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Pandomo is one of the Ardex premium brands available at Matter. It offers a range of solutions for creating continuous decorative surfaces, which bring unity to spaces and great flexibility in customising each interior design project.

In this article we look at what Pandomo is and the lines it comprises: the Pandomo Wall finish and its five colour ranges, the Floor, FloorPlus and Loft cementitious floorings, and the three continuous terrazzo systems. At the end we bring their technical data together in a table, along with the key points for specifying them.

Pandomo, continuous mineral surfaces by Ardex

Pandomo is a range of products for creating highly resistant continuous decorative surfaces, without visible joints, on floors, walls and ceilings. It is based on cementitious coatings that can be coloured and textured, and that allow very different results, from classic styles to contemporary urban ones, depending on the intent and character of each project.

According to the brand itself, the starting idea was to turn mineral levelling compound into the final floor finish. The Haus der Gegenwart in Munich (2005), by allmannwappner, was one of the first smart homes with walls and floors in Pandomo Wall and Pandomo Floor, and the terrazzo system grew out of a commission from David Chipperfield Architects for the new Museum Folkwang building in Essen (2010).

Pandomo products cover everything from small, bespoke projects seeking high aesthetic quality to high-traffic buildings that need robust, durable technical solutions. They are organised into these lines:

• Pandomo Wall: cementitious finish for walls and ceilings, smooth, homogeneous or textured.
• Pandomo Floor and FloorPlus: decorative self-levelling floorings of 5 to 10 mm, through-coloured.
• Pandomo Loft: thin-layer flooring, 2 to 4 mm, for areas with high loads.
• Pandomo Terrazzo: three continuous terrazzo systems, TerrazzoBasic, TerrazzoMicro and TerrazzoPlus.

Pandomo Wall: colour and texture on the wall

A cementitious finish that turns the wall into a design element.

Pandomo Wall redefines the look of walls with a range of possibilities that goes from soft, polished finishes to bolder textures, in commercial or residential spaces. It can be worked in a single colour or two can be combined in a textured design, and its surface has a slightly iridescent appearance that changes with the light. Ardex presents it in three reference finishes: homogeneous, smooth and textured.

Thanks to its cementitious base, the surface is highly resistant. After the final treatment with Stone oil, according to Ardex, it is durable, vapour-permeable and easy to clean: dust and dirt can be removed with a cloth.

Where wall meets floor

The transition between wall and floor is resolved according to the setting and the use of the space: with stainless steel, painted aluminium, wood or plastic profiles, by sealing the joint with silicone, or with profiles that form a shadow gap. It should be defined at design stage, because it is the most visible detail when floor and wall are continuous.

Five starting colour ranges

Ardex presented the Pandomo colours in five ranges, Light, Natural, Pure, Bright and Accent, with six tones each. They were created by the artist and interior designer Johannes Klinger as a guide to choosing colour, and apply to Pandomo Wall as well as to the Floor, FloorPlus and Loft floorings; one of the Light tones is suitable for Wall only. Each tone can be adjusted to order. In August 2023 Pandomo defined new colour collections for all its lines with artists from the university in Ottersberg, and it retains the option of custom colours using its colour concentrates.

1. Light

Pastel tones give a room an air of clarity and, according to the brand, an uplifting effect on mood. Thanks to its versatility, it is a range for modern, elegant public and private spaces, and its discretion makes it work well on large wall areas.

2. Natural

Earthy tones create a sense of security, because they cast a soft, subdued light in the room, similar to diffuse daylight. They suit many settings, especially private spaces or upmarket rustic-style restaurants.

3. Pure

A gradation of greys reminiscent of shadows in nature. This is the range for contemporary buildings, lofts, minimalist interiors or the new modernism, with a restrained look and subtle elegance.

4. Bright

This palette of luminous colours is intended for spaces where transparency and positivity are sought: creative workplaces, nurseries, hospitals or spas.

5. Accent

Saturated, bold colours that spark the imagination and bring energy. Ardex recommends them for urban settings and to bring freshness and modernity to large spaces.

Pandomo Floor, FloorPlus and Loft: smooth cementitious floors

Thin, through-coloured continuous floors.

With a wide colour palette and the possibility of creating custom patterns, Pandomo Floor adapts to any interior design with smooth, open cementitious floors. Its base is the decorative self-levelling mortar Pandomo K1, which is tinted with Pandomo pigments and applied at 5 to 10 mm. After treatment with oil, the surface gains a silky sheen, colour intensity and resistance to abrasion and water. According to Ardex, even at 5 mm it performs like quality parquet or a soft natural stone.

Pandomo FloorPlus adds selected mineral aggregates that are broadcast over the freshly levelled mortar. This makes the surface harder and its appearance more uniform than Floor, without losing the smooth final finish.

Pandomo Loft is the evolution of Floor for areas with high loads, mainly in public buildings and shops, although it is also used in homes. It is based on Pandomo K2 mortar and applied in a very thin layer, of about 2 mm (2 to 4 mm according to the technical data sheet). That reduced thickness avoids, for example, having to trim doors, and shortens construction times.

Pandomo Terrazzo: three continuous terrazzo systems

The look of traditional terrazzo, with faster application.

Pandomo's three terrazzo systems combine a very low-stress binder with decorative aggregates. Once applied they are ground and sealed, and can be put into service much sooner than conventional terrazzo. TerrazzoBasic uses aggregates from the region itself; TerrazzoMicro and TerrazzoPlus use a white or black matrix (the white one can be pigmented) with limestone or marble aggregates in six types, Nero, Bianco, Bianco Rosé, Rosso, Marrone Ocra and Grigio Chiaro, and three grain sizes.

TerrazzoBasic

Pandomo TerrazzoBasic takes terrazzo to its most elemental form. It is a floor with a classic, timeless look that can be installed as a floating screed over separation or insulation layers (from 50 mm) or as a bonded screed (25 mm). Its grey matrix is mixed with mineral aggregates from the project's area, giving each floor a character of its own. It is pumped, ground and sealed, and according to Ardex can be used on the fourth day: a more economical alternative to traditional terrazzo for projects seeking a durable, elegant finish.

TerrazzoMicro

Pandomo TerrazzoMicro is the fine variant of the system. It uses only the smallest grain size of decorative aggregate (1 to 3 mm), which gives the floor a softer effect and a more discreet appearance that does not lose its terrazzo character. According to Ardex, it retains the wear resistance of traditional terrazzo and is suitable for high-traffic areas such as lobbies and corridors. It is applied from 11 mm thick, which reduces material consumption, and the manufacturer gives outputs of up to 300 m² a day.

TerrazzoPlus

Pandomo TerrazzoPlus offers the advantages of traditional terrazzo flooring, such as elegance, resistance and durability, at a more affordable cost and without sacrificing technical performance. It is a finely ground floor, practically jointless and easy to maintain, with high resistance to abrasion and traffic from 25 mm thick. According to Ardex, some 120 m² can be laid per day, it is ground after 24 hours and, with the Pandomo ATS base, the floor goes from substrate to final finish in five days.

Technical data for Pandomo floors

The table summarises the main data for each flooring system according to the technical data sheets published by Ardex. Values are approximate, measured at +20 °C.

All the systems are compatible with hot-water underfloor heating and with castor chairs. The Micro and Plus terrazzos can be laid over insulation on a Pandomo ATS base, and TerrazzoBasic directly as a floating screed, as the sections in the data sheets show.

Key points for specifying Pandomo

Beyond colour and texture, these are the points to resolve at design stage:

• System by use and thickness: Loft when there is little height available, for example to avoid trimming doors; Floor or FloorPlus in interiors with moderate use; the terrazzos in high-traffic public areas.
• Build-up height: from 2 mm for Loft to 50 mm for floating TerrazzoBasic; this needs to be allowed for at doors, junctions and changes of flooring.
• Junctions: define the profile or joint between wall and floor from the outset, especially when both are continuous.
• True colour: printed charts are only a guide, as the manufacturer itself warns; the tone should be validated with an applied sample.
• Application and maintenance: these are craft finishes carried out by applicators trained by Pandomo, and they are protected with oil or an impregnating sealer once finished.

At Matter we work with Ardex and Pandomo so that architects, interior designers and institutions can get to know the characteristics of these interior design materials at first hand. You can find out more at our offices.