With an ever-increasing number of products in the field, how do you know when it's worth it to switch from your go-to to something new?

We want to help you make the right decision for your job, so lets break down some subtle product differences, starting with Ardex.

K10, K60, and the classic Feather Finish can be easily confused because of similar features, but taking advantage of their differences will help you optimize your time and workforce on the job. First, let's take a look at the big picture:

Let's start with Feather Finish:

Feather Finish is the tried-and-true skim coat. Again and again contractors come back to it, and for good reason. Easy to mix and extremely versatile, Feather Finish will stick to anything silicate-based (as well as wood) that hasn't been treated with a sealer or wax. While most skim coats require three to four careful passes with hand-trowel to achieve a smooth surface, Feather Finish takes half as many passes and smooths over easily. Because it contains no sand it also has unparalleled coverage, reaching 33 sqft at ⅛". If for some reason work is delayed, contractors can easily extend its working time by mechanically mixing it (also known as re-tempering).

Ardex K60:

K60 is the product you use when you need to prioritize speed. Neither K60 nor Feather Finish require primer, which already saves considerable time. Unlike Feather Finish, however, K60 is self-leveling and self-healing. Rather than hand-troweling contractors can pour or pump this skim coat, making production up to ten times faster. This makes it ideal for jobs over 2,000 sq.ft. and for jobs that require significant travel for your crew and you want to get as much done in one day as possible. The increased speed doesn't come without a cost, however. K60 is the most expensive of the three we're comparing here, but for large areas your savings in labor cost can balance this out.

Ardex K10:

K10 is the middle-ground between K60 and Feather Finish, balancing cost and speed. K10 comes at a comparable price point to Feather Finish but, unlike it and K60, requires primer. Like K60, however, it does not require hand-troweling, which compensates for any wait for primer curing. How? Here's an example: a crew begins priming the floor of a 2,000 sq.ft. office. As the primer cures behind them part of the crew can go back and begin pouring K10, following the "cure line" to simultaneously apply both primer and skim coat until they cover the whole surface. Likewise, a crew can prime first and come back later to pour the coat.

Installing Floors:

One of the deciding factors for choosing a skim coat is how long it should cure before receiving flooring. What Feather Finish lacks in application speed it makes up for with curing time in smaller applications. That said, these numbers matter only as much as they impact your schedule. If you plan, for example, to put down skim coat one day and the flooring the next, cure time is not as critical as the time it takes to apply the coat in the first place.

As always, contact us if you have further questions or to schedule a demo to see any of our products or equipment in action.