. Whether you are an Architect, Designer, Flooring Contractor or an Installer, we are your one-stop-shop for all your flooring requirements, from our high quality flooring accessories to our highly competent support to guide you through your flooring project.

CONTACT DETAILS:
Simon Clark-Taylor
Dural UK Ltd
Tel: 01924 360110
Unit 6a, Wakefield Business Centre, Denby Dale Road
Wakefield, West Yorkshire WF2 7AZ, UK
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.colouredmovementjoints.co.uk