Large ceramic tiles – The fixing process
The world of ceramics is constantly evolving and adapting to new market needs. Among these new trends, the large ceramic format stands out, a trend for which VIVES has developed new large-format porcelain series focused on architecture and interior design professionals.
There are many advantages that we find when we install large formats since the installation time is optimized, it facilitates cleaning, the number of joints is eliminated, achieving a continuous surface without divisions and generating greater amplitude in the space.
For a correct placement of XXL tiles we advise you to follow the following steps:
- Check that the porcelain does not show any blunting or scratching before starting the installation.
- Prepare the surface where the tiles are going to be laid, make sure that the surface is clean, dry and flat.
- For handling large format tiles, it is recommended to use suction cups to facilitate movement.
- Carry out a double adhesion with a notched trowel, both on the substrate and on the back of the ceramic tile. Next, help bed them down with a rubber mallet to gently tap the tile once it is in place to extract the air below. For the installation of these formats, we recommend that you use levelling systems to achieve the desired flatness. In addition, we must use spacers for the separation joint between the tiles.
- Use expansion joints if the surface requires it or is greater than 40 m2.
- Allow the adhesive cement to set, then grout the gap between the pieces.
- Clean the residues of the installation materials from the surface with the help of a sponge and water.
