Islington Customer Centre, London

• Removed all contamination and loose latex with WOLFF Samba.
• UZIN PE 280 to form a barrier between the cementitious subfloor and the calcium sulphate smoothing compound.
• UZIN NC 888 rapid drying feather coat for small repair work.
• UZIN NC 110, low stress, calcium sulphate based smoothing compound.
• UZIN KE 66 high temperature adhesive for installing the luxury vinyl tiles.

The job /challenge

The client approached Olivers Contracts to refurbish 900 m2 of old flooring which had become contaminated and worn from general foot traffic. There were also a few cracks in certain areas. A floor covering had not been present for several years and instead the old subfloor had been coated with some form of seal and paint. Overall, the floor appeared soft and a little unstable which indicated a weak latex based smoothing compound had been installed previously. It was also clearly visible that small areas across the floor had been patched in suggesting previous failures in those areas.  

A further concern for Olivers Contracts was that premium luxury vinyl tiles needed to be installed within open and expansive areas containing large windows. Consequently, the floor would be subject to a considerable amount of natural light and potential heat. The floor preparation and installation therefore had to be perfect. On top of this the footfall in these areas was going to be high so the installation system needed to be strong even though it would be applied over a soft latex subfloor. Olivers Contracts needed to resolve the problems with the subfloor whilst ensuring the subsequent installation of the new floor covering was adequately protected. For peace of mind Olivers Contracts chose a UZIN system because minimising risk was essential. 

The solution / implementation

Previous installations had been undertaken by other contractors by applying low strength latex based smoothing compounds. This resulted in a soft subfloor because the seal and paint were applied directly to the latex. Olivers Contracts therefore turned to UZIN’s premium quality product systems to resolve the problem. A Wolff Samba machine with a diamond bits was first used to remove all contamination and loose latex. UZIN NC 888 feather coat was then used in a few small areas before UZIN PE 280 primer was used to create a barrier between the cementitious subfloor and UZIN NC 110 calcium sulphate based smoothing compound. The luxury vinyl tiles were then installed with UZIN KE 66 high temperature adhesive.  

Olivers Contracts decided to use UZIN NC 110 smoothing compound as it provided the perfect solution to remedy the projects problems. The product is virtually stress free which dealt with the soft and suspect subfloor whilst offering a strong compressive strength for the new floor covering. The flow and ‘glass like’ smooth finish were ideal and the great coverage provided an added bonus.

The result

The project took place over 4 weekends as planned, without any complications. The client was exceptionally pleased with the finish throughout all areas and there hasn’t been any form of subfloor or product failure since the work was completed. Gareth Jenkins, Project Manager at Islington Council said “I am very pleased with the quality and appearance of the finished flooring and with the performance of Olivers Contracts in laying it.”