When your flooring installation demands a universal adhesive that offers extended work-time, high final strength, and excellent dimensional stability across diverse resilient floor coverings, the right product matters. ARDEX AF 171 delivers a robust bond, specifically engineered to counter plasticiser migration, ensuring your LVT, vinyl, linoleum, and carpet installations remain stable and stain-free for the long term.

Why this product exists

ARDEX AF 171 is formulated to address the common challenges in resilient flooring installations. Its high resistance to plasticiser migration prevents the staining and softening of vinyl floor coverings, a critical failure point for lesser adhesives. By offering extended open times and high initial grab, it supports both wet-set methods for LVT/LVP and semi-wet methods for sheet vinyl, providing installers flexibility and confidence in achieving a precise, lasting bond. This low VOC adhesive is a universal solution designed for a wide range of flooring types over approved substrates, promoting high final strength and excellent dimensional stability.

The numbers that matter

This adhesive cures to full strength within 72 hours at 20°C, providing a dependable bond under normal conditions. For LVT and LVP, a 15-minute install window in the wet-set method ensures fast application without compromising adhesion. For sheet vinyl, a 40-50 minute semi-wet set window allows for precise positioning and flattening of trowel notches, avoiding visual marks through the finished floor. Coverage varies significantly depending on the flooring type and substrate porosity, ranging from up to 5m²/litre for residential sheet vinyl to 2.5m²/litre for textured rubber and linoleum, underscoring the importance of site-specific trowel selection for optimal adhesive transfer.

What it's like to use

Working with ARDEX AF 171 requires meticulous surface preparation, ensuring the substrate is dry, smooth, clean, and absorbent. Highly absorbent sub-floors should be primed with ARDEX P 51 Primer according to its technical data sheet to regulate porosity. The adhesive can be applied using either a wet-set method for LVT/LVP, where flooring is installed within 15 minutes of spreading, or a semi-wet method for sheet vinyl, allowing 40-50 minutes for the adhesive to partially dry before installation. In both cases, rolling the flooring within an hour in both directions is crucial for optimal bond. Wet adhesive cleans up easily with warm soapy water, while dried adhesive requires mineral spirits.

Where this product excels

• LVT and LVP Installations: ARDEX AF 171's high resistance to plasticiser migration is critical for preventing discolouration and curling of luxury vinyl tiles and planks, maintaining their aesthetic and structural integrity over time.
• Sheet Vinyl Laying: The extended open time in semi-wet applications allows for careful positioning of sheet vinyl, facilitating seamless installations in commercial and residential settings where precision and a clean finish are paramount.
• Linoleum and Rubber Flooring: For resilient flooring types like linoleum and rubber (up to 4mm), this adhesive provides the necessary dimensional stability and strong bond to prevent movement and ensure long-term performance on approved cementitious and timber-based substrates.
• Direct Stick and Dual Bond Carpet: The high ultimate bond strength supports both direct stick and dual bond carpet applications, securing the carpet effectively while contributing to the overall low VOC environment.

How it fits in a real system

ARDEX AF 171 is positioned as the final bonding layer in resilient flooring systems, particularly over concrete where moisture management is key. For concrete substrates with moisture content exceeding 80% RH or 15gm/m²/24hrs, an ARDEX moisture barrier system is mandatory before adhesive application. Options include Ardex WPM 300 Epoxy Moisture Barrier & Primer with ARDEX Primer Sand or ARDEX WPM 368, which allows direct application of levelling compounds. Crucially, a minimum of 3mm of an ARDEX levelling compound must be installed above any ARDEX moisture barrier system before applying ARDEX AF 171 to create a stable, prepared surface.

Choose this when

• When installing LVT or LVP: Its high resistance to plasticiser migration protects your vinyl flooring from common adhesive-related issues like staining and curling.
• When working with sheet vinyl, linoleum, or rubber (up to 4mm): Benefit from its extended open times for precise placement and its strong, dimensionally stable bond.
• When requiring a low VOC adhesive: Meets environmental and indoor air quality standards for resilient floor covering installations.
• When adhering to prepared cementitious underlayments, hardboard, HP MDF, plywood, or fibre cement sheet: Provides reliable adhesion across a range of standard substrates.

Don't use this when

• Not for: Direct application over damp or green concrete where moisture levels exceed AS 1884 guidelines without a preceding ARDEX moisture barrier system and minimum 3mm levelling compound.
• Not for: Direct application over non-absorbent substrates like terrazzo, ceramic tiles, or metal without prior consultation with ARDEX Technical Services.
• Not for: Substrates that are not dry, smooth, clean, and absorbent; proper preparation, including priming highly absorbent sub-floors with ARDEX P 51 Primer, is essential.