Outdoor Flooring

20 mm thickened sheets for new outdoor furnishing solutions

The Florim 20 mm thickened porcelain tile constitute a new solution for outdoor furnishing. Obtained from sprayed precious clay, quartz and metallic oxides pressed at 400 kg/cm2, they are hardened at a temperature of 2228°F and subjected to squaring with an abrasive grinding system.

Fields of Application:

Thanks to their high density, they allow a self-bearing treadable surface to be created that is suitable for use in a wide range of outdoor settings, both public and private.

• Gardens, courtyards, patios, pool entrance walkways
• Pedestrian walkways
• Terraces, balconies and porches
• Driveways Urban décor
• Business areas
• Wellness and hospitality spaces
• Public parks

Technical Advantages:

• Compact, 20 mm thick, squared and ground monolithic slab
• High resistance to static loads
• Easy to install
• Frost resistant
• R11 class A+B non-slip surface
• Thermal shock resistant
• Easy to clean
• Removable and re-usable
• Resistant to chemical agents and mildew

All the 20 mm Florim collections are suitable for making outdoor flooring.

To guarantee maximum application versatility, Florim suggests various laying solutions suitable for any outdoor terrain and surface. A careful assessment of the characteristics of the foundation is essential for the assessment of the bearing capacity of the laying surface based on the loads to which it will be subjected.

Types of installation

• Direct installation
• Raised installation
• Glued installation

Direct installation

Direct istallation is extremely easy to perform even without the use of specific tools. Ideal for creating walkways, barbecue areas or gazebos in greenery, preserving the grassy surface, flooring on grass guarantees easy removal and repositioning. Advantages:

• Practicality: easy and quick to install and remove;
• Versatility: can be removed and repositioned based, for example, on the bathing seasons;
• Flexibility of use: possibility of obtaining minimum joints, 1 cm and greater (“Japanese spacing”);
• Ecology: allows water drainage;
• Temporary nature: allows floored areas to be created where building or permanent flooring is not permitted.
• Affordability: can be performed even without specialized workers

Types of direct installation:

1. Embedded installation on a grassy surface

Embedded installation on a grassy surface is extremely easy to perform even without the use of specific tools. Flooring on grass is ideal for creating walkways, barbecue areas or gazebos in greenery, preserving the grassy surface from weight and foot traffic. Following simple warnings, the material can be installed with a minimum joint of 1 cm or greater (Japanese spacing). By guaranteeing easy removal and repositioning, direct installation flooring allows maximum flexibility and creativity in the installation phase.

Intended use

Gardens, gazebos, Entrance walkways, Perimeter areas in private pools.

Installation tips

To install on a grassy surface:

• Remove the soil below the area where the sheet will be laid to a thickness of about 5-6 cm;
• In the dug up area, apply a bed of gravel with constant granulometry to a thickness of about 3-4 cm and compact the foundation;
• Rest the ceramic slab on the gravel bed and use a rubber hammer to eliminate any unevenness.

2. Dry installation on gravel

Practical, fast and ecological, this installation method is ideal to create easy-to-lay outdoor flooring, immediately treadable and conveniently moveable and replaceable. The sheets can be dry installed by arranging them directly on gravel beds, or by embedding them individually. It is also advisable to provide another layer of gravel for rainwater drainage under the ornamental gravel spread on the surface. This system can also have either a minimum joint that arranges the sheets with a joint of at least 1 cm between them.

Intended use

Gardens, patios, courtyards, pedestrian walkways and terraces.

Installation tips

• Even out and compact the level of the resting layer;
• Rest the ceramic slab on the bed of gravel;
• Use a rubber hammer to eliminate any unevenness;
• Fill in the joints between the sheets with gravel or sand to provide greater stability to the surface.

3. Dry installation on sand

Dry installation on sand lends itself well to the same destinations as installation on gravel such as gardens, patios, pedestrian walkways and terraces and it is particularly ideal on beaches and in seaside resorts: non-slip, resistant to sea salt and wear, the sheets can be embedded in the sand to create walkways or laid against one another.

Intended use

Pedestrian walkways on beaches and in seaside resorts, gardens, patios, courtyards.

Installation tips

Installation can be performed on sand by laying the sheets directly or by creating a stabilizing foundation in gravel. In these cases you must therefore:

• Even out and compact the level of the resting layer (sand or gravel);
• Once the underlying layer of ground has been leveled, position the sheets, using a rubber hammer to eliminate any unevenness;
• Fill in the joints between the sheets with sand to provide greater stability to the surface.

Raised installation

In raised installation, the 20 mm sheets are dry installed on special supports above the appropriately waterproofed bed.

These supports determine a 4, 3 or 2 mm joint. This creates a technical compartment under the treadable surface that can be accessed by simply lifting the sheets.

Intended use

Terraces, slabs, balconies, outdoor environments subject to foot traffic

Advantages

• Flatness and water drainage through the open joints between the sheets;
• Inspectability of the utilities, underlying elements and piping;
• Flexibility to run the utilities under the flooring;
• Practical maintenance;
• Possibility of re-utilizing the entire floor in different environments;
• Adaptability: the raised floor can also be positioned on pre-existing flooring, allowing you to compensate for slight unevenness and slopes on the installation surface. Thermal insulation: the gap between the floor and the sheath allows ventilation, favoring better thermal insulation, combating rising dampness.
• Usability: the raised external surface that can be created does not suffer from meteorological effects. Absorption of expansion and structural shifting;
• Lightweight: With the elimination of the concrete bed, the raised system allows for a substantial decrease of the weight that stresses the structure and a tangible decrease in costs;

Supports

The Florim Solutions outdoor raised floor resting supports are made up of three series of polypropylene support feet designed to ensure correct spacing of the panels, perfect flatness of the flooring and stable grip on any waterproof sheath. They can be a fixed type, adjustable or self-leveling, predisposed at different heights from a minimum of 1.2 cm up to more than 50 cm.

• Fixed supports (EH)
  These elements allow the installation of outdoor raised floors with a minimum height of 12 mm above the slab. The supports are made up of a single piece that can be divided into four parts depending on the installation being performed (edges, corners or wall border). They also have four spacers that allow the tile joints to be created.
• Adjustable supports (NM)
  These allow adjustable heights with high-precision accuracy from 37 mm to more than 500 mm. They come with a central ring that allows micro height adjustment to avoid removing the sheets. This support solution is designed for installation on surfaces with uneven height, guaranteeing stability and the ability to overcome steps or uneven surfaces.
• Self-leveling supports (SE)
  These allow high-precision height adjustments from 25 mm to more than 250 mm and they have a self-leveling head that compensates for slopes of up to 5%.

Glued installation on concrete slab

Thanks to its high technical performance, Florim 2 cm stoneware can be installed with adhesive gluing in environments subject to high static loads such as sidewalks, courtyards, urban décor spaces, driveways, garages, non-slip outdoor flooring and industrial areas.

In this case, expansion joints must be provided and the gaps between the sheets must be filled with cement plaster.

Intended use

Environments subject to high static loads, sidewalks, courtyards, urban décor, driveways, garages, ramps, parking lots, non-slip outdoor flooring, pools, wellness centers, industrial and business areas.

Advantages

• Resistance: high resistance to load systems;
• Resistance to water and humidity: ideal for preventing rainwater from reaching the area beneath the flooring