If you’re building or renovating a swimming pool or spa, choosing beautiful mosaics is only half the job.
What you use behind those tiles is every bit as important as the tiles themselves.
For many years, pool tiling systems could involve adding separate additives to adhesives and grouts to achieve the performance required for permanently submerged areas.
Products and systems have continued to develop.
At Bargain Factory Tile Outlet, our recommended pool tile adhesive for our pool-safe glass and porcelain mosaics is SikaTile®-410 Secure Set – a premium white tile and stone adhesive specifically designed by Sika for demanding applications, including submerged areas such as swimming pools and spas.
If you’re looking for the right pool tile adhesive – or pool tile glue, as it’s often called – it’s important to choose a product specifically designed for submerged applications.
Secure Set isn’t simply a general-purpose tile adhesive that we’re suggesting people use in a swimming pool.
Sika specifically lists SikaTile®-410 Secure Set as suitable for internal and external walls and floors in wet and submerged areas, including pools and spas.
It is also suitable for a wide range of tile types, including:
– Glass tiles and glass mosaics
– Porcelain tiles
– Ceramic tiles
– Large-format porcelain tiles (including popular sizes such as 1200 × 600 mm)
– Suitable natural stone (Not moisture sensitive types – Please refer to our ‘Stone Types & Protection’ page – *Link*)
– Terracotta
– Suitable agglomerates and terrazzo
It carries a C2TES1 classification under AS ISO 13007 and is a premium white adhesive, making it particularly suitable for applications including glass mosaics and light or translucent stone.
Secure Set also incorporates Sika’s patented DUST LESS® Technology, which Sika states can reduce airborne dust during mixing by up to 80%.
It is sand and silica free and contains no respirable crystalline silica.
Not every tile adhesive is designed to spend its life underwater.
When choosing a swimming pool tile adhesive, one of the first things to check is whether the manufacturer specifically approves the product for submerged applications such as pools and spas.
You also need to consider the type of tile being installed.
For our range, we wanted a glass mosaic tile adhesive that was also suitable for porcelain pool mosaics and permanent submerged applications.
That’s one of the main reasons we recommend SikaTile®-410 Secure Set.
Sika lists Secure Set as suitable for submerged pools and spas as well as glass tiles, glass mosaics and porcelain tiles, making it suitable as both a glass mosaic adhesive and porcelain pool tile adhesive for these applications.
Rather than simply choosing an ordinary adhesive and hoping it will perform underwater, you’re starting with a product specifically designed for this type of demanding application.
One of the biggest changes in tile installation technology is that installers now have access to adhesives specifically formulated for demanding applications.
Older systems could require an installer to take a conventional adhesive and introduce a separate additive to achieve the performance required for applications such as swimming pools and spas.
With SikaTile®-410 Secure Set, the adhesive itself is specifically designed and classified for submerged applications.
That makes choosing the adhesive much simpler.
You are starting with a premium adhesive that Sika has designed for applications including swimming pools, spas, glass mosaics and porcelain tiles.
Of course, that doesn’t mean the other parts of the installation can be ignored.
Correct substrate preparation, waterproofing where required, movement joints, adhesive coverage, installation technique and compliance with relevant Australian Standards remain extremely important.
A swimming pool is one place where getting the complete tiling system right matters.
This is another area where products have improved.
In the past, installers would often add a separate additive to cement-based grout to increase its performance.
Today, there are purpose-designed high-performance pool tile grouts available.
For example, SikaCeram®-690 Elite is a high-performance grout that Sika lists for pools and spas, as well as glass, mosaic and porcelain tiles. It is already synthetic-resin modified and has water and dirt-repellent and stain-resistant properties.
That means you shouldn’t automatically assume every swimming pool grout needs a separate additive simply because that’s how it may have been done in the past.
There may still be circumstances where a particular grout, additive or epoxy grout is preferred. The right choice can depend on the pool, water conditions, tile, joint size and performance required.
Our advice is to choose a grout specifically approved for your pool application and follow the manufacturer’s system and instructions.
SikaTile®-410 Secure Set comes in a 20 kg bag.
For pool mosaic installations, the appropriate trowel size will depend on the mosaic, substrate and installation requirements. A 6 mm or 8 mm notched trowel may be used depending on the circumstances and coverage required.
As a useful guide, Sika’s technical information indicates that a 20 kg bag provides approximately:
Actual coverage will vary depending on the substrate, its flatness and porosity, trowel angle and installation technique.
Most importantly, the objective isn’t simply to stretch a bag over as many square metres as possible. The adhesive must be applied to achieve the required adhesive coverage behind the tiles in accordance with the relevant Australian Standards and Sika’s installation requirements.
This is one of the most important pieces of advice we can give.
Both Sika and Bargain Factory Tile Outlet recommend giving the adhesive adequate time to properly cure before filling your newly tiled pool or spa.
For SikaTile®-410 Secure Set, Sika specifies 21 days before filling submerged applications such as pools and spas with water.
Other adhesive systems may specify slightly faster curing periods, but this isn’t a stage you want to rush.
Tile adhesive takes time to properly cure, particularly when the completed installation is going to remain permanently submerged. Trying to shorten the manufacturer’s recommended curing period could create unnecessary problems down the track.
Our advice is simple:
Take the 21 days now rather than risk problems later.
You’ve spent the money building or renovating the pool. Give the tiling system the curing time its manufacturer specifies before filling it.
This is where Bargain Factory Tile Outlet can make a significant difference.
SikaTile®-410 Secure Set is a premium adhesive. When checking advertised prices online, we have seen Secure Set offered for up to around $90 per 20 kg bag.
At Bargain Factory Tile Outlet, our current price is:
SikaTile®-410 Secure Set – $36 per 20 kg bag
That means you’re getting a premium Sika adhesive designed for demanding applications, including swimming pools and spas, at a price comparable to what you might expect to pay for a more ordinary tile adhesive elsewhere.
It’s another reason we believe Bargain Factory Tile Outlet is one of the cheapest places in Sydney to buy quality tile adhesive.
Importantly, you don’t need to buy a pallet to get our $36 price.
You can buy Secure Set by the individual bag.
For pool builders, tilers and larger projects, we also offer SikaTile®-410 Secure Set by the full pallet.
A full pallet contains:
Our current pallet price is:
$2,148 per pallet
That works out at approximately $33.56 per bag, saving more than $156 across a 64-bag pallet compared with purchasing the same quantity individually at $36 per bag.
Better still, the pallet offer includes delivery with an all-terrain forklift.
Adhesive is delivered by the pallet and placed as close as safely and practically possible to the required area, subject to suitable site and vehicle access.
This can be particularly useful on building sites where conventional delivery vehicles may have difficulty accessing the area.
At Bargain Factory Tile Outlet, the mosaics we sell for use inside swimming pools are identified as pool-safe mosaics.
That includes our range of glass pool mosaics, with a new range of pool-safe porcelain mosaics also coming.
But buying a pool-safe mosaic is only one part of creating a successful pool installation.
The tile, adhesive, grout, substrate preparation, waterproofing system where applicable, movement joints, installation method and curing time all need to work together.
That’s why we recommend SikaTile®-410 Secure Set with our pool mosaics.
It’s purpose-designed for demanding tile and stone installations, suitable for glass mosaics and porcelain, suitable for submerged pools and spas, and available from BFTO at a price that makes stepping up to a premium adhesive surprisingly affordable.
Don’t spend thousands of dollars creating a beautiful swimming pool and then try to save a few dollars on what holds the tiles to it.
Use a tile that’s suitable for the pool.
Use a pool tile adhesive that’s suitable for permanent submersion.
Use an appropriate pool-rated grout.
Follow the manufacturer’s installation and curing requirements.
And give the completed system the time it needs before filling the pool.
Do it properly once, and then enjoy the pool.
Choose a tile adhesive specifically approved by its manufacturer for submerged applications. BFTO recommends SikaTile®-410 Secure Set for our pool-safe glass and porcelain mosaics.
Yes. Sika lists SikaTile®-410 Secure Set as suitable for wet and submerged applications, including swimming pools and spas.
Yes. Sika lists glass tiles and glass mosaics among the suitable tile types for SikaTile®-410 Secure Set.
Yes. Secure Set is suitable for porcelain tiles and submerged applications including pools and spas.
Sika specifies 21 days before filling submerged applications such as swimming pools and spas with water.
Bargain Factory Tile Outlet currently sells SikaTile®-410 Secure Set for $36 per 20 kg bag, with discounted full-pallet pricing also available.
Not necessarily. Modern high-performance grouts can be specifically formulated for swimming pools and spas. Always use a grout approved for the application and follow the manufacturer’s instructions.
Not every tile adhesive is designed for permanent submersion. Use a tile adhesive specifically approved by its manufacturer for submerged applications such as swimming pools and spas, and always follow the manufacturer’s current installation instructions.
Use an adhesive specifically approved for both glass mosaics and submerged applications. For BFTO’s pool-safe glass mosaics, we recommend SikaTile®-410 Secure Set because Sika lists it as suitable for glass mosaics and submerged areas including swimming pools and spas.
Pool and spa installations should always comply with the relevant Australian Standards, individual product data sheets and project-specific requirements. Conditions vary between installations.
Always check the current Sika product data sheet and installation instructions before commencing work, as product requirements can change.
Where there is any uncertainty about a particular substrate, waterproofing system, tile, grout or application, seek advice from Sika Australia or an appropriately qualified installer before proceeding.
Shop BFTO’s pool-safe mosaics and SikaTile®-410 Secure Set at outlet prices.
