Save Your Screed with Flowcrete’s New Whitepaper

Whilst no one may ever see the floor screed once it has been applied, it is a crucial part of the build-up and if it fails could ruin the entire floor.

To help architects, facilities managers and construction professionals ensure that the right screed is chosen and properly applied Flowcrete UK has produced a new whitepaper entitled “How to Avoid Screed Failure”.

Alan Dean, Managing Director of Flowcrete UK, said: “Flowcrete is committed to using its 30 years of experience as a global leader in resin flooring to provide industry professionals with useful information and advice that helps them with their day-to-day activities.

“And the screed is an important element to get right, as it’s responsible not only for levelling out the concrete substrate but also serving as a retaining system for any of the additional flooring components.

“This means that if it fails it could ruin not only the floor finish but also elements such as acoustic insulation, underfloor heating or any damp proof membranes that are incorporated within the floor.”

However with the right information to hand the costly repairs that screed failure incurs can be avoided. The new whitepaper goes into detail about all the important aspects of screed installation, including the different application methods, the main causes of failure to look out for, vapour transmission, substrate preparation, compression rates, curing time, drying periods and stress control joints.

The whitepaper also goes into particular detail on how to install underfloor heating without compromising either the screed or the effectiveness of the heating system.

Readers of the downloadable literature will find out why many problems usually occur during installation, but only become apparent further down the line when it is too late to solve. Sand pockets, hollow finishes, weakness, blistering, curling and debonding can all affect a screed and the trigger can vary depending on the type of screed and method of application, but there are some general rules to follow to avoid this happening.

The whitepaper also stresses how each element of the floor needs to work together. If the screed suppliers are not involved in the flooring design then it is much more likely to fail at some stage, as the specific qualities of the screed and how it interacts with the materials around it may not be understood. 

To minimise the risk of screed failures Flowcrete has developed the Floorzone solution, which gives clients the ability to source every part of the floor from one single supplier who fully understands how each component works together.

The whitepaper library on Flowcrete UK’s website hosts a selection of texts covering a wide variety of flooring issues, from achieving perfection in car parks to the importance of resin floors in food processing facilities.