Installation Guide

EXTERIOR APPLICATIONS — Exterior Concrete Floors, Patios, and Walkways 13
Every substrate presents unique challenges
EXTERIOR APPLICATIONS
Ceramic and stone tiles are ideal surface coverings for the exterior and have been used successfully for thousands of years. Exterior
balconies and terraces are ideal opportunities for the installation of tiled surfaces. However, these installations have typically presented
significant challenges to tile setters. Since hard surface coverings are rigid by nature and have different physical properties compared to
virtually every substrate, they cannot be bonded directly to the substrate, particularly in exterior applications where they are exposed to
potentially severe climatic changes and the recurring introduction of moisture.
Schluter
®
-DITRA’s uncoupling function protects the ceramic or stone tile covering by neutralizing the differential
movement stresses between the substrate and the tile, thus eliminating the major cause of cracking and delaminating of
the tiled surface. This is particularly important since these stresses are magnified by the significant temperature gradients
common to exterior applications.
DITRA provides effective waterproofing that will protect the tile assembly from the recurring introduction of water, which
is common in exterior applications.
The free space beneath the DITRA matting provides a route for any residual moisture in the substrate to escape. This is
especially important when installing tile over a young slab, concrete slabs subject to moisture migration, or a fresh mortar
bed.
Since DITRA is virtually incompressible within the tile assembly, the advantages of uncoupling are achieved without
sacrificing point load distribution capabilities.
Because DITRA is uniquely engineered to provide uncoupling, vapor management, and waterproofing, all of which are essential functions in
exterior environments, it provides a reliable installation system for ceramic and stone tile surface coverings in exterior applications.