Marble Adhesive

Adiseal adhesive & sealant is a great marble adhesive. It will stick marble to wood, metal, concrete, plastic, tile, cable, polystyrene, masonry, glass, stone & many other items. Adiseal provides a high strength bond on marble that stays flexible and is waterproof at the same time. Adiglue can also be used as a glue for marble.

On our concrete demonstration block we have stuck on it marble and many other items. Although the concrete block and marble are both porous materials, when using Adiseal, sealing of the marble or concrete was not required.

Why Adiseal is great adhesive for marble

There are many reasons why Adiseal adhesive & sealant is a great adhesive for marble.

• Adiseal is the record breaking strongest adhesive & sealant. It proved it’s the best in an independent adhesive strength test by Ultimate Handyman.
• Adiseal stays permanently flexible so it will absorb any vibration and allow any items to expand & contract without the construction adhesive becoming weak.
• Adiseal is waterproof so it is also suitable for use outside. It also seals underwater & glues underwater.
• Priming the material should not be required as long as the surface is clean of any dust, grease, paint or any other dirt.
• It does not stain or bleed into stone or masonry.
• Adiseal has very high gap fill properties.
• Has high initial grab meaning temporary supports may not be required while the construction adhesive cures. Adiseal Hi-Grab has even higher grab than the standard product, see below for details.
• With Adiseal, the stone does not require sealing prior to applying Adiseal.

In the independent adhesive strength test by Ultimate Handyman, Adiseal was over 3 times stronger than the nearest competitor. The test on Adiseal was forced to be stopped as the screws holding the test rig down started to rip out.

Adiseal Adhesive & Sealant vs Adiseal Hi-Grab

Adiseal adhesive & sealant has high initial grab but for even more grab use the Adiseal Hi-Grab adhesive. The final bond strength of both construction adhesives is similar.

Adiseal Hi-Grab is very useful when trying to bond heavy items to a vertical surface where the item is likely to slide down the surface without temporary supports to hold it until the adhesive has cured. With the Hi-Grab construction adhesive, the adhesive grabs straight away, eliminating the need for temporary supports even in more heavy applications.

Adiseal Hi-Grab also has even higher gap fill than the standard Adiseal adhesive & sealant. Due to Adiseal Hi-Grab adhesive having a thicker consistency, a lot higher force is required to push the item to the surface you are bonding it to. For this reason in certain applications the standard Adiseal adhesive & sealant is the better option to go for as you can reduce the gap between the 2 items being bonded.

Problems with epoxy adhesives on marble

There are several problems with using epoxy adhesives on marble. Listed below are the main problems of epoxy adhesives.

• Although epoxy adhesives might initially bond the item to a marble surface, epoxy adhesives are not flexible meaning the bond will become weaker over time. Air temperature & moisture changes cause items to expand & contract putting extra forces on an adhesive. If the adhesive is not flexible it will become weak & brittle, then eventually break.
• Epoxy adhesives also come in 2 separate components which require mixing. To achieve optimum epoxy adhesive properties, the 2 components need to be the correct ratio therefore require careful measuring. They also need to be mixed thoroughly together. If these 2 are not done then the optimum properties of the epoxy may not be achieved.
• Epoxy adhesives have lower initial grab than Adiseal, meaning temporary supports will usually be required whilst the epoxy adhesive cures. This increases time & money with extra labour cost.

Problems with mastic adhesives on marble

Just like epoxy, mastic adhesives also have many problems when being used as an adhesive on marble. Listed below are the main problems of mastic adhesives.

• The main problem with mastic adhesive is that the bond is weak in the 1st place. A mastic adhesive might be suitable at sticking light items indoors but will fail at more heavy duty applications.
• Another problem with mastic adhesives are they are not waterproof. This means they are not suitable for use where there will be water like bathrooms, kitchens or outdoors.
• Just like epoxy, mastic adhesives are not flexible meaning the already weak bond will become weaker over time.
• The initial grab of the mastic adhesive is also low meaning temporary supports will be required, increasing time & labour cost.

Problems with contact adhesives on marble

Contact adhesives may be suitable in sticking light sheets to a surface but won’t not suitable for more heavy duty applications. There are a number of problems with contact adhesives.

• Contact adhesives have low initial grab meaning temporary supports will be required until the adhesive has cured.
• Contact adhesives also has low gap fill meaning if there is a gap in certain places between the 2 surfaces of the items being bonded, the contact adhesive will not stretch between the 2 surfaces. This will create a much weaker bond as only in a few places where the surfaces are very close together will the adhesive successfully bond.
• As marble is porous, it will require sealing first so that it does not soak up any contact adhesive.

Problems with using glue on marble

Glues are generally suitable at sticking small items to smooth surfaces but not for more heavy duty applications. For more heavy duty applications, a construction adhesive like Adiseal will be required. Glues have lower gap fill, initial grab, bond strength, flexibility & other problems compared to Adiseal adhesive & sealant when trying to stick items to marble. As marble is porous it will require sealing first so that it does not soak up any glue.

How to bond wood to marble

Adiseal will successfully bond wood to marble creating a strong & long lasting bond in both interior & exterior applications. Prior to applying the adhesive, it is vital to have clean surfaces where the adhesive will be applied. Make sure both surfaces are free from any dust, grease, paint or any other dirt. We recommend using a fine brush like a painting brush to remove fine dust.

On our concrete demonstration block shown above, before applying the adhesive we have thoroughly brushed the concrete using a paint brush to make sure any dust is removed.

After the surfaces are clean, with wood simply apply the adhesive to either material and firmly push it onto the stone. If there is potential of water in the area the item is being bonded to, Adiseal needs to be applied in thin vertical strips. This allows any water to run down between the strips instead of building up behind the item. In cold temperatures water will turn to ice which expands and pushes the surfaces apart.

There should be no need for temporary supports but if the wood does start to slide, then temporary supports may be required until the adhesive has cured.

Wood tends to soak up moisture in the air meaning it will expand. Using a flexible adhesive when sticking wood to marble is very important.

For safety reasons on extra heavy wood, mechanical fixings also need to be used in conjunction with Adiseal when used on to bond items to vertical & overhead applications.

How to bond metal to marble

Adiseal will successfully bond all metals to marble in interior & exterior applications. As described above, it is vital to have clean surfaces where the adhesive will be applied to.

Some metals may have an oil applied to it to stop the metal from rusting. This oil needs to be removed before the adhesive can be applied to the metal surface. Adisolve is ideal at removing oil, grease, tar & many other stubborn deposits.

To achieve a strong bond, lightly scratch the surface of the metal where the adhesive will be applied to. This will increase the surface area allowing for a stronger bond. Clean the surface thoroughly after scratching the surface to remove any loose metal.

Once the surfaces are clean, simply apply the adhesive and firmly push the metal to the marble. Temporary supports may be required if the items slide down, or use the Adiseal Hi-Grab adhesive for more grab.

For safety reasons on extra heavy metal items, mechanical fixings also need to be used in conjunction with Adiseal when used on to bond items to vertical & overhead applications.

How to bond plastic to marble

Adiseal is suitable at bonding most types of plastics to marble. As with metal, clean the plastic thoroughly to make sure any dust, oil, grease, paint or any other dirt is removed before applying the adhesive. Scratching the surface of the plastic will increase the surface area increasing the strength of the bond between plastic & marble.

After both surfaces are clean, apply the adhesive firmly & press the item onto the marble.

How to bond marble

For safety reasons on extra heavy marble, stone, brick, tile or other masonry items, mechanical fixings also need to be used in conjunction with Adiseal when used on to bond items to vertical & overhead applications.

Glue for marble

It is also possible to glue marble using our Adiglue. Although Adiglue is less brittle than super glues, it is still not as flexible or strong as Adiseal construction adhesive & construction sealant.

In the example below we have glued a metal handle to a heavy concrete slab with the Adiglue glue. The concrete required sealing first with Adiglue Activator so that it does not soak up the Adiglue. Sealing is not required when using Adiseal adhesive & sealant to stick the same metal handle to concrete or marble.

We have also stuck some bricks together & also brick to MDF with Adiglue to demonstrate what it is capable of. Sealing with Adiglue Activator was required first prior to applying the glue for marble.

As explained above it is also possible to use Adiglue to glue marble, but it won’t be as strong or flexible as Adiseal or Adiseal Hi-Grab adhesives. If using Adiglue to glue marble, the marble will require sealing first with Adiglue Activator before applying Adiglue. This is not required for Adiseal adhesive & sealant or Adiseal Hi-Grab.

To get the strongest possible bond with any glue for marble, making sure both surfaces are clean is very important. We recommend brushing the marble surface with a fine brush like a painting brush to help remove fine dust.

For more information on adhesives visit our detailed guide on adhesives page.

Frequently asked questions about marble adhesive or glue