a.b.e.® has incorporated some of its popular fast-track self-levelling flooring systems with three new products to launch a comprehensive “one-stop product basket” for the flooring industry.
a.b.e.®, with head office in Boksburg, is part of Saint-Gobain Africa.
a.b.e.®’s self-levelling flooring basket includes three new products to deal, firstly, with concrete repairs, then a new product that reduces vapour emissions, and finally a keying slurry.
The new product to deal with concrete repairs is abe.®rep FS, a fast-setting, rapid fixing cementitious mortar. “abe.®rep FS is particularly useful to repair smaller concrete floor patches with minimal downtime. The product can be used to fill holes in concrete floors prior to the application of self-levelling underlays and screeds,” says Peter Jones, a.b.e.®’s National Manager: Flooring. “The chloride-free mortar is supplied ready-to-use, requiring only water, and offers up to 80% reduction in dust during handling and mixing.”
To further enhance applicator challenges on site, is a.b.e.®’s new abecote Vapour Barrier, a solvent-free, two-component epoxy resin that reduces moisture vapour emission by reducing the water permeability tempo through the concrete substrates. Secondly, a.b.e.® is offering a keying slurry which is a modified, single-pack acrylic emulsion slurry containing fine silica filler for promoting keying, smoothing surfaces and impermeable surfaces like tiles prior to the application of abescreed self-levelling screeds such as abe®screed SLCP 15 and abe®screed SLCP 25.
“These two renowned abescreed products are rapid hardening cement-based screeds for levelling floors where quick setting is essential. The products are designed for screeds with compressive strengths of 15 and 25 MPa, respectively, and are ideal for fast track refurbishment and new construction where finishes such as carpets, ceramic tiles, vinyl, wood block or cork need to be applied quickly” Jones explains.
Used in office buildings, dwellings, shops, public buildings, schools, hospitals and airports where a fast track, smooth underlay is required, a.b.e.’s range of screeds can be walked on after four to eight hours and are protein-free and will not harbour any bacteria.
These screeds can also be coated with these three epoxies in the a.b.e.®. flooring combo that are current, widely-specified products: a.b.e.® flooring resin, abe.®cote 400 Hi-build, and abe.®flo.
a.b.e.® flooring resin is a solvent-free, low viscosity epoxy resin binding/sealing system for a variety of a.b.e.® cementitious screeds. The resin has reduced moisture and carbon dioxide sensitivity and offers strong chemical resistance and will effectively cure even in temperatures as low as 10 degrees Celsius.
The other two epoxies in the a.b.e.® package, abe.®cote 400 Hi-build, and abe.®flo, are both solvent-free systems comprising a clear resin and hardener, pre-packed filler and supplied pigment paste. “These acclaimed protective epoxy systems – available in a range of colours – are seamlessly hygienic. Epoxy systems can be used as a binder for abrasive grit to provide non-slip finishes,” Jones states.
In the overlay section of the one-stop basket is one of a.b.e.®’s most respected floor coatings with a track record of about 35 years: abe.®cote WD 337, a two part, water-dispersed tough epoxy paint that produces a durable floor coating that is not only decorative but also robust enough to protect factory and warehouse floors, such as at chicken farms, dairies, motor workshops, shopping centres, wine cellars, and even battery plants with acidic environment,” Jones adds.
Finally, the other overlay in the a.b.e.® flooring package is abe.®screed dura.Top, a quick-hardening, self-smoothing cement-based overlay with shrinkage-compensation. Quick-drying, this product can be used in combination with a.b.e. epoxies or polyurethane toppings to boost aesthetics and resistance to wear and chemicals. “The dustless product is normally applied after 24 hours on screed thicknesses up to 10mm and its durability has won widespread acclaim from the local flooring sector,” Jones concludes.
