Selleys White for Life Ready To Use Tile Adhesive
What is Selleys White For Life Ready To Use Tile Adhesive, and where should you use it?
This product has been discontinued. Selleys directs anyone needing an alternative to the related products, or to the Help & Advice team on 1300 555 205 (select Option 2), or to live chat during business hours. The information below is retained for anyone working with adhesive already purchased, or maintaining a floor or wall laid with it.
Selleys White For Life Ready To Use Tile Adhesive is a premium, flexible, non-slump wall and floor tile adhesive for indoor tiling, formulated using the purest white material available. It has high grab, which makes it suitable for large tiles, and it is classified D2/ATE — a ready to use adhesive with improved characteristics, fast drying, high grab and extended open time.
The limits that decide whether it suits a job are firm: it is for interior use only, it is not for areas frequently immersed in water, and it must not be used to fix non-porous tiles over non-porous substrates.
Where it can be used
- Indoor wall and floor tiling
- Shower walls only
- Most types of small to large wall tiles, and dimensional stone — except moisture sensitive stone
It is water resistant, but waterproofing of wet areas is essential prior to tiling. Water resistance in the adhesive is not a substitute for a waterproofing membrane; the membrane is what keeps water out of the structure.
Surface preparation
Selleys is direct about the stakes here: inadequate or incorrect surface preparation is a common cause of failure and unsatisfactory results.
- Surfaces must be sound, dry, clean and free of cracks and of contaminants such as waxes, sealers, mould or curing compounds.
- Everything behind the tile must be fixed and completely cured before tiling. Allow cement render 7 days and concrete 28 days to cure. Fresh paint, membranes and coatings also need their full cure time.
- Fix plasterboard and fibre-cement sheets firmly and properly.
- Prime porous surfaces such as fibre-cement sheet and cement render with a suitable primer.
- Waterproof wet areas such as bathrooms and shower recesses with a suitable water-based waterproofing membrane.
- Where the first row of tiles is not supported by the floor or another firm base, temporarily fasten a timber panel to support the tiles while the adhesive dries.
- Do not tile over cold substrates below 10°C, or when the temperature is above 35°C.
Trowel selection and bed thickness
Tiling in accordance with AS3958.1 will help ensure the best results. The trowel sizes given for different tile sizes under those guidelines are:
| Tile size | Trowel notch |
|---|---|
| 152 x 152mm | 6 x 6mm |
| 200 x 200mm | 8 x 8mm |
| 250 x 250mm | 10 x 10mm |
| 300 x 300mm and over | 12 x 12mm, plus back buttering of the tile |
The adhesive bed thickness must be no less than 3mm and no more than 12mm. If the adhesive rises up between the tiles as you place them, the bed is too thick and you need a smaller trowel — that is the practical test for whether you have chosen correctly.
How to apply it
- Dry lay the tiles first, without adhesive, to work out placement. This is the best way to avoid mistakes, and to find out whether you have enough tiles or need cutting done before anything is permanently fixed.
- Pre-cut tiles where required, cutting each one slightly smaller than the space so the grout joints stay even.
- Spread the adhesive evenly with a notched trowel, working on about one square metre at a time. Hold the trowel at a 45 degree angle against the wall for even coverage and notches, and trowel horizontally on walls.
- Place and fix each tile before the adhesive forms a surface skin.
- Bed each tile by sliding it perpendicular to the notch pattern so you get full coverage on the back. Larger or deeply keyed tiles may also need adhesive buttered onto the back.
- Use spacers to set the grout joints and make small adjustments. Wall tile spacers are usually 1.5 to 3mm and floor tile spacers 3 to 5mm. Press the spacers well below the tile surface so they are hidden after grouting.
- Check the tiles are level, tapping lightly with a rubber mallet if needed. Every so often, lift a tile to check it has complete adhesive coverage.
- Remove excess adhesive from the tile faces and joints with a damp cloth or sponge before it dries, within about 20 minutes.
- Leave the tiles undisturbed and off foot traffic for at least 24 hours. Allow longer if the cure temperature is below 20°C.
Lifting the occasional tile to check coverage is the step most worth keeping. Voids behind a tile are invisible once the job is grouted, and they are where cracks and drummy tiles start.
Limitations — where this adhesive should not be used
- Interior use only.
- Not for areas frequently immersed in water, such as shower floors and swimming pools — Selleys White For Life Powder Tile Adhesive is directed for those instead.
- Not for moisture sensitive tiles.
- Not for tiling floors subject to high traffic.
- Not for applying non-porous tiles over non-porous surfaces — again, the powder adhesive is directed for that.
- Not for moisture sensitive stone, although other dimensional stone is suitable.
- Do not tile below 10°C or above 35°C.
The non-porous-over-non-porous exclusion is a chemistry limit rather than a preference. A ready to use adhesive dries by losing water; if neither the tile nor the substrate can absorb any, that water has nowhere to go and the adhesive never develops strength.
No technical data sheet is published for this product, so figures such as open time, bond strength and coverage per pack are not available. Coverage varies with the condition of the surface, tile type and application technique.
Ordering and estimating
When ordering tiles, add an extra 10% for waste and cuts, or 15% if laying diagonally. Diagonal layouts generate more part-tiles at every edge, which is where the extra allowance goes.
Drying, grouting and clean up
Tiling over a waterproofing membrane makes the drying time slightly longer, because the membrane removes one of the surfaces the adhesive would otherwise dry into.
Clean tools with water before the product hardens. Uncured product may be removed with water; cured product can only be removed by sanding and scraping.
For the grouting that follows, use Selleys White For Life Grout to achieve and maintain whiteness, stain and mould resistance — see White For Life Ready To Use Grout.
Safety information
Selleys does not publish a safety data sheet for White For Life Ready To Use Tile Adhesive in the sources used to build this page, so no GHS hazard classification, signal word or hazard statements are reproduced here.
That is an absence of published data, not a finding that the product is non-hazardous. It should not be read as an all-clear, and the classification of a similar or neighbouring product should not be assumed to apply — variants within a Selleys range frequently carry genuinely different classifications.
A safety data sheet exists for the White For Life Ready To Use Grout, which is a different product in the same system. This page records the adhesive as discontinued.
To obtain it, request the safety data sheet for this product from Selleys directly: 1300 555 205 in Australia, 0800 735 539 in New Zealand, or contact Selleys. For an emergency involving a Selleys product the emergency line is 1800 220 770 in Australia and 0800 220 770 in New Zealand; for suspected poisoning, the Poisons Information Centre is 131 126 in Australia and 0800 764 766 in New Zealand.
Common questions about Selleys White For Life Ready To Use Tile Adhesive
Is this product still available?
No. It has been discontinued. Selleys suggests looking at related products, or contacting the Help & Advice team on 1300 555 205 (Option 2) or via live chat during business hours.
Can I use it on a shower floor?
No. It is not for areas frequently immersed in water, including shower floors and swimming pools. Shower walls only.
Can I use it outside?
No. It is for interior use only.
Can I fix porcelain tiles to a rendered, sealed wall?
Not if both the tile and the substrate are non-porous. This adhesive is not for applying non-porous tiles over non-porous surfaces.
How thick should the adhesive bed be?
No less than 3mm and no more than 12mm. If adhesive rises between the tiles as you place them, the bed is too thick — use a smaller trowel.
How long before I can walk on it?
Tiles must not be disturbed or subjected to foot traffic for at least 24 hours, and longer if the cure temperature is below 20°C.
How long do I have to clean off excess adhesive?
About 20 minutes — remove it from tile faces and joints with a damp cloth or sponge before it dries.
Do I still need to waterproof the bathroom?
Yes. The adhesive is water resistant, but waterproofing of wet areas is essential prior to tiling, using a suitable water-based waterproofing membrane.
Can I use it on natural stone?
It suits dimensional stone, except moisture sensitive stone, and it is not for moisture sensitive tiles.
What do I grout with?
Use Selleys White For Life Grout for whiteness, stain and mould resistance — see Ready To Use Grout, Grout Sealer and the wider tiling range.
What is Selleys White For Life Ready To Use Tile Adhesive used for?
Selleys White For Life Ready To Use Tile Adhesive is a high grab wall and floor tile adhesive designed to make tiling easy, and it is perfect for small tiling jobs and repairs.
Is Selleys White For Life Tile Adhesive suitable for both walls and floors?
Yes, it is described as a high grab wall and floor tile adhesive.
What format does Selleys White For Life Tiling Adhesive come in?
According to the knowledge base, it is available in a cartridge format for easy application with a caulking gun, and is a water-based adhesive system.
How long does Selleys White For Life Tiling Adhesive take to set before grouting?
It requires 24-48 hours to set before grouting can commence.
What is the recommended process after the adhesive has set but before grouting?
After the adhesive is fully set, spacers should be removed and excess dust and debris should be raked out from the joints before proceeding with grouting.
What product should be used after applying Selleys White For Life Tiling Adhesive?
Once the adhesive is fully set, grouting should be done using a compatible product such as Selleys White For Life Ready To Use Grout.
What other Selleys products work alongside the White For Life Tiling Adhesive for a complete tiling system?
The adhesive works alongside Selleys White For Life Ready To Use Grout (applied after the adhesive sets) and Selleys White For Life Tile & Grout Cleaner (for regular maintenance and cleaning of completed tilework).
For what type of tiling projects is Selleys White For Life Tiling Adhesive recommended?
It is recommended for new tiling installations, interior tiling applications, and projects requiring reliable tile-to-substrate bonding before grouting.
Who manufactures Selleys White For Life Ready To Use Tile Adhesive and what is the company's background?
It is manufactured by Selleys, an Australian adhesives, sealants and fillers brand and a division of DuluxGroup (Australia) Pty Ltd, founded in 1939 in Sydney, Australia by Martin Selley.