I too am using Laticrete 254, picked it up today. Between the hydro ban, mortar, and grout I spent $1k. It seems that in order for my coping to be level with the deck, I will be using 1/2"+ of mortar. I guess the alternative would have been to raise the bond beam higher than it originally was.
Bond beam repair
- Thread starter Davileet
- Start date
That's not bad its better to stay low and mud it up. Easier to add mud than grind and chip away concrete. The good materials are pricey but they last indefinitely. An average coping job is 4 to 5k alone
There is two spots in my bond beam that are pretty high, and when placing a coping on top its almost flush with the deck without any mortar. What is the minimum amount of mortar you recommend? And should I plan to chip or grind the bond beam down in those high spots?
Normally I'd say grind it down. If you can get a solid clean pass of thinset under the coping it will hold. 254 is crazy strong stuff the coping will break before the mud will. Yiu could always take a grinder and make a divot in center to have a little spot of thicker mud. When grouted coping gets very strong it bites to the next pieces as well
Thank you. I will go ahead and chip them down a bit. I put hydroban on the high spots already, but luckily I have more to spare. I purchased about 1 bag too many unfortunately.
Easiest way is to take a grinder and make parallel slices the same depth and just chip them right out. Keeps you from making a mess it's a controlled mess
That is a good idea. It's funny I hadn't thought of that yet, cause I actually ended up having to do that to remove some excess material that pushed out the concrete form a bit. Tomorrow is the big day of dry setting the coping, and hopefully moving on to installing them.
For the coping grout, do I just use the 254 or do I use the Spectralock grout?
Got all the coping stones dry set. Will be putting them in permanently tomorrow. Wasn't terribly difficult honestly, but I think that may be attributed to my particular measurements I took.
Spill it!! How did you measure those?? You have some mad skills!!! WOW!
I use type S mortar for grout. I just tint it if I need it a different shade. I always seal the coping before grouting you can easily leave stains and residue on them. I would recommend sealing them especially with that lighter color. The coping looks great and well fitted btw
I bought the coping stones from a company called Federal Stone. I had to purchase a measuring chart from them, which is basically just plexiglass with lines that have different radius markings on it. Here is a video showing what I am talking about. Video Link
As for placing the stones and cutting them, I put full pieces in where I could, and where the radius changed a bit and a cut piece was needed, I would put the stone to be cut on the bond beam, and overlap the neighboring stones on top marking a 1/2" over for the cut line. I had a stick that was cut to 1/2" thick to act as a grout line measurement tool I would fit in between stones, and also used it as a marking tool.
Thank you. I do feel the stones turned out better than my initial expectations.
Federal stone actually does not recommend using a sealer it seems. From their website -
"The stones will come from Federal Stone® without a sealer applied. Since the stones are porous and will be set in a wet mudbed, the mositure needs to be able to work it's way out of the stone. If the stones are still hydrating when a sealer is applied, the moisture could get trapped inside, causing a discoloration to the stone. Further, placing a sealer on top will in turn cause a maintenance issue due to re-application. If a sealer is imperative, then just make sure it is water based because an acrylic sealer will cause a slip concern."
Do you think a sealer is imperative? If so I can always get a water based sealer as they suggest.
https://www.lowes.com/pd/MAPEI-Larg...hite-Powder-Thinset-Medium-Bed-Mortar/3743785
Would something like this work you think? The only type s mortar I can find is gray, and white is preferable for sure.
Dont use thinset. It wont hold up. Ne aware light colors get dirty easily. I only use water base sealer unless I need a darkening then I use dual guard which penetrates and gives wet look. You dont have alot of joints. Just carefully tape off each seam and add a foot of plastic to ne safe on either side. Grout and then get it looking good sponging and tooling the joint then pull tape. No issues and easy on large format coping. If you use grout make sure its exterior rated and go back and seal it especially with a light color. Same deal tape it off
So should I be using a gray type s mortar? I was just assuming since the coping was white, I would be using a white grout. Which sealer do you recommend?
That radius guide is neat. You sure put it to great use and did an awesome job!! Well done!!!
I hope you can find white grout!
Kim
I hope you can find white grout!
Kim
Grey type S is a standard grout for coping. You can use whatever you prefer. Any tile grout has to be outdoor rated it will be polymer fortified for strength. Not much difference in sealers I use pave seal only because my supply house carries tons of it and they have the full line. For tile grout sealer find one that's outdoor rated
Does Laticrete make a good product to use as grout for the coping? I haven't quite gotten to the point where the coping needs grout, but possibly tomorrow I will.
They do if you can get it. All major brands carry something for outdoor thats rated. I never use it I do mainly paver coping and decks