Penetrating concrete sealer. Penetration is always a topic that fascinates me. While the concept is so simple, marketing companies have taken it to an entirely new level. For that reason, I decided to write a post about concrete penetration which is simple, and scientifically accurate.
Concrete is very porous. New concrete isn’t as porous as old concrete because new concrete still has a high water content until it has had the opportunity to fully cure. When any type of liquid, especially water, is pored onto a concrete surface, the concrete’s natural reaction is to suck the water up like a sponge. Water is absorbed into the concrete through the pores. The more porous the concrete, the deeper a liquid will penetrate.
There are a lot of concrete sealers on the market that claim their sealer can penetrate the deepest. In the concrete industry, there are things called surfactants. While surfactants claim they allow for sealers to penetrate deeper, that theory has never been tested. Rest assured, we are working on testing that now! At Foundation Armor, we don’t really work off of claims – they don’t get anyone anywhere. We sell our concrete sealer in concentrated form and we require you to dilute the sealer with 3 parts hot water. The hot water opens up the capillaries in the concrete and by opening up the capillaries, the sealer can penetrate deeper. Think of your skin – oddly enough, concrete functions the same way. When you put your face under cold water, your pores close up. When you put your face under hot water, your pores open up. The same thing happens with concrete. The hot water opens up the capillaries (also referred to as pores) and that is the key ingredient to deep penetration. So if you are looking for a penetrating concrete sealer, trust the brand that commercial and industrial clients use – trust Foundation Armor.
