WASH-IT H.B.
New member
All credit to you man you saw the job through to the bitter end. I think we all have the stories of the jobs that went to custard and ended up being all part of the learning curve. Good on you and thumbs up to you.
Chemical Peel (epoxy), Acid Color Stain, Seal
- Thread starter snagtooth
- Start date
chrishartje
New member
Here is a little info I got from the manufacturer (Absolute Concrete Colors) when I was verifying that their 15% Flash sealer was breathable. Some insight from the source.........
Sealers and coatings allow moisture vapor to escape at varying rates. Solvent borne acrylic base sealers of good quality will allow 4-5 pounds of vapor per 100 square feet per 24 hours. !00% solids water compatible epoxy is similar, maybe a little less. Two part non-aliphatic urethanes come close to no vapor transmission. This sounds good until you realize that water trapped under the sealer will cause a white stain, easily released by wiping with a solvent soaked rag or scrub brush and solvent for acrylics but trapped with epoxy or urethane (or poly aspartic). Then with a little time it carbonizes and becomes a permanent (marble) stain almost impossible to rid. When the industry sells "seal and cure" it usually means a sealer soft enough to allow lots of water transmission but hard enough and dense enough to repel water. Standing water may penetrate in 24 to 48 hours though not much. The real problem is the uncured concrete has lots of water in the surface and it is impossible to get an excellent bond. The ideal is to cure for as long as possible, 28 days is the standard spec, but 1 week in warm weather or 2 weeks in cool weather is pretty dependable. If you have to seal early to protect the surface from weather or landscapers a coat of 25% solvent borne acrylic cut 50/50 with xylene will give some protection. Then when fully cured you can go back and seal again for a nice finish. Perfection when you go back would be to splash xylene on the surface and scrub to re-emulsify and then put another coat of the 50/50 on, more if desired.
-Absolute Concrete Colors
Sealers and coatings allow moisture vapor to escape at varying rates. Solvent borne acrylic base sealers of good quality will allow 4-5 pounds of vapor per 100 square feet per 24 hours. !00% solids water compatible epoxy is similar, maybe a little less. Two part non-aliphatic urethanes come close to no vapor transmission. This sounds good until you realize that water trapped under the sealer will cause a white stain, easily released by wiping with a solvent soaked rag or scrub brush and solvent for acrylics but trapped with epoxy or urethane (or poly aspartic). Then with a little time it carbonizes and becomes a permanent (marble) stain almost impossible to rid. When the industry sells "seal and cure" it usually means a sealer soft enough to allow lots of water transmission but hard enough and dense enough to repel water. Standing water may penetrate in 24 to 48 hours though not much. The real problem is the uncured concrete has lots of water in the surface and it is impossible to get an excellent bond. The ideal is to cure for as long as possible, 28 days is the standard spec, but 1 week in warm weather or 2 weeks in cool weather is pretty dependable. If you have to seal early to protect the surface from weather or landscapers a coat of 25% solvent borne acrylic cut 50/50 with xylene will give some protection. Then when fully cured you can go back and seal again for a nice finish. Perfection when you go back would be to splash xylene on the surface and scrub to re-emulsify and then put another coat of the 50/50 on, more if desired.
-Absolute Concrete Colors