b'ASK THE EXPERTSASK THE EXPERTSInstallationarethemethodsthat is sponsored by discuss tiling over an existing tile installation.Inaddition,the 2018/2019edi-tion of the NTCA Reference Manual section Tile Over STRATA_MATisanext-gen- OtherSurfaces eration, high-performance uncou- (page257) plingmembranebyLATICRETEincludesmore foruseunderceramictileandinformation,suchastheneedto stoneinstallations,forbothresi- prepthetilesurfacebyscarifica-dential and commercial applica- tionorapplicationofspecialized tions. Designed to replace tradi- primerstopromotebondtothe tional underlayment materials, theexisting tile surface.uniquepatent-pendingdesignofAs you have sensed, it is critical STRATA_MAT provides for an en- thatyouthoroughlyanalyzethe hanced mechanical bond of thecomponentsoftheexistingtile adhesive mortar with faster dryinginstallationtodeterminewheth-and a shorter time to grout. eritwasproperlyinstalledand Productfeaturesincludevaporwhether it will serve as a quality management and the eliminationsubstrate for the new installation ofthetransmissionofin-planeyouarelookingtobondtoit. substrate cracks of up to 1/8 (3Since all components of the exist-mm) when used in direct bond ap- inginstallationwillbecomethe plications. STRATA_MAT can alsonewsubstrate,itmustbecare-be used with both modied andfullyanalyzedtodetermineifit unmodied mortars and is part ofwill successfully support the new theLATICRETELifetimeSystemtileinstallation.TheSubstrate Warranty. www.laticrete.com Requirementssectionofthe TCNA Handbook (pages 30 - 33 ofthe2019edition)areworth reviewing.Itmaybenecessarytoremove sometiles,bondcoat,andany underlayment to ensure they were correctlyinstalled.Sometimes, drilling a series of core samples is a good way to determine the adequa-cyoftheexistinginstallationand 28TileLetter | September 2019'