All porous mineral building materials will benefit from being sealed. Inclusive of stone, masonry, tile, concrete and grout.

Topical sealers- provide a thin film over the surface which in turn will darken the treated surface. These coatings wear quickly and can make the surface slippery when made wet. A topical sealer must also be stripped off when time comes for re-application. These coatings will also block the pores of the surface and can trap salts and water just beneath the surface which may cause the coating to peel or go cloudy.

Impregnating sealers – There are impregnating sealers that repel water and those that repel both water and oil based stains. Impregnating sealers usually will not alter the appearance and not make any change to the slip resistance of the surface but will not completely stop dirt and rubber getting into the open pores of the surface. When you make comparison to similar sounding impregnating sealers, the two most important questions are: how long will it last and how deep does it penetrate into the surface? The deeper the penetration, the better the sealer. Drytreat sealers are the best on the market. Don’t just believe their website and guarantees, check out sealing forums from around the world.

Sealers need a carrier to evenly spread and take the active ingredients onto or into the surface. This carrier is either water and/or a non-water based solvent. There is no doubt that “water-based” sounds like a more desirable product but this term can be misleading.

Many water-based impregnators still contain a considerable amount of solvent such as n-butyl acetate. As a general rule, non-water based sealers are more effective than water-based sealers. The main reasons they perform better include: they are able to wet and penetrate into the surface – this gives the sealer protection from weathering, cleaning, traffic, freeze-thaw, picture framing (critical on kitchen counter tops where water may by-pass any surface treatment) and efflorescence.

Non-water based sealers can also be used over a previously impregnated surface and are suitable to treat resin treated stone, which is the norm for granite kitchen counters.

Yes. Especially if you have a salt water pool with sandstone, travertine, limestone etc it is imperative that you seal with an impregnating sealer with hardening properties that will help solidify the particles in the stone and stop any chance of salt spalling and disintegration of your stone.

If you have a mineral or chlorine pool, a standard impregnating sealer is still recommended for protection against staining.

Yes. If you would like help to protect against graffiti and would like to keep the natural look of your surface, then impregnating sealers are a great option. Once applied, graffiti can then be removed by pressure washing and/or cleaning agents without damaging the surface. We also have options with other sealers if you’re happy with an altered “painted” look to your surface.

Place about 15-20 mls or a tablespoon of water on the treated surface and leave for 20 minutes. Then soak up the water with some paper towel or a tissue, pressing hard to soak up any water in the pores of the surface. If the water has absorbed into or leaves a dark mark on the surface, it requires more sealing.

Efflorescence is a crystalline deposit on surfaces of masonry, paving or concrete. It is whitish in appearance, and is sometimes referred to as “whiskers”. It is the migration of a salt to the surface of a porous material, where it forms a coating. The essential process comprises the dissolving of an internally held salt in water, or occasionally in another solvent. The water, with the salt now held in solution, migrates to the surface, then evaporates, leaving a coating of the salt.

In what has been described as “primary efflorescence,” the water is the invader and the salt was already present internally. Some people describe a reverse process, where the salt is originally present externally and is then carried inside in solution, as “secondary efflorescence.” However, others would give this latter phenomenon another name entirely.

Efflorescence can occur in natural and built environments. On porous construction materials it may present a cosmetic outer problem only (primary efflorescence causing staining), but can sometimes indicate internal structural weakness (migration/degradation of component materials).

The answer is to seal the surface with a high performance sealer as soon as is practical after the building material is installed. The sealer must be deeply penetrating, able to withstand the highly alkaline environment found in cement based-materials and be completely breathable so moisture cannot be trapped below the surface.

Once the surface is sealed a deep water-repelling layer is formed. This layer will prevent water and dissolved lime compounds from reaching the surface where efflorescence could occur. At the same time the sealer stops further water soaking into the surface and so breaks the cycle of efflorescence.

The unused lime compounds are left harmlessly immobile in the core of the building material with little contact with carbon dioxide. Since the sealer can breathe, sub-surface moisture can escape as water vapour rather than in a liquid form.

Picture framing is best described as a discolouration that occurs to the outer edges of the surface of the paver. Main causes are seepage of grout into the paver, an uneven curing (if cement based) of the cement in the paver or water. Picture framing is usually irreversible and it is best to prevent it from occurring. Preventive measures include pre-sealing the upper-surface of the sides of the tile.

Sealers will make the surface water and stain resistant, but not dirt resistant. The sealed surface should be cleaned as regularly as a non-sealed surface. If tree leaves, sap, bat droppings and other foreign matter falls on to your surface, it will still be difficult to clean off, but should not permanently stain the surface.

Remove spills immediately, use diluted bleach to remove marks and routine cleaning and scrubbing of the surface with a neutral pH cleaner will keep surfaces looking good for longer. The majority of tile stores stock neutral pH cleaners.