Throughout history, Lapis Azul has been described as a gemstone that might have come straight out of the Arabian Nights. Characterised by a deep blue colour, its body has golden inclusions of pyrites which shimmer like little stars. When Alexander the Great first showcased it throughout Europe, this distinctive colour was referred to as ultramarine, which indicated "from beyond the sea."
Fast forward to modern times, where recently Lapis Azul was used "besides the sea" in one of the most outstanding pool installations one could imagine. It is located at a private residence, facing the beach alongside the Pacific Ocean.
Rock Solid Tile, Inc. of Los Angeles, California, is an elite tile contractor which over the years has taken the process of installing tile for swimming pools to the ultimate level. With a resume including some of the most unique and immediately recognisable water feature projects worldwide, owner/president Jimmy Reed, not surprisingly, approaches every job in a very unique way. "Step One is to connect with the owner or the designer, the person who leads the team," he states. "Step two is to make sure we can provide above and beyond what is the client's expectation."
"Most people," continued Reed, "are not familiar with what entails a high-end swimming pool. Their image is to just 'tile the pool' and after that, the job is done. From our standpoint, that really isn't the case, as a high-end swimming pool is a completely different animal; it's much more than just adhering tile to a water feature surface. Rather, it's actually a very structured, complex process which consists of very detailed steps that result in building a stunning piece of art for the environment." Reed went on to state that when working on any pool project, his firm's job doesn't begin or end with the visuals. "As far as we're concerned, it has to be a bulletproof installation which lasts a lifetime. Any failures occurring after the tile installation are not an option." Rock Solid Tile's Lapis Azul pool installation is a good example of that.
Designed for an ultra-private seaside California home, this relatively small pool was built for owners who only spend a couple of weeks per year at that residence. In particular, they wanted a pool big enough to enjoy when they were together with family and friends on its surrounding stone deck living area.
"We used The LATICRETE® System for the entire project," commented Reed. This included LATICRETE 254 Platinum (grey) for the initial bond coat, followed by LATICRETE 3701 Fortified Mortar Bed for all of the leveling that was required. For the waterproofing aspect, there is no substitute for LATICRETE HYDRO BAN. From there we used LATICRETE 254 Platinum again as the adhesive to adhere the tiles. Then finally we used LATICRETE SPECTRALOCK® PRO Premium Grout* to finish it off."
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