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FOAMGLAS® Floorboard F for high load functions

FOAMGLAS® boards and slabs can be used for thermal insulation above a load bearing ground floor basement slabs for both refurbishment and new buildings, it can be used with many different floor finishes.

 

Because of its compressive strength FOAMGLAS® forms a non-deformable and safe support for all types of floor finishes such as screeds, in-situ asphalt finishes or pre-fabricated flooring. As FOAMGLAS® is stable and does not settle or creep, relatively thin floor finishes can be used.

 

FOAMGLAS® is suitable for all uses and provides great flexibility if the premises are to be converted subsequently and used for a different purpose. It is possible to install machines on a slab insulated with FOAMGLAS® on its top surface provided that adequate supports are used. Underground storage of documents /artefacts with shelving served by fork-lift trucks is also one of the permissible loadings for FOAMGLAS®. FOAMGLAS® is also often used in combination with a suitable surface for sporting activities.

 

Products suitable for use in this application are:

 

FOAMGLAS® Boards:            Floorboard / Floorboard F

 

FOAMGLAS® Slabs:              T4 / S3 / F

 

FOAMGLAS® Boards can be laid on a levelling layer of fine sand or on stabilised sand (sand-cement mixture).

 

FOAMGLAS® Slabs are fully bonded to the concrete using hot bitumen or a cold applied bituminous adhesive.

 

 

FOAMGLAS® Cellular Glass Insulation laid over structural floors / rafters to insulate floors, eliminates the need for reinforced cement layers due to the insulation’s high compressive strength.

 

When applied, or point loads are likely to occur on the floor, care should be taken to ensure that the components are designed for these loads. The thickness of the sand cement screed on top of FOAMGLAS® Floorboard should be calculated to limit the allowable loading on top of the thermal insulation to 233 kN/m² (Floorboard) and 530 kN/m² (Floorboard F), this allows for a safety factor of 3.

 

If high water and humidity levels are present in the ground, the FOAMGLAS® insulation should be fully bonded and joints sealed with either hot bitumen, or a cold applied bituminous adhesive and protected if necessary with a multi-layer bituminous waterproofing prior to laying the polyethylene separating sheet and casting the slab. When FOAMGLAS® Slabs are fully bonded and joints sealed they provide an effective screen not only to raising damp by capillary action, but also stagnant water or water infiltration from the soil.

 

In some instances, FOAMGLAS® slabs can replace the building’s damp proofing and can stop damp rising towards the inside of the building. The various floor finishes, wearing courses or alternative screeds are thus effectively protected from damage caused by moisture.

 For more information visit http://www.foamglas.co.uk/structural-floors.htm where further literature is available on request.