DESIGNED for use over flexible subfloors, F Ball and Co’s Stopgap 700 smoothing compound and Styccobond F3 flooring adhesive have helped create a show-stopping floor finish in the Regent’s Park Rehearsal Studios, a new stand-alone rehearsal facility for the award-winning Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre in London.
Contractors from CS Flooring of Surrey were hired to prepare the subfloors and install floorcoverings in Studios 1, 3 and 4 at the facility.
Studio 1 is the largest of the Regent’s Park Rehearsal Studios, measuring 140sq m. The raised plywood subfloor was firstly primed using Stopgap P131 primer, which is designed for use over absorbent surfaces to promote adhesion and to prevent rapid drying of adhesives and levelling compounds.
Without such a primer, unacceptably fast drying can weaken the levelling compound and lead to floor failure, says the company.
F Ball continues: ‘Since the studio would face heavy footfall from rehearsing actors and dancers, contractors selected Stopgap 700 as their smoothing compound: a fast-drying, fibre-reinforced levelling compound designed specially to be used over flexible subfloors such as raised access floors, metal or plywood. Stopgap 700 is also suitable for use over the studio’s underfloor heating system, and was applied at a thickness of 3mm prior to the installation of Harlequin Cascade vinyl dance floorcoverings.
‘Studios 3 and 4 are used for smaller-scale rehearsals or as office spaces, divided by a retractable soundproof wall that can open to create one larger space measuring 28sq m. Following the application of Stopgap P131 primer and Stopgap 700 smoothing compound, contractors opted for Styccobond F3 flooring adhesive to install cork rubber tiles over the timber subfloor.’
Adds the company: ‘With more than 50 years on the market, Styccobond F3 is recognised as the UK’s most used flooring adhesive for the installation of textile floorcoverings. It’s a water-based rubber/resin flooring adhesive which offers excellent wet-grab and benefits from an early build-up of strength. It’s also protected against biodegradation, and is compatible for use with more than 70% of the 6,000 floorcoverings in the F Ball Recommended Adhesives Guide (RAG).’
Commenting on the project, CS Flooring director, Chris Slater, said: ‘F Ball is one of our go-to brands because you can always trust in their products. Our technical representative was very helpful in recommending which products to use, especially when deliberating which adhesive would work best with the cork rubber floorcoverings. For such a high-profile theatre, we were very pleased with the standard of the studio floor finishes.’
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