Substrates: The Plywood to be covered with ceramic tile shall be of exterior grade, clean and free of dirt, oil, grease, and paint. The plywood on wall should be minimum thickness of 5/8” (15mm) exterior grade. The maximum deflection under all live, dead and impact loads shall not exceed the industry standard of L/360 for a ceramic tile L/480 for natural stone. Note:

• Plywood is not a suitable substrate for exterior tile installation or interior areas subject to constant water exposure
• The joints between two Plywood sheets should be continued through to the top of the tile. At no point of time, tiles should be installed directly on the joints

Surface Preparation: a) Ensure the substrate is clean and free from impurities like dust, dirt, debris, oil, grease etc b) Check the plywood sheet for any coatings like anti-termite coating, water proof coating etc., In case of coatings, remove the same with sand paper scrubbing c) Dampen the plywood sheet before application of thin set adhesive d) Clean the back of tile for any dust or coating Mixing: The products can be mixed by hand or slow speed electric drill mixer (less than 300 rpm). Pour LATICRETE® 333 latex admix in a clean container and then add the powder LATICRETE® 290 until the mixture becomes creamy and plastic. Do Not Over mix. Leave the mix to slake for 5-10 min and remix before use. Mix only sufficient quantity of adhesive for immediate need. Proportion: Approximately 1 bag of LATICRETE® 290 with 6-7 ltrs of LATICRETE® 333. Adjust quantity of liquid to obtain proper consistency. Installation: Dampen the plywood surface and remove the excess water before applying the adhesive. Ensure the area is shaded from sunlight. The adhesive shall be applied with the flat side of the trowel using a scraping motion to work the material into good contact with the surface to be covered. Additional mortar is then applied with the notched edge of the trowel. When installing large tiles, spread adhesive onto back of tile in addition to trowelling material over surface to be tiled. Select proper type of notched trowel.

• Thin Tiles upto size 300 X 300 mm (1’X1’), use a square notched trowel of size 6mm X 6mm to provide a total thickness of 3mm
• Large Porcelain Tiles upto 450 X 450 mm with ribs, use a square notched trowel of size 6mm X 6mm and back butter the tiles with the same adhesive to a thickness of 1-1.5mm to provide a total thickness of 4.5mm
• Large Porcelain Tiles upto 600 X 600 mm (2’X2’) with ribs, use a square notched trowel of size 6mm X 9mm and back butter the tiles with the same adhesive to a thickness of 1-1.5mm to provide a total thickness of 6mm

The most important standard to keep in mind is to insure that the piece of tile is completely bedded in the mortar or adhesive with 100% coverage. Rear face of tiles (especially Porcelain tiles) should be cleaned with damp sponge to clean all the dust. Do not saturate in water. Excess mortar on adhesive shall be cleaned from the surface of the stone with wet cloth or sponge while the mortar is fresh.

Areas of Application

• Used in place of water with thin set adhesive for installing: ceramic tile, brick, natural stone, porcelain tile on plywood and variety of substrates.

  Suitable Substrates

• Exterior Grade Plywood (interior only)
• Cement Mortar Bed/Plaster
• Ceramic Tile & Stone
• Cement Backer Board
• Gypsum Wallboard (interior only)
• Concrete Masonry
• Cement Terrazzo