M-F cell 780-945-6787 and 780-667-9528 SMS anytime
 

Sealant

A bit of education about concrete sealers and the process of resealing your curbs

The purpose of concrete sealer on stamped concrete is to preserve the secondary release colour/s from wear and deterioration from exposure to the elements. Sealant penetrates into the pores of the concrete and provides a UV light  and water resistant barrier, and a low to high gloss coating to preserve and enhance the colours used. See wikipedia article on concrete sealers.

There are a variety of concrete sealers available, but we have opted to use the same sealers as are used on most driveways and sidewalks by other local contractors. So usually you can use the same product on all your stamped or exposed aggregate concrete surfaces.

We use a petroleum based acrylic sealer.  Usually Unicon or Conspec house branded sealer. We recommend use of UNISEAL  or Conspec 15% Truseal only, as the higher gloss sealers are more prone to peeling if not applied under ideal conditions. Available at  Unicon (north side) or Conspec (south side)_. Also Brock White and National Concrete accessories.  This type of sealer can be applied with a brush, roller or  pump sprayer. Brush application is preferred because an ordinary pump sprayer cannot handle the powerful solvents used.

If you can’t get petroleum based sealers, then home improvement stores can set you up with a water based acrylic sealer that performs only about 1/3 as well. In the gallery at the bottom of the page, were are using Stone Mason brand water based sealers available at Home Depot. It goes on bluish-white then turns clear.

For homeowner’s application, we recommend the use of a 4” cheap paintbrush that can be disposed of when the job is done.   A 4 liter can of sealer will do about 400 feet of curb one coat. Cost is around $48 per 4 litres.

Apply the sealant after a week or two from initial installation, but BEFORE it gets too cold in the autumn.  12 degrees celsius minimum. Apply only if it has not rained or been wet in the past 24-48 hours. The concrete must be DRY! Do not seal in layers of dirt or dust- but the odd bit won’t hurt. We brush off dust and debris with a dry car wash brush before sealing. Sealant dries very quickly, so rain a couple of hours later won’t hurt it.

Click this link to our download page on sealing:  Curb Care Info Word doc

Look at the amazing difference a coat of sealant makes on old curb