Sweating is in a spa program. When the new steam bath in Bad Bentheim's Hotel Grossfeld was built, the craftsman also got hot: While the hotel guests were using the rest of the wellness area behind a screen, he rebuilt the old steam bath and built a new one. The time slot was small and the temperatures high. In addition, the bathing operation should remain undisturbed and the waterproofing, bonding and grouting of the tiles should be permanent and reliable.

Located in the middle of Bad Bentheim in Lower Saxony on the German-Dutch border, the Hotel Grossfeld offers exactly what guests usually visit a health resort for: a spacious spa area with a large indoor pool and an outdoor swimming pool, with a steam bath and relaxation areas. The hotel - once a small grocery store with an attached guest house - is one of the largest owner-managed hotels in the region with 225 beds. The steam bath should be completely renewed to match the modern indoor swimming pool. Hotel owner Johannes Grossfeld commissioned the tile laying company Wolfgang Peters from Bochum, who is specialized in wellness facilities, with the new building.

Master tiler Peters carried out all the work on his own within four weeks. He only used PCI products as building materials. “I must rely one hundred percent on the products, especially in wet areas. Steam represents a particular challenge. Based on my many years of very good experience, I use PCI products; they are absolutely reliable”, reports Peters. "And I receive professional advice and can contact the PCI specialist advisor or application engineer with any problem that occurs."

Vapor barrier on screed floor and HR foam support elements

After erecting the protective film wall, Peters first took the measurements for the new, around 26 square meter steam bath as there were no plans of the previous one. He also took into account the exhaust ducts above the steam bath. After dismantling it and cleaning the concrete floor, the primer with PCI Epoxigrund 390 was applied as well as the epoxy resin screed consisting of PCI Epoxigrund 390 mixed with PCI quartz sand II. According to his plans and the approved drawing, the master tiler then built the complete steam bath - walls, ceiling, benches and also the steam fountain - made of prefabricated, water-impermeable HR foam support elements. Peters applied a reinforcement fabric over the joints between the individual, custom-made elements on the walls and on the benches and covered this with the light, multi-use flexible mortar PCI Nanolight®.

The waterproofing PCI Apoflex® W was used for the vapor barrier on the walls - applied twice and sanded with PCI quartz sand 0.3-0.8 mm on the second layer. PCI Apoflex® W offers reliable protection for use in a steam bath with the very good vapor-retarding effect, the official test certificate for exposure classes A, B and C and for very high water exposure in accordance with the water exposure class W2-I or W3-I defined in DIN 18534. Depending on the requirements, the waterproofing is available either in non-sag or flowable consistency for walls and floors. The craftsman achieves a high level of work performance due to the easy workability.

Wolfgang Peters produced the waterproofing on the floor of the steam bath with PCI Apoflex® F. He then glued the PCI Pecilastic® W waterproofing membrane to it with the light, multi-use flexible mortar PCI Nanolight® as additional isolating layer. This procedure enables a quick work sequence: the subsequent ceramic or natural stone covering can be applied immediately without any drying times. PCI Pecilastic® W also has the official test certificate for exposure classes A, B and C and is especially suitable for steam rooms (water exposure class W2-I or W3-I according to DIN 18534). Like the flexible mortar PCI Nanolight®, PCI Pecilastic® W is very low in emissions according to GEV EMICODE EC1 PLUS.

PCI Nanolight® is very easy to process due to the light filler combination and nanotechnology and has a high yield. The creamy mortar hardens with little tension and can be applied up to a layer thickness of 10 millimeters using the thin bed and medium bed method. As a flexible mortar, PCI Nanolight® compensates for tensions in the substrate. It is part of the official test certificates for bonded waterproofing in connection with PCI bonded waterproofing such as PCI Apoflex® and PCI Pecilastic®. The tiler particularly benefited from the low-dust properties of the flexible mortar as the guests in the pool were to remain as undisturbed as possible behind the privacy screen.

Laying tiles, mosaic and granite slabs

The client had chosen orange tiles for the walls and the beige Interni mosaic “Flooring Seta” with slip resistance class B for the floor. Wolfgang Peters glued both with the epoxy resin mortar PCI Durapox® Premium. He used the flexible, fast-setting thin-bed mortar PCI Carraflex® for the flamed and brushed granite slabs “Nero Assoluto” on the benches.

PCI Durapox® Premium was used in the color sand grey for grouting all joints on walls and on benches and the floor. With its brilliantly colored, homogeneous joint surface, the epoxy resin grout is ideal for optically high-quality coverings such as mosaics. “I have used PCI Durapox® Premium several times and I am thrilled. The grout can be processed very easily and as smoothly as cement mortar and can also be washed off without any problems. The joints remain permanently beautiful, dimensionally stable and are easy to clean by the client, ”says Peters. PCI Durapox® Premium and PCI Carraflex® are also very low-emission according to GEV EMICODE EC1 PLUS.

Another successful project

Wolfgang Peters created the new steam bath within the given tight time frame with technical support from PCI specialist consultant Norbert Theuerkauf and PCI application engineer Eric Peter. Everyone including the client agree: The steam bath was nicely done and the cooperation was extremely good. “I appreciate the great advisory service from PCI. Norbert Theuerkauf and Eric Peter supported me in advance with the planning and then with the processing on site. Helping with the processing of new products or the quickly solving problems that arise spontaneously are priceless. Everything goes much faster and I benefit from the specialist advice for reliable work results and future projects,” says master tiler Peters. He has been working with PCI for many years and has already reliazed a number of projects in the wellness area together with the two PCI consultants.

“This job was definitely a hot thing - both in planning and construction of the steam bath as well as in waterproofing and tiling. Then there were the long transport routes and the storage of the material - from PCI Augsburg to my tile dealer Fliesen + Marmor Harbecke in Mühlheim and to the hotel. Bathing activities should continue as undisturbed as possible. Like the heat on the construction site, it was an additional challenge and made me sweat,” laughs Peters. "But thanks to the fast products from PCI, everything went like clockwork."