Best Sealer practices

Basic Sealers on Exposed Aggregate Surfaces

One of the most required maintenance items around a home is driveways. Exposed aggregate is one of the worst offenders in that it is a compromised surface with up to half the concrete binder washed away to expose the rocks. This means that it will weaken over time and weather and lose the rocks creating unsightly holes in the surface and eventually crumble. Fast Finish provides three excellent sealing options to limit this problem. The first is a penetrating sealer that is hydrophobic and seals the pores so that expansion and contraction limit its effect from water and keep moss and mold away from deteriorating the joints. The second is a film-forming two-part sealer that encases the rock like an epoxy that strengthens it and  gives a gloss finish. Clients in the Salem Oregon and surrounding areas have had great success with high five star ratings in reviews and feedback from having Fast Finish seal their flat concrete surfaces with the two options.

 

Epoxy Vs. Polyurea Garage coatings

With more and more companies utilizing polyurea as the base coat for flaked floors, it is important to understand the reason behind the choice as an installer over epoxy. Here is what we have found after utilizing both mediums.  The pros and cons of both should be considered for your next install as a customer or qualified installer. As a licensed installer, that has the resources, we have found that the costs, ( at least at the time of this writing) is nominal. We get a little better price per gallo on epoxy, mostly due to quatity. Many will say that epoxy is the cheaper of the two, but we have found that only to be true of box store epoxy, not the high grade industrial epoxies we utilize. I also think that is a sales pitch as an upsell. The cost is withing 3-5% in reality over basic materials and dead even when it comes to vapor barrier rated epoxies.  One characteristic of polyurea that we love is that it is UV stable and less likely to discolor or fade in sun prone areas of applications. That in itself migt be the main reason for client choice...however with a polyurea topcoat over epoxy base there is another advantage that deserves additional consideration. In moisture prone areas of concrete, polyurea needs additional vapor barrier rated primer coat to provide a coating that wont be prone to delamination. This can drive up costs considerably. Polyurea base coats also cure much faster, which is also a con in some instances where you want more penetration into the concrete rather than relying on full adhesion to the substrate.  Sometimes a combination is better served for the most durability. A licensed and trained professional installer will go beyond the easy one day floor pitch that polyurea can provide and should be able to offere both and recommend the best option based on your floors need. One size rarely fits all when it comes to polyurea vs. Epoxy.

Illahee Hills Clean & Seal of driveways

It is that time of year to get those driveways, Patios and Walkways cleaned and sealed before another summer rolls by. Often times we get so busy that it gets to be to late in the year to get it done once the rain comes back.  Fast Finish has been restoring, sealing stamped concrete, Exposed Aggregate and concrete pavers in The Illahee Hills area for the last seven years with great results. There are several new sealer options with lower maintenance and longer life than ever before not found locally. Call Fast Finish and schedule their clean and seal special for this community.

Stamped Concrete Cleaning with Whisper Wash

Sealers and Coatings on concrete

A contractor who takes on a stripping job is, by definition, already dealing with an unhappy customer as “You’re solving somebody’s problem, which means you’re in the middle of a negative situation instead of a positive one. If there’s ever a time for expectation management, it’s stripping and resealing.”

Take care of this problem in the testing phase, particularly if restaining or resealing is involved. Testing only one area encourages the false impression that every other spot will turn out exactly the same way, .So do two or three areas. You’ll likely end up with two or three different shades. “Have the client settle for a range, instead of a single sample,” when stripping sealers.

Also, test the most difficult spot on the floor, not one that seems to be average.Estimate on the most difficult areas, the job can only go better than expected or Chances are, that you may just make the job worse.”

Bad Concrete Finish Fixes

What to do with bad concrete coatings.

In the Pacific Northwest there is a ton of different concrete finishes being used in the industry. Many have performed well under the duress of constant weather and environmental changes.That said, there are more that have failed or have become unsightly than have lasted to a satisfactory level of enjoyment. Having the proper maintenance program for concrete cleaning and sealing becomes a high priority if the desired outcome is aesthetic durability and beauty.

A licensed contractor does not mean they are up to date on the best sealers, stains and coatings. Fast finish provides an in depth evaluation that goes beyond the standard one size fits all or in this case one coating or sealer works in every case. Having a broader product and applications background enables Fast Finish to provide a better solution than what most contractors offer. 

Another overlooked area regarding sealers and coatings is the short window in Oregon for application. Booking and planning in advance for the following season is usually the best approach and does not leave you with a run of the mill finish that is often provided in the area. 

Penetrating vs. Topical Sealers

Question-Can topical concrete sealers (ex. acrylics, epoxies, urethanes, etc.) be applied over penetrating sealers?

Answer-((Yes,))topical sealers generally can be applied over most penetrating sealers. Penetrating sealers generally do not form a membrane, film, or barrier that would prevent the topical sealers from adhering to the surface. As a matter of fact, most penetrating sealers were originally developed for use as primers to be applied prior to topical coatings and sealers being applied. It was only in recent years that penetrating sealers gained popularity for usage as a standalone product due to their inherent properties for preserving, protecting, and strengthening concrete, brick, and stone surfaces. Please consult product label and product specification sheet for specific details on the product you are considering.
Can penetrating concrete sealers be applied over topical sealers? 
No, topical sealers create a membrane, film, or barrier that prevents the penetrating sealers from absorbing into the surface. If intention is to apply a penetrating sealer to a surface, then it will be necessary to properly remove the topical sealer from the surface prior to application of the penetrating sealer. Removal may be accomplished through scraping, grinding, sand blasting, shot blasting, pressure washing, chemical stripping, or other accepted method

Paints vs.Stains

 First thing to know-

 Water-based stains can adhere to water or oil-based coatings already present on the wooden surface. Water-based stains can be cleaned up with water.

Oil-based stains will only adhere to wood previously stained with an oil-based product. 

So which one is the best? The answer is not as simple as one over the other, but the conditions and exposure of the surface that determines the best application.

When dealing with wood decks, you have to consider it's direct exposure or enclosure of the wood. paints are coatings and they do not penetrate the substrate like stains. they are a thin adhesive film that can wear down or off over time. Stains penetrate into the surface and also condition the wood. The airflow beneath a deck can also be a big factor. A deck that can absorb moisture can rot quicker. If water can constantly sit on the surface, then stain is better than paint. In damp moisture prone climates wood will be absorbed under the paint and trap in the moisture and rot. If the deck is enclosed, paint will provide a more uniform appearance to the surface. 

The same can be said for sealers and coatings for concrete. Coatings float on top whereas sealers actually penetrate. The coatings are more eye appealing but require heavier maintenance long term. sealers penetrate the pores rather than covering them and relying on the adhesive nature of a coating to protect the finish....

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Sealers - what you need to know

It is that time of year once again! Pressure wash that driveway, patio and sidewalk. But dont stop there, and forget to seal it afterwards. Why go through all the work then leave that clean exposed aggregate or concrete unprotected? That exposed surface is now more-vulnerable than when the oil and dirt were on it. But what sealer is best?  There are a couple things to consider. Looks and longevity are usually at the top of the list. What most people dont know is that most who want that nice shiny sheen on their exposed  aggregate sacrifice longevity. There is no way around it. In order to get that look, acrylics are used in the mixture. Acrylics are not sealers! Acrylics are coatings. The Difference between a coating and a sealer is the penetration they have to the surface. Acrylics have either a water or solvent base as a carrier. The thinner the mix or percentage of acrylic to the carrier the more penetration it has. Acrylics need a build up on the surface to create the sheen. 25-30% acrylic is typically standard to achieve that desired result. So everything is coated and looks great, but the catch is coming. In Oregon and high moisture, rain fall or humidity states, moisture gets trapped underneath these coatings. Coatings do not breath and trap thst moisture. The result is white haze, premature failure, flaking an chipping in some extreme cases. The fixes are only temporary at best. The coatings also need to be re freshed every couple years to maintain the desired shine as well. This is evident by areas that are less exposed to the elements under the eves and shaded areas.

Sealers on the other hand, penetrate into the pores and create a vapor type barrier but allows moisture to escape, depending on the carrier types. You can even attain a moderate sheen but nothing like acrylic coatings. The sealers also come solvent and water based as well and have a much longer wear life if they are not just topical in nature. Coatings and sealers both have their place. It is good to understand the pros and cons of each before making a decision...

Sealing Concrete

Concrete sealers. There are many and they are just as diverse as the surfaces they protect. So how do we pick the right one for our surface?  

Many manufactures have tried to make the super sealer that can cover everything. This concept is obviously attractive to the installer and home owner alike as it just keeps everything simple. But is that the best approach? And is the seal good enough for "every" surface or even most surfaces? Let's take a closer look at sealers, specifically the ones for concrete or exposed aggregate for now. I will go into other hard surface sealers in another blog post later on,.

First some background- with chemistry as hobby and 25 years in industrial chemical sales, it's safe to say that I have seen a few revolutionary products as well as complete disasters. Also , working with large general contractors that are eager to test products over the years has afforded me some grey hairs that remember what works and what failed over time. Sealers are one of the items that fall into that category. One of my first experiences was watching the de lamination of sealer on concrete that hadn't cured long enough to accept it.

That took a lot of sorting out as the manufacture gave some wrong information on its use as well as installer error and other various conditions causing multiple faults and failures.

But let's not get overly concerned about  failure of multi million dollar construction projects. Let's look at the simple home owner driveways, walkways, patios  and entry ways etc...

To make it simple I will skip over all the box store sealers that are made for home owners. Most contractors that do any amount of sealing most likely won't use them. The two basic types are silca and acrylic or water based and solvent based. The water based types are utilized indoor more often as the solvents are toxic with fumes that are also flammable and shouldn't be used in enclosed areas with spark or ignition sources. That said, they both have about the same longevity from my experience, and needs to be re applied after a couple years to maintain the look that is desired.

We have found that some people have applied these topical sealers made for concrete on their indoor natural stone floors even.. It would not be my first suggestion for sure as the stone sealers are usually a penetrating type over the topical types on concrete.

I will cover stone sealer at a later time and some of the potential issues with those...

Tile and Grout Cleaning

Several Salem Oregon residents that have had Fast Finish clean their tile and grout, have found that their investment looks better than they expected. The reason for this is the amount of time that passed since either being professionally cleaned or installed. Dirt and grime slowly accumulate into the grout lines changing their color and appearance unexpectedly. 

When Fast Finish puts their patent system to work, it sanitizes and lifts the emulsified dirt and grease particles. The pressurized hot steam rinse is vacuumed up at high speed leaving no trace if dirt and bacteria. The result automatically leaves a fresh smell and appearance from the lack of bacteria that once resided in the surface pores.

Flushing out the grout lines leaves the pores open so it is advised to seal them with a Fast Finish grout sealer afterwards.   This allows the home or business owner to mop without the grime and dirty mop water to seep back in. The years of easy maintenance after is worth the extra investment and will outlast anything that can be purchased at one of the big box stores.

Fast Finish has also released a few rare specials for Angie's list members for the fall and winter months. It does not include the grout line sealing, but the money that is saved for purchasing the cleaning makes the extra add on worth it's weight in gold. It is also worth mentioning that Fast Finish is one of the few companies that have the diversity to clean multiple surface types and provide protectant for each of them. They can even refinish several different types of surfaces as well as do full restorations of concrete surfaces. See this transformed entry way that now adorns a cut stone tile look made from hybrid cement polymers.

Amazing work to say the least. If it can't be cleaned it can be resurfaced and restored to better than new. It is no wonder That Fast Finish ranks number one as a service provider on Angie's list. 

Salem Tile & Grout services- Cleaning , Sealing

Many folks forget about having their tile and grout professionally cleaned, and others don't even realize that a professional tile and grout cleaning service is available in Salem, Oregon
While sweeping and mopping are great ways to maintain your tile floors, there is nothing that compares to the Hydro-Cleaning services that Fast Finish provides with removing the embedded soils and grime through extraction.
We begin by inspecting the tile & grout. This is important as we need to make sure the customer doesn't have any cracking tiles or grout that need repair.

Next we apply a high PH alkaline spray. This proprietary heavy duty spray dissolves all the grease and grime that is deeply embedded into the grout lines of your floor. While they are still safe for you family and pets the products we use are not available at your local hardware store and are only available to professional tile and grout cleaners.
After applying the spray we us a specialize grout scrubbing tool to scrub each line to ensure that we remove all the dirt, grease and grime from you grout lines.

Once we are sure we have properly cleaned your grout lines we use our professional grade extraction tool to apply a high pressure, heat, rinse and extraction process. This step ensure that we get all the dirt and grease we just cleaned sucked out to our truck mount tanks and also that we remove all the cleaning agent residue so your tile and grout will have its original luster.
We always take the time to wipe down your baseboards and any tight corners that need detail cleaning. Just another step we do to take your tile and grout cleaning experience to the next level.
We then set up fans to speed dry your tile and grout.
We can also apply an optional sealer to your grout as well. We offer two different grout sealing services.
1. Clear seal - this service applies a penetrating clear seal to your grout. This seal does not alter the color of your grout it simply applies a protective coating that does not allow liquids to soak into grout. This also allows you to easily maintain your tile and grout floors with regular sweeping and mopping with little effort.
2. Color seal - Many people are not even aware of this service, and once we show them what color sealing can do for the grout they are simply amazed. We use a urethane acrylic color seal product. The advantage to this product is it actually stains the grout any color the customer chooses. Our color sealers come with a 15 year product guarantee.  Follow Us