Important changes to BS 5385-1 Wall and Floor Tiling

As part of the five-year review of British Standards and reflecting changes within the tiling industry since 2009 – BS 5385 Part 1: 2018 has now been published.

One significant change made was to exclude the use of plywood as a background material for the direct fixing of ceramic wall and natural stone tiles.

Clause 6.1.2.7 Other sheets and boards (see also 6.2.3.3) now states:
“The use of sheets or boards that are subject to movement from changes in moisture content should be avoided. Plywood and other wood-based sheets or boards should not be used for direct tiling”.

A significant uplift in the use of tile backer boards – such as BAL Board – and a wide variation in quality of plywood available on the market has provided a solid case for the removal of plywood from the standards.

David Wilson, UK Head of Technical Services at BAL and member of the TTA Technical Committee said: “Previously it was recognised in BS5385 Part 1: 2009 that tiling direct to plywood was possible, providing this was restricted to small areas and be “installed in such a way that they provide a dimensionally stable and rigid background” the quality of plywood for tiling purposes has decreased significantly with cheaper imports flooding the market.

“While higher quality external grade plywood is still available – it is significantly more expensive.

“It is important to consider though that that wood is a hygroscopic material which means that its moisture content will change dependent upon any changes in the environmental conditions on site. Therefore, dimensionally stability of wood-based boards cannot be assured there is always a risk to installing ceramic or natural stone tiles onto plywood or other wood-based sheets,

Another technical consideration for wall tiling is weight restrictions. Plywood is deemed to have a maximum weight of tiling per m² of 30 kg compared to proprietary tile backing boards which generally are capable of supporting heavier weights per m² of tiling (As per table 3 of BS 5385-1: 2018 and the TTA Internal Ceramic Tiling to Sheets and Board Substrates document 2016).

“A competitive tile backing board market means that prices are more attractive to tile fixers and contractors. This combined with the additional features and benefits of providing background for tiling which are dimensionally stable and resistant to moisture and thermal movement. “

However, while plywood is not recommended as a background for direct wall tiling, it can still be used as a structural board when overlaid with a suitable tile backing board, particularly where installation of mechanical fixings is required e.g. for mesh backed natural stone where it is not possible to remove 75% or of the mesh backing.

 Other changes to BS standards.

Previously in internal dry wall areas it was recommended that tile adhesive should cover a minimum of 50% coverage spread evenly over the back of the tile. However, driven by necessity, with the increase in the size and types of tiles i.e. larger formats and thin ceramic panels, now available of the market, BS 5385-1: 2018 advises: “Tiles with a surface area of less than 0.1 m², but which weigh more per square metre than 70% of the background’s capacity to carry the weight, should be solidly bedded e.g. the maximum weight of tile that can be supported by Gypsum plaster = 20 kg; whereas 9 mm thick porcelain tiles, which weigh approximately 18 kg/m², weigh more than 70% of 20 kg (14 kg) therefore, they should be solidly bedded regardless of their size”

Included within the scope of BS 5385-1: 2018 are large format ceramic tiles, ceramic panels i.e. tiles with a surface area >1m² (any edge length >1200 mm) and thin tiles i.e. ceramic tiles and panels with a panel thickness of ≤ 5.5 mm. To reflect this, additional changes have also been made in the minimum recommended grout joint width, dependent on the tile/panel size, e.g. the minimum grout widths vary by tile facial area – an example as follows:

  • For tiles with a facial area of less than 0.1m² with no side > 600mm long, a minimum joint width of 2mm is required.
  • Tiles with a facial area 0.1m² to 1m² with no side>1200mm long, a minimum joint width of 3 mm is required.

And

  • Joints between ceramic panels should be increased pro-rata to panel size (e.g. for a 3m long ceramic panels the minimum required joint width between these panels is 5mm.

Not included in the scope of BS 5385-1: 2018 are:

  • Natural Stone Slabs i.e. stone which is more than 12mm thick,
  • Agglomerate stone,
  • Metal, plastic resin, mirror or glass tiles of a similar construction

For these products it is recommended to always refer to the manufacturer of these products for further advice.

For more information please contact BAL Technical Advisory Service on 03330 030160.

Special accolade for SkillBuild Winner

The Worshipful Company of Tylers & Bricklayers recently made a special presentation to the 2016 winner of Skillbuild.

worshipful company of tilers

Gordon Cook from City of Glasgow College, with his tutor Andrew Pollock, attended an Awards Evening hosted by the Worshipful Company at Trinity House in Central London in March.

The Awards lunch is an annual event, which seeks to reward individuals who have excelled in their various disciplines. The Awards are presented across three different craft categories –Wall & Floor Tiling, Roofing & Slating and Bricklaying.

Gordon Cook won the Wall & Floor Tiling Award at Skillbuild last year. In all, 78 competitors took part in the finals, which were held at the NEC in mid-November, spread across ten categories.

The TTA has a long history of support for SkillBuild as it attaches importance to the ongoing work to drive up skill levels in our industry, working with young independent fixers. Throughout the year the TTA does much through its Training Committee, on seminars, developing qualifications and promoting training awards.

Bob Howard MBE, TTA director and chairman of the Training Committee, says: “It was really inspiring to be able to recognise the achievements of this young man at the Annual Awards Event of the Worshipful Company of Tylers & Bricklayers. It was a prestigious event which reflected well on the efforts of the TTA to raise the bar even further with regard to training and skills development for young people who are just starting out in our industry.”

[SOURCE: Tilezine.co.uk]

 

TTA to host demo zone at The Tiling Zone

September sees the launch of the UK’s first dedicated tiling event for many years.

TheTilingShow-Logo-1Line-Date

The Tiling Show is to be held at the Harrogate International Centre from 18th to 20th September and will run alongside The Flooring Show, an event which has been running for 52 years and is still seeing year-on-year visitor number increases.

Ian Kershaw, Chairman of The Tile Association, says: “The TTA is delighted to be partnering with the prestigious Harrogate Flooring Show to create the first-ever Tiling Show. After a number of years without a dedicated tiling event for the UK market, we view the launch of The Tiling Show as a very welcome development.

“It will be somewhere that our members and others in the tiling sector can do business, network, learn about the key trends and view product demonstrations. We are committed to playing our part in developing The Tiling Show into a new and unique platform for our industry.”

As well as having a fully-staffed stand at The Show, the TTA will be running a Demonstration Zone, which is likely to become a key attraction for every visitor to the Show. The Zone will host a packed programme of demonstrations running throughout each of the first two days of the Show and until lunchtime on the third day. Presenting companies include BAL and Warmup.

The topics covered will include the cutting of tiles, decoupling mats, large format tiles, expansion joints, wet rooms, mosaics, epoxy grouts and the use of natural stone tiles.

Dave Rowley from BAL will be presenting on:

18th September –

10.30 Introduction and Application of Levelling Compounds (BAL LEVEL MAX) over Heated Cables

15:00 Fixing of Large Format Porcelain Tiles (BAL STONE AND TILE PTB)

19th September –

13:30 Fixing of Ceramic Glass Mosiacs (BAL MAX FLEX FIBRE)

15:00 Grouting Mosiacs (BAL MICROMAX2)

 

The full programme of seminars in the TTA Demo Zone is to be found on the Show website www.thetilingshow.com

[SOURCE: www.tilezine.co.uk]

Apprentice wins Gold at SkillBuild NI – supported by BAL.

Daniel McBurney achieved Gold in Wall and Floor Tiling, after competing against other apprentices at South West College, Technology and Skills Centre Enniskillen.

Skillbuild NI, run and governed by CITB NI, is held annually each spring with the top local construction apprentices competing to win coveted titles ranging from brickwork to wall and floor tiling.

BAL have supported SkillBuild for a number of years, with Training Manager Dave Rowley acting as lead judge since 2009 and the company providing materials.

The winners may then go on to represent Northern Ireland in the Skills Show UK and potentially at WorldSkills.

Eight other Southern Regional College apprentices were also awarded at the SkillBuild NI Finals.

“It reflects the high standards of training in our Colleges and the commitment to excellence demonstrated by the competitors. As with all skills competitions, Skillbuild NI is about raising the status and standards of professional and technical education and training.

“We have a proud record of success at skills competitions not only on a local level but also on a regional, national and world level.

“I congratulate the ten young competitors who have been selected to represent the UK Squad, and I look forward to seeing how many progress to the prestigious Worldskills competition in Abu Dhabi in 2017.”

The competition encourages trainees to improve their own skills and provides an example of the high quality work being produced in training organisations and colleges across NI.

The Skillbuild test pieces are designed to challenge the ability of apprentices, testing skills within tight timeframes and the competitors are being continuously assessed throughout the competition.

The competition has the support of local construction employers who sponsor each category, and has the overall support from the Department for Employment and Learning, Construction Employers Federation, Haldane Fisher, City and Guilds, Colleges NI, Federation of Master Builders and Subway.

Maurice Johnston, Chairman CITB NI said: “CITB NI is proud to have been involved in construction competitions for almost 40 years.

(SOURCE: Banbridge Leader)

Trainee Tilers excel at The Skills Show National Final

A trainee tiler from Northern Ireland scooped the wall and floor tiling gold medal at the Skills Show at Birmingham’s NEC.

The gold medal went to Kieran Magee from Southern Regional College in Northern Ireland; silver went to Jack Radford from Nottingham’s New College and Lee Jones from Cardiff and Vale College picked up the bronze medal.

Aaron Hilton from Leeds College of Building and Christopher Weston from Cardiff and Vale College received Highly Commended awards.

Kieran Magee and Jack Radford were also named in Squad UK to train towards selection for WorldSkills Abu Dhabi in 2017. They join Armondos Tamulis from Southern Regional College in the squad.

The Tile Association is the lead competition supplier for the wall and floor tiling competition and provided the prizes for the gold, silver and bronze medal winners. As well as a cheque, medal winners will also receive a Bellotta Pro 55 Tile Cutter. BAL provided adhesives for the competition, with tiles supplied by Johnson Tiles and trims by Schluter. Suretile, meanwhile, supplied a Tiletracker system for each finalist.

The wall and floor tiling competition was one of 58 trade finals held at The Skills Show this year. Regional heats took place at colleges across the UK under the watchful eye of Dave Rowley from BAL, chairman of the Tile Association’s supply chain training committee. Finalists then moved on to the national event at The Skills Show.

Congratulations to all the young tilers who were invited to take part in the final:

Sovandeth Chin — Leeds College of Building
Daniel Griffin — St Helens College
Aaron Hilton — Leeds College of Building
Aaron Horrobin — Cardiff and Vale College
Lee Jones — Cardiff and Vale College
Kieran Magee — Southern Regional College
Jack Radford — New College, Nottingham
Armondas Tamulis — Southern Regional College
Christopher Weston — Cardiff and Vale College
Patrick Wong — South and City College Birmingham
Malcolm Worley — St Helens College

(SOURCE: www.tiles.org.uk)

Trainee tilers to compete for national title at The Skills Show

The best trainee tile fixers from across the UK will be competing for the national title at this year’s Skills Show in November. The Tile Association is the lead competition supplier for the wall and floor tiling competition and is providing the prizes for the gold, silver and bronze medal winners.

The Skills Show is the UK’s leading skills and careers event for young people and takes place from 19th to 21st November at the NEC in Birmingham. The wall and floor tiling competition is one of 60 trade finals being held.

Regional heats have taken place at colleges across the UK this year under the watchful eye of Dave Rowley from BAL, chairman of the TTA’s supply chain training committee.

Finalists now move on to the national event at The Skills Show, where they will aim to become UK champion. Those who excel may be selected to train in Squad UK to represent their country at WorldSkills Abu Dhabi 2017.

Tiling companies are also doing their bit to support the competition and the finalists.

As well as a cheque from the TTA, medal winners will also receive a Bellotta Pro 55 Tile Cutter.

BAL is providing the adhesives for the competition, with tiles supplied by Johnson Tiles and trims by Schluter. Suretile, meanwhile, is supplying a Tiletracker system for each finalist, which they will be able to keep after the event.

Each finalist will receive a toolbag — if your company would like to donate items to go in it, please email support@tile.org.uk as soon as possible.

There is lots more information about this year’s Skills Show at www.findafuture.org.uk/the-skills-show.

SOURCE: www.tiles.org.uk

To find out more about how we’re supporting the tilers of tomorrow click here.