I‑BETON PLUS — application guide

System overview — Italian Microcement as a build‑up

I‑BETON PLUS is the Italian microcement system used by Italian Surface Finishes for concrete‑reading floors, stairs and walls in the UK. It is a system build, not a single bucket: primers, Meteore 14 body coats, reinforcement where required, pore sealing and polyurethane finishes.

Within that framework we can deliver very calm, refined floors or more expressive concrete movement, depending on the brief. I‑BETON PLUS is the concrete sister‑system to E‑VOLUTION PLUS, which carries waterproof decorative surfaces in the Waterproof Artistic Walls category.

Always use this guide together with the I‑BETON PLUS Technical Data Sheet and individual component TDS / SDS. For a design‑led view of how this system is used on UK floors and stairs, see Microcement Floors & Stairs with I‑BETON PLUS.

Before you start — drawings, substrates & roles

This guide is written for ISF‑trained applicators, main contractors and technically minded designers. It assumes that structure, screeds, underfloor heating and build‑ups have been designed and signed off by the project team.

Information to confirm before work begins:

• Areas to be coated: floors, stair flights, landings, walls, plinths, thresholds.
• Substrates: screed, concrete slab, tiles, boards, existing resin / screed build‑up.
• Presence of underfloor heating (UFH) and whether commissioning cycles are complete.
• Movement joints, crack locations and transitions to other materials (timber, stone, carpet).
• Traffic class (private home vs hospitality vs retail) and cleaning expectations.

Italian Surface Finishes will normally review drawings, photos and notes and then issue a project‑specific specification that sits alongside this guide.

Step‑by‑step sequence — I‑BETON PLUS body & finish

1. Survey & substrate preparation
   Check screeds, slabs, tiles or boards for movement, moisture, level and structural condition. Treat cracks, replace hollow tiles, address local deflection and correct falls where relevant. Carry out mechanical preparation (grinding / abrasion) and deep cleaning to remove laitance, coatings, polishes and contaminants.
2. Priming & adhesion promotion
   Apply the primer(s) specified for each substrate: consolidating primers for porous screeds, adhesion promoters for tiles and dense surfaces, and any moisture‑related primers where required. Respect coverage rates, drying times and over‑coating windows from the component TDS.
3. Meteore 14 base coats — building the concrete body
   Apply Meteore 14 (grosso / medio) in one or more coats to build the concrete mass and refine the plane. Work at the specified thickness, keeping trowels clean and flexible. Control movement, direction and flatness in line with the agreed sample.
4. Reinforcement in critical zones
   Where the specification calls for it, embed reinforcement (for example fibreglass mesh) in: stair nosings and treads, changes of substrate, thresholds, doorways and transitions to other materials. This is particularly important on stairs, at cut‑outs and around service penetrations.
5. Pore sealing & refinement
   Once the concrete body is in place, apply the specified pore sealer to close surface porosity and even out absorption. This step helps the polyurethane finishes sit uniformly, without patchiness or unexpected gloss differences. Check the surface from different angles and under grazing light; address dark pores and trowel ridges at this stage.
6. Polyurethane top coats
   Apply the chosen two‑component polyurethane finish (for example AR60 / AR70) in the number of coats specified. Sheen, slip performance and chemical resistance are agreed at specification stage. Respect mixing ratios, pot life, coverage and drying / curing times. Maintain a wet edge and avoid over‑working.
7. Protection & staged handover
   After the final coat, protect the surface from dust, point loading, dragging and aggressive cleaning. Introduce light socks‑only foot traffic when allowed, then normal traffic, then furnishings — all in line with the project‑specific guidance from Italian Surface Finishes.

Stairs, edges & junctions

Stairs are one of the strengths of Italian microcement, but they are also unforgiving if the build‑up is rushed.

• Carcasses first. Ensure stair carcasses and nosings are straight, solid and correctly fixed before any I‑BETON PLUS work starts.
• Mesh and reinforcement. Nosings, leading edges and junctions to stringers typically receive mesh or other reinforcement within the Meteore 14 body.
• Consistent nosing detail. Decide the nosing detail (square, pencil, slight radius) at the sampling stage and repeat it exactly across the flight.
• Thresholds & transitions. At doorways and junctions to timber, stone or carpet, follow the ISF detail for transitions and respect movement joints.

On complex staircases or split‑level schemes, Italian Surface Finishes will often sketch or model the junctions with you before work begins, so that the material and architecture read as one.

Application video

The video below shows the I‑BETON PLUS application sequence on floors and stairs. Use it together with ISF’s written specification and this guide; timings and build‑ups may differ slightly from project to project in the UK.

Professional tips for UK projects

• Treat I‑BETON PLUS as a dedicated trade in the programme, not a last‑minute decorative skim.
• Use sample areas to agree movement, colour and sheen in the project’s lighting before committing to main areas.
• Keep mixing, timing and trowel technique consistent within each continuous area to avoid unwanted variation.
• Plan how floors will be protected after installation while other trades finish — poor protection is one of the main avoidable risks.
• Coordinate I‑BETON PLUS floors with E‑VOLUTION PLUS wet areas early, so that movement joints and levels line up neatly between dry and wet zones.

Safety, environment & handover

Always refer to the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) and Technical Data Sheet (TDS) for each component. As a minimum:

• Use appropriate PPE, including gloves, eye protection and respiratory protection where indicated.
• Ensure good ventilation during application and early cure.
• Store materials in original, closed containers within the recommended temperature range; protect from frost and heat.
• Dispose of waste and wash water responsibly in line with UK regulations.

At handover, provide the client or main contractor with written cleaning guidance and confirm when the floor, stairs and walls can be brought into full use.

Summary & project resources

This guide is designed to make Italian Microcement with I‑BETON PLUS repeatable on site in the UK: a consistent system build that underpins the concrete language in floors, stairs and walls, and dovetails with Waterproof Artistic Walls in wet areas.