Dural Durabase CI plus plus Ceramic Tile Underlayment per SF

Dural Durabase CI++ Ceramic Tile Underlayment

Get the same product (different color) for LESS! Prova Flex is made in the same factory and simply sold through a separate channel. We will usually ship the version of the product with the lowest cost and best availability at any given time. The distribution channel for CI++ is currently lower than the Prova flex version of this product. The Prova Flex listing is here: Prova Flex All performance characteristics detailed on this page also apply to Prova Flex including TCNA tested rating of EXTRA HEAVY.

The New and Improved Crack-Isolation Underlayment

Now with Even Better Performance!

Replace the need for cement board and get performance that far exceeds conventional products to protect your costly tile and grout installation. This durable, lightweight tile underlayment is elastic, rot proof and resistant to aggressive substances. Durabase-CI++ provides a decoupling layer while supporting tremendous loads.

39.5 inch wide product.

Allows independent movement between the sub floor and the finished surface.

Unlike other products like Ditra, the Dural Durabase-CI++ design utilizes optimized cavities of alternating shapes to provide more bonding strength and adhesion and to help prevent the trowel from catching on the underlayment during installation. A unique open-mesh polypropylene "rebar" top layer of Durabase-CI++ provides even more secure bonding of the tile surface to this underlayment. It also provides more stabilization of the flooring and prevents "roll-off" when skimming thin-set into the top layer before tiling. Finally, the "rebar" mesh provides maximum resistance to mechanical loading thus allowing the membrane to achieve the highest possible performance ratings for TCNA testing.

• Protects the sub floor from moisture penetration.
• Replaces second layer of plywood and/or concrete board for ceramic tile installation.
• Exclusively designed for ceramic tile surfaces.
• Eliminate the primary cause of cracking by negating stress between sub floor and tile surface.
• CI++ can be laid on green concrete - as soon as it is hard enough to walk on.
• Thicker, reinforced fiber bottom fleece increases adhesion surface area and guarantees optimal bonding between mat and subfloor. The reinforced material also assists in minimizing shear stresses.
• Bridges cracks and alleviates stress
• 20% less adhesive required due to optimized shape of dimples.
• Installs faster than many competing products - adhesives stays put and doesn't roll out of dimples.
• Less stiff than some competing products - easier to unroll, flatten and mould to the subfloor.
• Waterproofs and allows moisture in the substrate to evaporate.

Click for Installation Guide

Apply over single layer 5/8" plywood or OSB, with 16" on-center joist spacing, with tongue-and-groove plywood. (Can also use on 3/4" plywood/OSB with 19.2" on-center joist spacing or 1-3/8" substrate for 24" on-center joist spacing.)

For natural stone floor coverings, use a double wood floor with minimum total thickness of 1-3/8"

• Apply over OSB.
• Apply over concrete - even concrete that has cured less than 28 days.
• Apply over cracked concrete.
• Apply over damp basement floors or radiant-heated concrete floors.

Ideal for interior tile installations. Durabase CI++ is also ideal for outside application but must be used over a hard surface (i.e. concrete board or equivalent must first be installed over any outdoor wood substrate before installing CI++.) For decks over living spaces, TCNA guidelines require a specific procedure that includes a product like CI++ but does not exclusively rely on just a single waterproofing membrane (e.g. requires other roofing products/procedures). Please contact us for more details or refer to a TCNA handbook.

Dural Durabase-CI++

Function

Ceramic and stone tiles are ideal surface products because they are durable, easy to maintain, and hygienic. Because of today's lightweight construction methods, installation of hard surface coverings can become particularly challenging. The solution is a multiple-functioning underlayment that protects the integrity of the tile assembly.

Dural Durabase-CI++ is a polyethylene membrane solution containing a pattern of circular cavities with an anchoring fleece webbing laminated to its underside. Unlike other products, Durabase CI++ also features an open mesh bonded to the top of the structure for improved tile bonding. The bottom fleece webbing allows secure bonding of Durabase-CI++ to the sub floor using thin-set mortar. A tile surface is installed over Dural Durabase-CI++ with thin-set mortar. The mortar forms bonded pillars within the circular cavities and the open mesh of the Durabase-CI++ matting.

Dural Durabase-CI++ was designed specifically for ceramic tile and natural stone installations. The Durabase-CI++ provides a comprehensive load support, an uncoupling layer, waterproofing membrane, and vapor management layer that accommodates moisture from beneath the tile covering. Durabase-CI++ neutralizes stresses and isolates cracks.

a) Uncoupling

Tile has been successfully installed for thousands of years by incorporating a forgiving uncoupling shear-interface layer below the tile assembly. Dural Durabase-CI++ provides this uncoupling to prevent stresses of any expanding, contracting or moving substrate from causing cracks or delamination of the top tile surface layer.

b) Waterproofing

The Dural Durabase-CI++ material's polyethylene composition helps prevent moisture from penetrating the substrate; many of today's substrate materials are moisture sensitive.

c) Vapor management

The Dural Durabase-CI++ construction provides air channels allowing moisture from the substrate to evaporate while neutralizing vapor pressure. Because of this feature, tiles may be installed onto foundations which are still wet (green,) usually eliminating the need for elaborate pretreatment and special adhesives.

d) Support/load distribution

Like cylindrical building columns that can support massive loads, the circular-column type mortar structures formed in the round cavities of the matting provide tremendous vertical strength. Loads on the tile surface are supported via these columns of mortar over the substrate. The Durabase-CI++ material's flexibility combined with the formed cylindrical columns of mortar provide the needed load strength AND the decoupling capability to prevent cracking of the tile surface layer. Extensive lab and installation verifies the ability of Dural Durabase-CI++ to support extreme loads while maintaining the integrity of the tile surface layer.