Stone carpet: styling technology, photo

Stone carpet (polymer-quartz coating) - a kind of liquid (bulk) floor, consisting of a mixture of quartz sand, marble chips, etc. and polyurethane or epoxy resins. Advantages of this flooring:

• Absence of seams (hence the conventional name "carpet");
• Perfectly smooth surface, preventing slipping;
• Stability against high loads and temperature changes;
• durability;
• Unusual appearance, imitating the texture of natural stone;
• Ease of maintenance.

Due to its anti-slip properties, a stone carpet will be a good solution for decorating the floor in the bathroom, in the kitchen, next to the pool, ramp or exit. It can be used for landscape design, decoration of walls, countertops, bar counters, etc.

Operating procedure

1. The choice of carpet design and selection of a mineral mixture for its implementation.
2. Calculation of the required quantity of materials.
3. Preparation of the base under the stone carpet.
4. Filling the floor.
5. Finishing.

Design selection

In the composition for the mineral component of the carpet, it is recommended to combine sand with a particle size of 4-6 mm, fine sand, quartz shavings. For the design of a luxury floor covering, it is possible to use natural and semiprecious stones, decorative inclusions (shells, mirror crumbs, etc.). It is desirable to combine at least 2-3 shades of sand or crumbs. The color of sand can be any - selected according to the RAL table. Proven combinations:

• Red, orange, yellow;
• Purple, blue, blue.

Lovers of original ideas in design may like a luminous filler for a polymer-quartz coating, which consists of fluorescent sand. Sand particles can have different shapes, which will also help create a unique design of the floor covering. In addition, it will be decorated by various drawings or logos. For those who do not have artistic abilities, a simple way to create an unusual stone carpet - photo From the web.

Calculation of the required quantity of materials

The mixture from which the stone carpet is obtained is most often sold in plastic buckets of 20 kg. The kit includes:

• Mineral filler (sand, marble or granite chips, etc.) - 19 kg;
• Polymeric binder based on resin - 1 kg.

One set is enough to cover 1 square. M. Area, if you fill the floor with a thickness of not more than 1 cm. To correctly calculate the area of the future carpet, it is recommended to make a drawing of the floor surface with all the protrusions, niches, podiums, steps, etc. The covered surface should be divided into geometrically correct figures, Each of them, add up the results of calculations and add a few square meters. M for the stock.

In addition to this mixture, you will need a primer to prepare the base and finish varnish. The consumption of soil (ready-made diluted composition) is approximately 300 g per square meter. M. Finish varnish, depending on the required roughness of the surface of the carpet and the size of the sand particles, 300-1000 g per sq. M. M.

Basis under the stone carpet

As a basis for a polymer-quartz coating, concrete floor, old tile, sand cement cement screed and others can act. The only mandatory requirement is strength. Check it in the following simple way. The sharp end of the hammer weighing 0,3-0,4 kg you need to tap the screed in different places 25-30 times. If the surface is strong enough, then on the screed there will be no traces more than 3 mm deep, and the more so cracks and chips. The sound of the hammer must be ringing. If these conditions are not met, then the surface needs to be hardened.

To prevent the risk of detachment of the already finished stone coating, it is necessary to carry out a humidity test in advance. To do this, a piece of film should be glued to the floor with an adhesive tape for a day. If everything is in order, after removing the film under it there will be no wet spots.

To qualitatively make a stone carpet, you first need to carefully clean the debris and dirt from the surface that it will cover. If the carpet is applied to concrete, then first you need to clean its pores. Using a grinder, the upper loose layer is carefully removed. Then you need to repair all cracks and holes on the concrete. To complete the cleaning, it is recommended to collect all small building debris with a vacuum cleaner.

Further preparation of the floor is the application of soil. It can be purchased together with the material for the filling or to prepare yourself. Primer "home production" is a mixture of glue PVA with water in a proportion of 1: 2 (per liter of glue you need two liters of water). You can add a little chalk to the mixture. If necessary or if desired, ground can be used to treat the surface with antifungal components.

The primer should be thoroughly stirred and used for an hour. After diluting the primer, it is applied to the floor with a roller, brush or brush in two or three layers, letting each dry. Apply the composition is recommended by the technology "cross-wise", that is, shading it in perpendicular directions. The layer of soil dries out in about 10-12 hours. All pores on the concrete after the primer should be closed. After making sure of this, you can start applying a stone carpet. The technology of laying is simple, but it is still desirable to entrust this work to experienced specialists.

How to lay a polymer-quartz coating?

With a lack of financial resources for repair, you can lay a stone carpet with your own hands. On the surface previously cleaned from the dust, a layer of binder (enamel, lacquer) is evenly applied. Then a layer of mineral filler is poured, so that the sand remains dry on top. After 12 hours, the main layer of the carpet will dry. After this, excess sand is swept off its surface (it can be reused if garbage is not added to the mixture). With a metal scraper, all the coating is leveled, protrusions, "bumps" etc. are removed. Then the surface is cleaned of dust by a vacuum cleaner.

Finishing

After dedusting it is necessary to fix a stone carpet. The manufacturing technology assumes a finishing finish with a binder component (special varnish based on epoxy or polyurethane resins, enamel). The thickness of the layer depends on the roughness of the surface to be achieved. After 6-8 hours after applying the last layer of varnish or enamel, the stone carpet is ready for use.