Using Gypsol anhydrite binder creates a pumpable, self-smoothing floor screed. Moreover, this screed is an economically advantageous and a sustainable alternative to the labour-intensive and traditional sand cement screeds.
Gypsol; Anhydrite binder for pumpable, self-smoothing floor screeds
Gypsol, the high-performance anhydrite binder, is a key component for the flooring industry. It is the primary ingredient in pumpable, self-smoothing floor screeds.
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Alternative to sand cement screeds
Flowing floor screeds offer a cost-effective and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional, labour intensive sand cement screeds.
Whether you are an architect, designer, main contractor, self-builder or a flooring contractor we provide you with all the information you need to get the most out of Gypsol screed in your project.
We supply our alternative to sand cement screeds for a large variety of constructions. Building projects using Gypsol:
- Schools
- Nursing homes
- Apartments
- Community buildings
- Retail
- Houses
- Refurbishments
- Commercial projects
You will find case studies on the different projects in our DOCUMENTATION tab.
Where to buy Gypsol screed?
Gypsol screeds are available from more than 80 locations throughout the UK and Ireland. Our knowledgeable sales experts cover the whole of the UK and Ireland and work with a range of quality assured manufacturing partners. The expertise available within the Gypsol team, combined with the manufacturing experience of our partners, means that we can offer an unbeatable package to meet all of your flowing screed requirements.
Our distribution network is continually improving to ensure easy availability of Gypsol screeds regardless of the size, nature and location of your project.
Brands and manufacturers using Gypsol binder
Brands based on high-quality Gypsol binder include:
Gypsol screeds are also readily available from several independent manufacturers such as:
- The Concrete Company in the Eastern counties
- Bretts, Mixamate and FM Conway in the South East
- Doncaster Quickmix in the North
- S Morris in the South West
- Scotland based Scotscreed
- CRH Roadstone in Ireland
Bagged Gypsol is even available as Sureflo, which is supplied by national merchant CCF in 25 kg bags for mixing on site.
Extensive Gypsol product range
In addition to our Gypsol Classic screed, we have developed a range of exclusive products that allow you to incorporate our materials into just about any construction project.
| Products | Information |
|---|---|
| Classic | A general purpose screeding system. The most commonly used material in our range. |
| HTC | Gypsol HTC (High Thermal Conductivity) for use with underfloor heating and cooling systems |
| TS-15 | An ultra-thin screed for bonded and un-bonded applications at a minimum depth of 15mm. |
| TS-20 | A thin screed suitable for bonded and un-bonded applications down to a 20mm minimum depth |
| XS | Extra strength material for use in heavy-duty applications, where loading is likely to be higher than normal |
| TimBRE | Specially formulated and tested for use in timber frame and over timber supported floors including acoustic conditions |
| Solida | Designed to offer a cost-effective, energy efficient and environmentally friendly whole house heating solution. Ideal for the mass house market or single dwellings. |
| Sureflo | Pre-blended product supplied in 25kg bags for mixing on site. Ideal where minimal quantities are required, or access for ready-mix lorries is not possible. |
| Summit | To use for screeds pumped over very long distances or high buildings of 10 stories and above. |
| Modular | Designed for use in modular construction to allow early movement of units. Also for a lightweight steel frame and Lewis Decking. |
Easy to place, self-compacting, free-flowing anhydrite screed binder
An extensive range of offsite mixing plants uses our Gypsol. Providing you with the following benefits:
| Benefits | Removes |
|---|---|
| deliver the Gypsol screeds to site ready to use | labour intensive site mixing and associated mixing equipment |
| pumped directly to where they are needed | manual handling operations |
| pumped using equipment with closed or grilled dispensing hoppers | risk of contact with moving machinery |
| finished using a lightweight dappling bar | requiring no secondary compaction most of the physical work needed to lay other screeds |
This way of working significantly reduces the negative impact on the musculoskeletal system of installing contractors.
Sustainable screed solution
We work tirelessly to reduce our carbon footprint, and to educate our customers and clients about how they can use Gypsol screeds to help minimise their environmental impact. As a result of our work on the sustainable credentials for our material Supply Chain School for Sustainability awarded us a Silver status.
Gypsol screed offers:
- Low manufacturing carbon footprint
- Low embodied energy
- Low operating energy
- Reduced lifetime impact
- Low-temperature underfloor heating
- Low toxicity
- Safer work environment
- Low cost
A true environmental-friendly, cost-effective and easy to apply alternative to traditional floor screed.
Low manufacturing carbon footprint
Our audited and certified carbon footprint certification states that we produce just 26.26 kg of carbon dioxide per 1 tonne of material we manufacture. This offers very significant carbon savings compared to traditional sand cement screed. You could save more than 95% of the carbon emissions associated with the manufacture of your floor screed by swapping from regular sand cement to Gypsol screed. Find out more in our carbon footprint guidance sheet.
Low embodied energy
Gypsol screeds can be used to significantly thinner depths than traditional screeds, and as a result, reduce the level of embodied energy by merely reducing the number of building materials used. For example, in a block of apartments where there are two stories, a total saving of 75mm in the floor screed depth is achievable. This means that you can eliminate one full course of bricks. The more floors there are, the more significant these savings become.
Low operating energy
The more you reduce the energy used during the operational lifetime of a building, the better the impact on the environment. As Gypsol screed can be laid much thinner, this presents the opportunity to increase the depth of insulation under the screed without impacting on the overall floor height, thus reducing heat losses through the floor and making the building more efficient.
Reduced lifetime impact
Gypsol screeds are 100% recyclable, which has a significant effect on the lifetime analysis of a building. We, therefore, are proud to say that Gypsol is a sustainable screed when you compare this to the traditional floor screeds.
Low-temperature underfloor heating
When using embedded or underfloor heating, the key to efficiency is high thermal capacity and high thermal conductivity, which leads to a fast response to ambient temperature changes. Gypsol screeds can offer high thermal conductivity as high as 2.5 W/mK (average 2.3W/mK) compared to sand cement screed, which is typically only 1.1W/mK.
This coupled with the thinner section leading to reduced mass and the intimate contact with the heating conduits leads to an underfloor heating system which has an extremely rapid response and which can run at temperatures very significantly lower than any competing systems. Add to this the increased insulation depth, which further enhances the floor’s thermal performance resulting in a floor that offers a very high coefficient of performance
Low toxicity for Gypsol binder
We manufacture Gypsol binder from a by-product of the chemical industry. This material would previously have found its way to landfill. We remove this material entirely from the landfill cycle thus eliminating this issue. For every 1 tonne of Gypsol binder used 0.98 tonnes of landfill is avoided and for every 4 tonnes of gypsum waste removed from the landfill cycle 1 tonne of hydrogen sulphide gas is avoided. Additionally, Gypsol screeds emit no VOCs.
Safe to work with Gypsol screed
Gypsol binder does not contain Portland cement. Portland cement contains chromium 6 which has a well-documented link to both acute and chronic health issues for those exposed to it. The use of Gypsol binder avoids these issues altogether. Gypsol screed is supplied ready to use and avoids most of the manual labour and health and safety risks associated with site-mixed sand cement screed. Installation of Gypsol is carried out using specialist pumping equipment and does not require the installer to be on his hands and knees and, as Gypsol is fully self-compacting, it will significantly reduce the effect on the musculoskeletal system of installers.
Low cost
Trained installers lay Gypsol screeds to exacting standards. Therefore, it is highly unlikely that you will need costly smoothing compounds. Additionally, when using some floor covering products, e.g. for some tiling adhesives, you can avoid the use of primers. Gypsol Diamond offers the opportunity to use the screed as a wearing surface with no requirement for subsequent floor coverings.
Gypsol origin
We manufacture Gypsol anhydrite binder to CE certified standards in the UK. LKAB Minerals produce Gypsol binder from a by-product which we retrieve from the chemical industry. Previously this product was used as landfill.
Gypsol toxicology
A non-toxic, non-hazardous stable mineral. You can download the Safety Data Sheet from the documentation tab.
LKAB Minerals offers all the support we can to help you with your Gypsol screed projects. The support we offer consists of:
- CPD training presentation at your company. FREE of charge, duration ~1 hour. Ask for more information or plan a session via our Area Technical and Specification Managers via below contact form.
- Building information modelling (BIM) on the NBS National BIM Library:
- Gypsol classic flowing screed
- Gypsol Diamond Polished Anhydrite Screed
- Gypsol Modular Gypsum based flowing screed
- Gypsol Solida heated screed system
- Gypsol Summum flowscreed
- Gypsol TimBRE self-levelling anhydrite screed
- Gypsol TS-15 ultra-thin flowing screed
- Gypsol TS-20 thin flowing screed
- Gypsol XS High Strength Anhydrite screed
- Sureflo bagged Gypsum screed
- Gypsol HTC thermal screed
- Informational guides. You find these all under the DOCUMENTATION tab.
- General design
- Underfloor heating
- Post-installation guide
- Floor coverings flow chart
- Surface preparation guide
- Ancillary products guide
- Gypsol comparing sheet
- Creating joints
- Carbon calculator. This tool allows you to calculate the Carbon (CO2) production and savings of Gypsol compared to traditional Cement. Contact the Area Technical and Specification Managers via below contact form for more information.
- U-Value calculator.
- Immediate link to:
Case Studies
Data Sheets
Information Guides
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How thin can I lay this Gypsol screeds onto insulation?
+Generally, Gypsol screeds can be laid to just 40mm thick. This is fine for schools, offices, nursing homes etc. You can reduce this thickness to only 35mm in domestic applications such as houses, apartments etcetera.
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What is the benefit of using Gypsol screeds with underfloor heating?
+There are a few benefits of using Gypsol screeds with underfloor heating. The minimum cover to the heating element needs only to be 25mm, so the heat only has to travel through 25mm of floor screed before you start to feel the heat. These Gypsol screeds are self-compacting when installed often making them denser compared to hand applied floor screeds. This means that the heat will travel through the screed quicker. Also, because you install the screed in a very fluid state, it surrounds the heating elements touching and drawing the heat from every surface.
All this means that the reaction times will be quicker which will encourage your thermostat to switch off having reached its desired temperature faster.
There is the option of using our Gypsol “HTC” floor screed which conducts the heat even quicker and which you can install at just 20mm cover to the elements. The Gypsol team can offer you advice on bay sizes and the location of expansion joints; this is important where underfloor heating is employed. -
What is the cost of using Gypsol screeds compared with other floor screeds?
+To gain an accurate comparison, measure the cost of installation per square metre of floor rather than the cost of material per tonne or metre cubed. Because you can lay Gypsol screed much thinner than conventional sand cement screeds more square metres of floor is covered. For example, a sand/cement floor screed without underfloor heating laid on insulation should be at least 65mm thick. In this example, it means that you can only cover 15 square metres with one cubic metre of material. However, the same floor laid using a Gypsol floor screed needs only to be 40mm thick. This results in 25 square meters covered.
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Can I install tiles or vinyl onto Gypsol screeds?
+Yes, you can lay any floor type covering onto Gypsol floor screeds. As with all floors, whether made from sand/cement or concrete, Gypsol screeds will need to be properly prepared; clean, dry, sanded and primed. We consider this the best practice. It is worth noting that the installation guides on almost all adhesives (either vinyl or tile adhesives) will state this, regardless of the type of floor you need to cover.
This best practice is also quoted by the “contract flooring association” in their guidelines.
Also, if underfloor heating is present, it is recommended to commission this before installing floor finishes. -
Can Gypsol screeds be used for outdoor use?
+We recommend that you use Gypsol screeds only in weather tight environments. The Gypsol team can offer you advice on all aspects of the floor installation, and can even draw up a floor specification which you can present to your contractor for tendering purposes. Just call us for professional advice.
Related applications
Interested in what Gypsol can do for you?
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My name is LKAB Minerals and I'm a Gypsol product expert located in Sweden.
If you are interested in what this product can do for you, please give me a call or send me a message.
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