Sealing Your Concrete Floor from Moisture

Chances are that the foundation of your home is made of concrete. Most modern homes use this versatile and relatively inexpensive material for this purpose.

However, concrete is not impervious and perfect, it may experience some issues. If you have seen moisture on your concrete garage or basement floor, or noticed water seeping into your house, that might spell trouble for your home.

Still, as water damage experts at Emergency Home Solutions, the problem might be easily solved by simply sealing the floors from moisture. They explain how and why it is done.

What Problems Can Water Make

If there is water seeping through your floors and into your home’s foundation, there are numerous potential problems for your home. The most important one is that water can dissolve parts of your foundation, causing serious problems for the structural integrity of the house.

Another huge problem is that this creates an ideal habitat for mold growth. Mold loves dark and damp places and from there can cause a lot of health problems for you and your family.

That’s why sealing the concrete before any of this happens is a great idea, and even if it has already started, sealing the concrete is a good way to remediate the damage before it expands and causes more serious problems.

Picking a Sealant

There are several materials which are generally used for sealing concrete. Each of them has a slightly different application and features. If you are unsure which one to pick, read up on the properties of each and pick one which is best suited to your needs. Alternatively, you could consult a water damage expert to help you.

A siloxane sealant is very durable, lasting up to two decades. It is suited for both indoor and outdoor applications, it penetrates the concrete to provide great sealing.

An acrylic sealant is fairly easy to use and is best suited for basements and indoor floors which do not come into contact with oil or grease since those substances can damage it. Unlike siloxane, acrylic does not seep into the concrete but stays on the surface.

An epoxy sealant is better suited to resist oil and grease, which makes it great for garages and kitchens. It is also more durable than acrylic.

A polyurethane sealant has similar properties to epoxy, but is more durable and provides UV protection, so it is often used in combination with epoxy, as a topcoat.

How to Apply the Sealant

In order to properly apply the sealant, you need to clean your floors of all debris and dirt. Experts recommend cleaning the floor with a concrete cleaner and letting it dry for at least one full day.

Once the floor is clean and dry, fill in all cracks with caulk and let it dry and settle. Once that is finished, you are ready to apply the sealant. In order to be sure that you’ve fully handled the problem, you should apply two coats.

Apply a coat of the sealant with a roller, making sure to get to the corners using a paintbrush. The area needs to be properly ventilated because the sealants are volatile and the fumes can be dangerous.

Let the sealant dry (depending on the type and the manufacturer, it can be anywhere between a few hours and two days. After everything is dry, apply the second coat in the same manner. This time, wait a few days before returning your room to normal use.

Even though sealing your floors should solve your water damage problems, make sure to keep an eye on it so that the problem does not reoccur.