Sealers for Decorative Concrete
There are many kinds of sealers for decorative concrete, each provide a specific characteristic and they all have their pros and cons.
We can start by sub dividing concrete sealers into two basic categories, water base and solvent base.
Water Base sealers have the advantage of being low odor, more user friendly and require no Haz-Mat shipping. Their downside is less depth of color, no "Wet-Look", have weaker films and are moisture sensitive.
Solvent base sealers have better performance, provide the "Wet-Look", generally have less application issues and are better for exterior than water base ones. Disadvantages are strong smell, flammability, transportation costs are less user friendly and may require especial equipment to be applied.
We can also separate concrete sealers into film forming sealers (acrylics, polyurethanes, epoxies, polyureas) and non-film forming sealers (water repellants, densifiers, hardeners)
Now we can take a look at specific types of sealer by chemistry (water base or solvent base)
Acrylics: Acrylic sealers are the most popular of all sealers, they provide medium protection and fair resistance to traffic and chemicals. Solvent base acrylics are by far the most used concrete sealer for decorative concrete. Most stamped concrete and overlays are sealed with a solvent base acrylic.
Polyurethanes: Polyurethanes give much better protection against wear and chemicals but are harder to apply and have other issues such as moisture sensitivity, adhesion to concrete and need to be applied by a pro.
Epoxies: Epoxies offer great depth of color and protection but tend to yellow in the long term and are not easy to apply. Late generation epoxies now are able to resist yellowing and perform better outside.
Polyureas: This is the latest technology on concrete sealers, they offer excellent wear and chemical resistance, do not yellow out, are fairly easy to apply and dry very fast. No solvent formulation have no odor whatsoever. Cost is a factor though, as polyureas are about the most expensive sealers in the market
Silicates: This sealers react with the lime and cement content in concrete and develop crystals that seal the pores but allow passage of moisture vapors, they harden and densify the concrete at the surface level but they do not form a film, which makes them subject to staining and chemical penetration.
There are other sealer options out there but these are the most popular. Whenever you are ready for your project consult with the contractor to see which sealer choices you have, and which type of concrete sealer may be better for your installation.
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