Waterproof Coating Considerations
When it comes to Waterproof Coating there are a few options to consider that can be of key importance to a successful outcomes. One of the first and obvious factors is the underlying material that needs to be repaired due to leaks due to holes and cracks. These materials generally include steel, stainless steel, galvanized metal, concrete, plastic, wood and fiberglass surfaces.
Because types of surfaces have unique characteristics, they have variables concerning how to prepare and repair them. Secondly, it’s important to determine the size of the area in need of repair. Although leak repairs can be a small fraction of the surface, we recommend coating and protecting the entire surface to prevent the substrate against future corrosion. Other waterproof coating considerations include chemical resistance, temperature resistance and the important question concerning the stability of the surface and if a solid, abrasion proof coating is needed verses a flexible coating.
Waterproof Coating Preparation According to Surface Type
Although most surfaces do not require extreme surface preparation for Waterproof Coating, it is important to realize that a clean, well prepped surface will always result in greater adhesion strength of the coating to the surface. We will recommend epoxy coatings in this article due to their permanency, chemical and heat resistance attributes and their high adhesive strength properties. Also, it is important to know that nothing likes to attach to slick surfaces, so the idea is to have an abraded surface that will naturally occur in most aged surfaces, but will need to be prepared further with an etched profile in stainless steel surfaces.
Steel and Galvanized Steel Surfaces: New galvanized metal will have a slick coating that will need to be removed either by sanding, grinding, or the use of DX-ETCH Cleanser & Etcher prior to coating. Our recommended products will coat over and encapsulate rust, but DX-ETCH will remove rust, oil, grease and soot to result in a clean, well prepared and etched surface within minutes. Otherwise we recommend a heavy grit sandpaper, grinder, wire wheel or sandblast preparation. In many cases, a pressure washer is adequate.
Stainless steel Surfaces: Because Stainless Steel is a slick surface, we recommend an etched profile. Implements for abrading include a coarse grinder, wire wheel or sandblast to achieve a well-etched, scored profile. Do not use a light abrasion wheel as this might only polish the surface and make it more slick.
Plastic Surfaces : Plastic surfaces are also slick in nature and will require a ruffed surface prior to coating and sealing. Heavy grit sandpaper will be adequate.
Concrete Surfaces: Concrete surfaces are porous in nature and vapor (air) moves through concrete which creates barometric pressure and can have a negative impact on the coating to continue to adhere to the surface long-term. For this reason, we recommend DX-1100 Primer for Concrete. Concrete Surfaces can be ideally benefit from DX-ETCH Surface Cleanser & Etcher. DX-1100 Primer can be applied by brush, roller or sprayer to achieve 3-5 mil thickness and cover 320 to 530 square feet coverage per gallon. A topcoat, primary coating can be applied within the re-coat window. See the DX-1100 Product Data for more product information. Also see the article Concrete Repair Coating for further concrete coating Info.
Wood and Fiberglass Surfaces: Clean surface and ensure there is no oil or grease.
Recommended Waterproof Coating Products
PANSEAL Gallon Kit: PANSEAL is an all-purpose coating and sealant that contains abrasion proof properties so it works best on solid steel surfaces and concrete. PANSEAL has excellent chemical and temperature resistant properties, NO VOCs, very minimal odor and 2,750 psi adhesion strength. For Waterproof Coating, 1 Gallon covers 80 square feet at 20 mils thickness. Link to PANSEAL Product Data
ELASTASEAL 2 Gallon Kit: ELASTASEAL is also an all-purpose coating and sealant that has 300% elongation, or flexibility ratings. It’s ideal for projects that require flexibility, contains NO VOCs and covers 80 square feet per gallon. Link to ELASTASEAL Product Data
DX-1100 Primer for Concrete Gallon Kit: DX-1100 is designed for concrete as it’s a thin material that penetrates the pores of concrete preventing outgassing and increasing the adhesion strength of the coating to the surface. DX-1100 can be applied at 3-5 mils thickness and cover 320 to 530 square feet per gallon for Waterproof Coating . It has an impressive 2,500 psi adhesion strength and NO VOCs. Link to DX-1100 Product Data
PANSEAL Paste Grade Gallon Kit: PANSEAL Paste Grade is used to fill voids and absences on surfaces. It’s a thicker viscosity trowel grade that has NO VOCs and 2,850 psi adhesion strength. Link to PANSEAL Paste Grade Product Data
DX-ETCH: DX-ETCH is our recommended clean & etch product designed to prepare surfaces removing rust, oils, greases and soot to provide great adhesion strength of paints and coatings. Link to DX-ETCH Product Data