Rubber tiles in suburban areas can be used, for example, for finishing areas in front of pools, steps of porches or even garden paths. Among the advantages of this material, the owners of private houses and cottages include, among other things, ease of installation. Laying rubber tiles on a suburban area can be done with your own hands.
How to choose material
Modern industry produces a rubber coating of this type in a variety of colors. Therefore, if desired, it will be easy for the owner of the house to choose such a material that is in perfect harmony in shade with other elements of landscape design.
Also, when choosing a rubber tile, of course, you should pay attention to its thickness. Such material can be laid on the surface:
- concrete;
- metal;
- wooden.
In all these cases, it is supposed to use tiles with a minimum thickness of 1 cm. If the material is supposed to be mounted directly on the ground, thisthe indicator should not be less than 3 cm.
Basic installation steps
They lay rubber tiles in suburban areas, usually using this technology:
-
if necessary, remove the old tile;
- depending on the surface on which the material is installed, preparatory work is performed;
- if necessary, perform priming work;
- take measurements and markup.
At the final stage, they begin to actually lay the tile itself.
Preparations
Hard coatings - concrete, metal, wood - before installing the tiles are thoroughly cleaned of dirt and dust. Next, the substrate under the tile is primed. In this case, the agent is chosen depending on the base material. On sale today there are both universal primers and those intended directly for application to concrete, metal or wood. A sufficiently reliable composition of this type, if desired, can be made independently. The method of kneading it will be discussed later in the article.
If the tile is supposed to be laid directly on the ground, weeds are carefully removed at the place of its installation, with a selection of all roots. Next, the ground is thoroughly leveled using a building level. They do the same in the case when it is supposed to lay rubber tiles on the sand.
The material itself is carefully inspected before installationsubject of defects. Low-quality tiles are put aside.
Measurements and markings
On oval or round sites, rubber tiles are laid from the center to the edges. To find the middle of the area to be trimmed:
- a rectangle is marked around the site;
- pegs are set on its corners;
- with the help of a construction square, the corners are aligned;
- pegs are connected with a cord diagonally;
- the place of their intersection is marked.
On rectangular platforms, this material can also be mounted from the edges.
Laying rules
Recommendations for laying rubber tiles should be observed as follows:
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work is supposed to be done at an air temperature of at least 10 ° C and humidity - a maximum of 70%;
- leave the width of the seam between the individual elements no more than 1.5 mm.
Use only glue designed for rubber tiles for mounting such material. Most often, polyurethane compounds are used for this purpose. At the end of the installation, a curb is installed around the perimeter of the finished site. This element will give the coating additional strength.
When laying tiles, among other things, carefully ensure that there are no protrusions and recesses on the surface being trimmed. Otherwise on the rubber floor later in the springor during the rain, puddles that do not dry out for a long time will begin to form.
Laying tiles relies only on well-dried concrete or wood. This material simply will not stick to a wet solid base. And consequently, the work on gluing it after a while will need to be carried out again.
Technology for laying rubber tiles on the ground: backfilling the base
When mounting the material in this way, a leveling shock-absorbing pad is first arranged under it. At the same time, each of its layers is laid with geotextiles with a density of 180 g/m or more2.
Work is being done on the installation of tiles in this case as follows:
- on the site being trimmed, soil is removed to a depth of 25 cm;
- remove plant roots, debris, foreign objects from the pit;
- lay the foundation pit with geotextiles, overlapping canvases;
- crushed stone of fine fraction is placed on the geotextile;
- cover crushed stone with geotextiles with an overlap on the edges of the pit;
- pour a layer of sand and tamp it down with water.
Crushed stone and sand, when arranging the base for rubber tiles, are laid in layers with a thickness of at least 10 cm. These materials in the future, among other things, will also play the role of drainage.
Tile installation
After the pillow is ready, you can start laying the rubber tile itself on the ground. On round grounds, as already mentioned,mount this material starting from the center. Here the first four tiles are set in a square. Then move to the edges of the site diagonally. Tiles in order to avoid their displacement, when laying on the ground, are fastened to each other with special plastic bushings.
Hard Surface Mounting: Tools and Materials
In addition to the rubber tile itself and polyurethane adhesive, for laying in this case you will need:
- white spirit;
- notched trowel;
- roller;
- fine-toothed hacksaw;
- rubber mallet;
- chalk.
White spirit will be required to prepare the primer. A hacksaw is needed to cut the material if necessary. Instead, a sharp knife can be used for tiles that are not too thick.
Priming
This procedure, before laying rubber tiles on a concrete base, metal or wood, is usually done using a roller. The pre-treatment primer can be used, as already mentioned, purchased or made independently. In the latter case, the composition is made from:
- turpentine or white spirit;
- polyurethane adhesive.
These ingredients are mixed in a ratio of 1:1. The consumption of such a mixture for concrete in the future will, for example, be 300 g/m2. Purchased primers are used to treat the base in accordance withmanufacturer's instructions.
In most cases, the surface is smeared in one layer before laying the tiles. But before installing this material near a pond or pool, it is still necessary to apply two layers of primer to the base platform. This will extend the life of the coating in the future.
Modern industrial compounds of this type usually dry within 1 hour. The same applies to self-made primer.
Laying tiles on a solid base: technology
After the site is fully prepared, you can proceed to the actual installation of the material. Rubber tiles are laid on concrete, wood or metal, usually as follows:
- a thin layer of polyurethane adhesive is applied to the base;
- glue is leveled with a notched trowel;
- glue is additionally applied to the reverse side of the tile and also aligned;
- the tile is laid on the base, leveled and pressed tightly.
The polyurethane adhesive dries quickly enough. Therefore, it should be applied simultaneously to the area for laying no more than 4-5 rubber elements. After the tile is pressed against the surface of the base, it must be tapped with a mallet to remove air bubbles.
Unlike usual, the rubber tile differs, as is known, in some degree of elasticity. In order to fix such elements on the basis as reliably as possible, they stand, in addition toanything else, to pack some kind of cargo. In this case, the press should be removed only after the glue has completely dried.
If the fixing composition protrudes outside the tile during laying, it should be removed immediately. It will be extremely difficult to wipe off polyurethane stains from the material after they have dried. And consequently, the area covered with tiles will look sloppy.
Final stage
The seams between the rubber tiles when laying them are left, as already mentioned, not too wide. However, in the future, such holes can still be clearly visible on the finished surface. In order to give the finish a more solid and solid appearance, the seams after laying the rubber tiles should be covered with fine bright sand. After this work is completed, a border is installed around the perimeter of the site.
When you can start walking on the playground
The above instructions for laying rubber tiles must be followed exactly. In this case, the surface will be as strong and durable as possible.
In a few hours after installation, the rubber tile on the finished base will hold firmly enough. However, it will be possible to walk on the lined area no earlier than two days after the installation of the material. Otherwise, the coating elements may be shifted, which will negatively affect the appearance of the surface.
Helpful advice
The above methods of laying rubber tiles allow you to getbeautiful, even and reliable coating. However, subject to all the required technologies, beginners usually perform the installation of such material rather slowly. To speed up the work when installing tiles for applying glue, you can use a regular paint roller instead of a spatula. It will most likely be much more convenient for a beginner to lubricate the area to be trimmed and the rubber elements themselves with a fixing compound. Accordingly, when using such a tool, the process of gluing tiles will accelerate.
