There's a difference between "anti-fracture", "crack isolation", and "decoupling" when it comes to membranes and tile. Some are defined by the industry. Some are just stated by the manufacturers. I'll toss out what may not be a perfect answer...since there really isn't a perfect definition of the three terms within the industry. But here's my "sort of" best definition: If you have active movement in a floor, for example, a wood framed platform floor than has a little vertical flex to it, then a decoupling membrane like Ditra or Strata-mat would be a good choice. If you tile over a concrete slab that has existing shrinkage cracks in it, A crack isolation membrane can absorb some horizontal movement if the cracks move. If there is vertical up/down movement though, all bets are off. Crack isolation membranes usually aren't "whole slab" coverage types of applications. They are just applied where the cracks are located. Anti-fracture membranes usually are "whole slab" coverage membranes. Now, if you tile over a slab that has movement joints cut into the slab itself, the best installation is to have the grout joint in the tile fall directly over the movement joint in the slab. Instead of hard grout, the tile joint over slab's movement joint gets filled with a soft material. It could be caulk, but it normally would be a commercially made type of soft expansion joint material. If the tile grout lines can't be lined up right over the slab movement joint, then an anti-fracture membrane can allow the tile joint to be offset from the slab joint by a bit. Again, the anti-fracture will help with horizontal movement. But any vertical movement? You can have tiles popping off the floor. All that written? Even though a product like Ditra isn't an official "crack isolation" or "anti-fracture" membrane, a lot of folk use it over slabs because of its waffle structure. Strata-mat will likely be used in the same way. A lot of what I wrote is predicated on slab versus wood subfloor too. While Ditra would be used over both, the others are usually just used over slabs. "Do people use Hydroban to cover their floor instead of Ditra?" Not really. HB is listed as a "crack isolation" due to the fact that it can bridge gaps, and it does have a little flex to it, so it does offer some shear protection. But that protection is really just against shrinkage cracks, usually just in thinset. It won't protect much against any vertical flexing. I do know that some folk have used up extra HB on a bathroom floor "just because". They might paint it on the cement board in front of the tub or shower to provide a bit of waterproof protection prior to tiling. I've never seen it used for true "wet room" protection. Mostly just because they have extra HB left over, so why not use it? I have seen it used on kitchen countertop substrates, prior to tiling. "Don't they both have anti-fracture properties? Or, is the decoupling action of Ditra more than an anti-fracture function (of Hydroban) ? " On a floor, yes, I do think the "decoupling" nature of Ditra would provide more protection against movement than the "crack isolation" protection of Hydroban. Example, that outdoor balcony I have coming up? I'd primarily use either Ditra of Nobeldeck even though to a certain extent Hydroban would also be appropriate. The reason? The tile will be exterior in a freeze/thaw environment. The tile will be in direct sunshine, so thermal stress is an issue. Being thicker in structure, both Ditra and Nobeldeck would provide more shear protection than Hydroban. With it being outdoors, I also want to use a modified thinset. That pulled me to NobelDeck versus Ditra. And to top it all off, in case the project gets delayed, Ditra could suffer and degrade from UV exposure if left uncovered for too long. Anyhow, a long-winded reply... Good luck with bringing the crops to market! There was an interesting article in the paper this past week about GMO corn again being susceptible to rootworm, and about how the water level in the Nebraska aquafer has gone down over the past decade and how both of those issues are affecting corn (and other) crops.

That is a hole in the Laticrete Colour wheel. Grouting your job is in my opinion the most stressful step. Some much has gone into the design and the prep. Not to mention all the tile work. This step needs to be perfect and it is so vary hard to do right if you hurry the process. I believe by my last count their is over 25 things that can and almost allways do go wrong some where here in North America every day. If you are going to do the grouting yourself, you need to learn a lot first. Read first the stories of "Blotched Jobs" - this will gain you insight onto the pit falls to avoid. Measure, dry mix, practice and don't use much water at all when removing and finishing the grouting. There is a ton to read. Maybe Bill or Mongo remember where the list of grout failures is online... Practice. Make a test board and test your colour. When it comes to colour I imagine that Bright White is the number one colour pick. I would reason as well that the biggest pain in any company like Laticrete is Grout related issues. I find it no surprise that so few companies make a Bright White! These premium grouts have Bio Blocks and Additives to make the job easier and make the grout more stain resistant. The down side I believe is that these steps (these lotions and potions) add a hint of colour and those change the base colour some what. I am deciding myself between a great Epoxy Grout that is not a true "White" or a "Bright White" that I'm sure in 3 years will look like Laticrete's White now. The downside to a "Bright White" staining is that it will look un-uniform in a few years time. Thanks to the affects of minerals in your water. The best colour in my opinion for a shower or any wet zone is a Light Gray. This is the most forgiving colour I'm aware off. I might be wrong - most likely ;) I'm leaning to hedging my bets and going with the premium product. If bright white is a must - consider a topical sealer after the fact. This is a labour intensive job but one that can be repeated as needed. If this is the plan then insure the grout you use can accept it. Don't rush into this step either - there is much to learn about sealing grout with a coloured sealer and much you can do to make the finished job look less than perfect. Keep reading. Check your source... Good Luck JW

In case this thread is still helpful to folks, we used Maipei's newer item: ULTRACOLOR PLUS MAX in Pure White. It comes in two colors (pure white and black). Advertised as brightest white on the market and it is indeed very white! We did a new shower with white subway (daltile artic white) and it looks great with this grout. We used maipei frost color on the marble floor (which looks way lighter than the maipei pamphlet shows) and the two colors and materials look nice together. Good luck grouting everyone!

I need to pick my grout color today and have some questions about this color. Anyone??