Ditra 1

**Rich** · 29-01-2010

Hello all. I have noticed a lot of people asking questions about Schluter Ditra. I was lucky enough to spend a very interesting day with the Schluter rep a couple of weeks ago so I thought as Im in bed with man flu Id put up what info I had got from him. Apologies If this info is already on the forum, its just that I think it is very important the we all know as much as poss about the products we use.

Summary of Functions
A) Uncoupling
Schluter Ditra uncouples the floor covering from the substrate and neutralises the tensions between the substrate and the tile covering that result from the varying deformations of the materials. Likewise stress cracks in the substrate are bridged and are, therefore, not transferred to the surface covering.

B) Waterproofing
Schluter Ditra is a waterproof membrane with a relatively high vapour diffusion density. Privided the joints,floor/wall connections, and connections to building fixtures are properly installed, Ditra creates a waterproofing assembly with the tile covering that meets the requirements of the mandatory guideline "Recommendation on waterproofing in conjunction with panelling and tile and paver coverings in interior and exterior applications". Thus Ditra protects the substrate against damage due to moisture penetration and aggressive substances.

C) Equalisation of Vapour Pressure
The interconnected air channels between the underside of the Ditra matting remain open. This allows moisture in the substrate to evaporate, thus neutralising vapour pressure.

D) Load Distrabution (Load Impact)
The bottom of the square cavities in Ditra , which are filled with thin-bed adhesive, directly transfer the load impact on the tile covering to the substrate. As a consequence, tile coverings installed on top of Ditra are highly load resistant. If high traffic loads are expected (e.g. industrial locations), the tiles selected for the istallation must be of the corresponding thickness and pressure stability.
In areas with high impact loads, the tiles must be fully embedded in the thin-bed adhesive. The contact surface of Ditra amounts to approximately 50% of the total surface. This can reduce the load bearing compacity in case of point loads. for high point loads, select a tile thickness that is capable of distributing the loads. Ceramic tile coverings should not be exposed to the direct impact of hard objects. The tile dimentions should be at least 50mm x 50.

E) Adhesive Properties
Due to the bonding of the anchoring fleece into the thin-bed adhesive on the underside and the machanical anchoring of the adhesive in the cut back cavities, Ditra achieves a good adhesion of the tile covering to the substrate (lab test value:~ 0.25N/mm2). Consequently, Ditra can be used for wall and floor covering. Anchor plugs may be used with wall covering if necessary.