Before, but especially during the COVID lockdown, there was a significant uptick in residential renovation investments. A large segment of these renovations focused on outdoor living to allow people to enhance their exterior environment and provide areas where they could escape the claustrophobia of being indoors.
Additionally, restaurants, bars and other commercial businesses began to make investments in expansion into outdoor spaces to provide a sense of ease and to more quickly welcome back patrons. Often, tile and hardscape coverings were the choice for these areas.
Beautiful aesthetics combined with the long-term durability of tile and stone have led to enhanced popularity for outdoor installations. Especially in today’s health-conscious environment, outdoor spaces continue to be highly desirable in residential and commercial areas. The caveat is that exterior installations are subject to weather and other environmental concerns. Combine the elements of mother nature with inexperience, incorrect installation techniques and the wrong installation materials, the results are commonly found issues such as efflorescence, staining, discoloring, and dis-bonding.
These problems are primarily caused by sedentary and evaporating water. As the industry innovation leader for exterior tile and stone installations, ARDEX offers unique, yet time-tested systems featuring Passive Capillary Drainage Technology. The ARDEX Exterior Systems are uniquely designed not as waterproofing systems, but proven systems to move water out and away from the installation, thus minimizing the aforementioned problems.
ARDEX provides solution for luxury homeowner
A perfect example is our featured installation, a luxury residential estate in Wichita, Kan. The pool deck, a sundeck and covered patio were covered with 2′ x 2′ pavers installed over pre-sloped concrete substrates. Loose laid gravel was installed, the pavers were placed over it, and the joints were finished with polymeric sand. In less than two years, there was significant settling and movement resulting in lippage, broken pavers and badly discolored polymeric grout joints.
An installer was hired to demo the project, but walked away from the job since they didn’t have a solution. Stuart & Associates Commercial Flooring, Inc., was called in and, initially, did not have a solution. Thankfully, owner Paul Stuart attended a FUSE Conference, and when visiting the ARDEX exhibit, saw ARDEX Exterior Systems and immediately knew he had a solution for this homeowner.
ARDEX Midwest Regional Sales Manager, Greg Meyer visited the jobsite and worked closely with Paul and his team to come up with a combination of the ARDEX Watec® Drainage System for the 1,100-sq.-ft. covered patio and the ARDEX ProDrain® Drainage System for the 550-sq.-ft. sundeck.
Porcelain pavers (2cm – 2′ x 4′) were selected for the entire project. The ARDEX Watec® Drainage System was selected for the covered patio area. A key challenge with the patio area was a 2″ maximum height requirement. The ARDEX Watec System is a low-height elevation drainage system using the Watec Drainage Mat over a 1.5 – 2% pre-sloped concrete substrate. The porch was attached to the residence and it had hairline cracking in the concrete. ARDEX TLT Waterproofing and Crack Isolation membrane was installed over the substrate prior to laying the Watec Mat.
ARDEX X 32 MICROTEC® Universal Tile and Stone Mortar was selected to install the 2cm pavers directly over the mat. ARDEX X 32 can be installed as a thin bed, up to 1 1/4″ depth, and addresses the need for the varying height build-ups, up to 3/4″ depth. Due to its self-drying technology, it is set and dry in just three hours, even at 1 1/4″. ARDEX X 32 does not contribute to efflorescence, shrinking, staining or discoloration.
ARDEX FH Grout was used for the grout joints with ARDEX SX 100% Silicone Sealant every 10 feet and around the perimeter.
Managing water for the sundeck
Due to the higher height elevations required for the 14′ x 32′ sundeck, the ARDEX ProDrain® Drainage System was selected. The ARDEX ProDrain System uses the ARDEX ProDrain Mat over a 1.5 – 2% pre-sloped substrate with ARDEX Drainage Mortar screeded over top of the mat at 2″ or thicker. ARDEX Drainage Mortars are hydrophobic with an aggregate that looks like a Kellogg’s® Rice Krispies® Treat (see image). Due to its hydrophobic nature, the ARDEX Drainage Mortar allows water to move through it without resistance into the drainage mat below and move away from the installation. Unlike other screeds and mortars, it eliminates any capillary movement of water back up to the floor covering, virtually eliminating efflorescence and protecting against damage to the pavers.
The Stuart & Associates team was able to clean and re-purpose the existing gravel used with the original installation and use with the ARDEX Drainage Mortar. “It was a large task and time-consuming to remove and deal with all that gravel,” stated Stuart.
The 2cm pavers were installed ‘wet set’ into the ARDEX Drainage Mortar with ARDEX X 90 OUTDOOR MicroteC3 Flexible Tile and Stone Mortar. ARDEX X 90 OUTDOOR is formulated to stand up to all types of weather. Creamy and semi-pourable, ARDEX X 90 has been tested at over 150 freeze thaw cycles (ANSI 118.15 requires 25 cycles). ARDEX X 90 does not contribute to efflorescence and is the only mortar that can be installed and will also set and cure at temperatures as low as 40F (5C).
The deck area surrounding the $250K swimming pool will be underway soon using the ARDEX ProDrain® System. Stuart commented, “We needed an exterior solution that we could build up significantly, provide a sound, permanent tile paver installation and still divert water to the drains under the tile system. ARDEX did not just answer the call with the right systems that checked all the boxes, but their service and support was excellent. Our guys really enjoyed working with the products, and Greg Meyer provided awesome support.”
Although not required for this project, ARDEX Exterior Systems come with a full line of accessories including drains and profiles to aesthetically finish edging. In addition to the ARDEX Watec® and ProDrain® Exterior Drainage Systems, ARDEX offers:
• The ARDEX TerraMaxx TSL Pedestal System
Pre-assembled pedestals with a swivel head adjustment up to a 9% pitch without any tools
• ARDEX Veneer Stone Installation Systems
ARDEX X 77 MICROTEC® and other polymer modified installation products for outstanding bond, durability, and ease of installation.
