Knauf Rotband plaster mixes: technical characteristics and varieties

Knauf "Rotband" is a polymer-based plaster mix. It appeared on the Russian market in 1993, but before that it had been widely used in European countries for about 30 years.

As a building material, this plaster mix is ​​universal. Mostly used for leveling concrete, cement and stone surfaces. It can become an assistant when working with drywall. Recommended for interior use. For exterior decoration, it can be used to insulate houses and cottages and protect them from aggressive climatic conditions.

It has three main functions.

• Technical. As a result of using the mixture, the coating becomes ideally smooth, which allows subsequent finishing work on it.
• Protective. Maintains the required temperature inside the building and protects against excessive moisture.
• Decorative. Helps to create aesthetic forms.

Rotband is a polymer-based gypsum mix. Due to their content, a sufficiently high adhesion of the plaster with other materials is achieved. Also, the composition includes some natural additives, due to which its color changes.

The main colors of Rotband plaster are gray, white and pink. It should be noted that the quality of the composition does not depend on its color.

The mixture is packaged in packages of 5, 10 and 30 kilograms, which is very convenient for the consumer.

Plaster mixes differ in different parameters, one of them is the method of application.

Among them are:

• mixtures for manual use;
• mixtures for machine use.

Most of the Knauf mixes are handcrafted. The most famous product is Knauf "Rotband".

This mixture is versatile, it can be combined with almost any type of surface. It can be used for wall and ceiling decoration. It has excellent moisture resistance, which makes it relevant to its use in bathrooms. It is recommended to use Rotband plaster exclusively for interior decoration.

In addition to her, Knauf "Goldband" is popular for interior work and hard surfaces, a starting plaster mixture for leveling the coating "HP Start", Knauf "Sevener" plaster-adhesive mixture intended for both interior and exterior decoration, Knauf "Ubo ”, Presented as a mix of“ Boden ”10, 25 and 30 for cementitious floor screed.

Under the Knauf brand, a special MP 75 plaster is produced, which, unlike Rotband, is designed for machine use.

The layer is usually applied with a thickness of no more than 20 millimeters. Mixtures of this type can be used manually, but due to the more liquid consistency of the material, this is not very convenient. Compositions that are applied by hand are strictly prohibited to use when working with a special machine.

Hand plaster is applied in a thicker layer - up to 50 millimeters. This mixture is thicker, which does not allow its use in combination with a machine, as it clogs channels and other elements of the device, which may break from this.

The assortment of the Knauf company includes putty materials. They are used prior to surface finishing. Knauf Rotband putty is universal, it consists of gypsum and natural materials. It is used in rooms with high humidity.

Knauf masonry mixes, screeds, adhesives have long gained popularity and are widely used in construction and repair work.

Before buying a plaster mix, you need to choose the shade that you need. Information about the color of the composition is not always indicated on the label, but it can be calculated from the data on the manufacturer. Gray mixes are produced in Krasnogorsk, pink ones - in Kolpino and Chelyabinsk, and white ones - in the Astrakhan region and Krasnodar region.

White and gray plaster "Rotband", in contrast to pink, can flow over the surface. This is due to the coarser granularity of the pink composition. If you do not plan to use putty before gluing the wallpaper, it will be advisable to level the walls with a white or gray mixture.

Layers of the plaster mixture should be applied with a minimum thickness of 5 millimeters. The optimal size is 10 millimeters, which can be increased if necessary. When finishing walls, the maximum layer thickness is 50 millimeters, when finishing ceilings - 15 millimeters.

If an increase in the thickness of the plaster layer is required, the second layer is applied after the first one has been dried and primed. Rotband plaster mixes have good adhesion to brick, concrete, wood and drywall.

The plaster mix "Rotband" is able to absorb excess moisture. It tolerates low temperatures well, is vapor permeable, moisture resistant. The composition has a low thermal conductivity.

Its characteristics:

• layer thickness - from 5 to 50 millimeters;
• consumption of dry composition with a layer of 10 millimeters is 8.5 kg per 1 m2.;
• from a package weighing 30 kilograms, a little more than 35 liters of solution is obtained;
• the ripening time of the solution is 10 minutes;

• a layer 10 millimeters thick dries in about an hour;
• full strength gain occurs in 24 hours;
• the density of the dry mixture is 730 kg per 1 m3;

• graininess can reach 1.2 millimeters;
• composition shades - gray, white, pink;
• shelf life is six months.

The mixture "Rotband" is made on the basis of plaster, therefore it is used when working with walls and ceilings indoors. Resistant to humid environments, so it can be used in rooms such as bathroom, basement and others. For outdoor work, it is necessary to use cement-based materials.

There are a lot of coatings with which this product is combined. These are, for example, concrete, brick, stone, aerated concrete, cement, drywall and others.

When preparing the plaster mixture, it must be borne in mind that it dries quickly, so it is worth mixing the amount that can be used during this period of time. Allow about 2 days for complete drying.

When using the mixture, the temperature in the work area should not fall below +5 degrees. It is recommended to exclude direct sunlight. You also need to check the absence of drafts and do not ventilate the room for a day after.

The consistency should be uniform and free of lumps. After this, the mixture should be allowed to brew for about 5 minutes. More water can be added if necessary.

Next, the solution is applied to the surface with a layer of 5 to 10 millimeters thick with movements from top to bottom. After an hour, when the composition hardens, it must be leveled with a metal spatula until an even coating is formed. After 15 minutes after that, the treated surface should be slightly sprinkled with water and rubbed with a float, removing defects.Once the plaster is dull, it is smoothed out with a spatula. If a relief or pattern is required, the uncured coating is processed with a roller or a brush with a hard bristle.

Gypsum is flexible and soft enough to work with. The undoubted advantage is that the surface treated with Knauf "Rotband" mixture does not need to be putty. It is resistant to cracking, quite economical to use, able to regulate indoor moisture, environmentally friendly and safe.

When applied correctly, the composition does not peel off and does not crumble. The wall is flat and smooth.

However, the mixture has some disadvantages. It is not as strong as cement, does not have an anti-corrosion effect - metal fasteners rust over time. In addition, Knauf "Rotband" is not a cheap building material. However, the high quality of this composition and its positive characteristics more than compensate for these shortcomings.

Rotband plaster mix is ​​produced at Russian factories using German technologies. Original quality products have no negative reviews. Domestic analogues of the mixture are an order of magnitude cheaper, but they do not meet the declared technical characteristics.

When buying a mixture not in trusted brand stores, but in markets and from private traders, it cannot be guaranteed that you will purchase an original product. Counterfeit products are not of high quality, although externally they may have brand distinctive marks such as a logo and instructions. The main guarantor of this product from the manufacturer is a trusted supplier.

For information on how to level the walls with Knauf Rotband plaster, see the next video.