as mentioned in an earlier posting i am doing a 250m2 latex job soon and will be using the itools stand up latex trowel/rake, it has a serated blade like a comb. has anyone else used one of these and do you have any tips?
Sorry, no tips, but very interested to hear how you get on. Did you buy there mixer/bucket type thing on wheels ? looks like a good system.
dont have the itools knuckle joint for standing up, but have been using a screeding comb for the last few yrs Its brilliant Be warned tho, its not so good if the floor level is rough Smooth/flat floor only imo If its too bad you can always substitute the comb for the pin leveller
the thing that worries me most is will it leave serated marks in the latex or is it not an issue ? i will be using arditex NA then rolling it with a spike roller.
hi mate, the trowel belongs to a mate and i,ve been wanting to try it out for ages before i decide if i want one or not. i will be using my own mixing drill in an 80lt plastic dustbin on my carpet tile trolley lol. (the budget option)
Only gonna have probs if the mix is too thick, a good flowing unit like NA is fantastic, no marks at all, like a babys bum! You shouldne have line mark prob unless its a really hot day etc
A strange question but does anyone know the angle of the bracket that hold on between the handle and the trowel?
I've used a serrated comb trowel for years now on all areas I do and have never had a problem with trowel marks. Like others I use a spike roller after to leave a very smooth surface. The one I use has 6mm teeth and with the angle I hold it, it gives approx. 3mm depth of screed. I tend to hold it just proud of the sub floor so it doesn't drag across the base. If you can afford it get the i-tools bucket and trolley it is sooooo much easier to be able to plop the screed just where you want it and working on my own is a lot easier on the old (literally) back!
Used the itools stand up latex trowel today and these are my observations..... I approached it with some trepidation as the teeth on the trowel were soooooo serated and deep ( great for spreading ceramic tile adhesive i thought) i just didnt think i could achieve a smooth finish with it, but to my surprise i got the sort of finish i would never get with a normal latexing trowel. It took a little while to get used to but once i got comfortable with it i was at the races. I was mixing 4 units at a time in a plastic dustbin. If there was a downside i would say if you are doing very large areas and your on your own like i was today using ardex NA once you have spread an area then go back to mix some more and return to spread you can get a bit of cross over between semi dry latex and freshly mixed/spread latex which can leave a nasty little join between the two which i can feather out tomorrow with no problem i guess. The answer would maybe be to have a lad just mixing for you into 2 buckets so there are no breaks in the spreading. I,m also not too sure what it would be like spreading thicker and notoriously hard to get smooth latex such as ardex yellow bag. But it did save a lot of strain on the back, knees, shoulders, and arms which is always a good thing so i think all in all i will be investing in one. I also think the more you use it the quicker you will get at spreading latex which is obvious really, and they also do a pin leveller which i would like to also try. Thumbs up from me.
