Concrete Moisture Barrier
The porous nature of concrete means that water beneath the surface can seep through the concrete floor, leading to dampness. This can cause issues with mildew and mold, making your home uncomfortable and unhealthy to live in. If you have furniture or carpet on top of your concrete floor, they might be badly damaged.
Garages and basements, which are mainly made of concrete floors, are highly vulnerable to poor air circulation. This means that moisture has nowhere to go, after seeping through the floor. The good news is that placing a vapor barrier under the concrete slab can prevent this moisture from seeping through. This helps to prevent your concrete floors, as well as your valuables.
A vapor barrier for concrete is a form of concrete sealer. It prevents water or moisture from seeping through the concrete floor. High moisture vapor emission rates might be due to clogged or blocked drain pipes, broken water pipe, poor exterior landscaping, and high water table, just to name a few. There are two main types of concrete sealers.
These are regular concrete sealer, and moisture blocking sealer. However, there are slight differences between the two sealers.
A moisture vapor blocker penetrates deeply into the capillary structure of hardened concretes. This means that it fills up all the pores, thus solidifying the inner structure of the concrete while blocking any access the moisture vapor would use, to seep through to the surface. If it is properly installed before the concrete floor is poured, then you would not have to block moisture reaching the surface of the concrete.
In short, the moisture would have been eliminated from the source, which is the sub-base. Furthermore, this would cut costs that are associated with repairing or sealing concrete floors, after moisture starts seeping through. When vapor barrier is not used at the time of pouring, the most appropriate solution would be waterproofing the concrete from the surface. This procedure takes advantage of the porous nature of concrete.
Moisture vapor barriers work by penetrating deep into the concrete substrate and then forming a hydrophilic and hygroscopic crystalline material, which blocks the concrete pores permanently. This way, no amount of water vapor or moisture can seep from under the concrete to the surface. This crystallization procedure gradually fills in and blocks the capillaries even during constant hydrostatic pressure.
Within a certain period, all the pores in concrete are completely blocked, thus eliminating any chance of water vapor seeping through. As you can see, the two methods serve the same purpose but mainly differ in application.
Once moisture vapor seeps through to the concrete’s surface, it can lead to numerous problems. The problems are more compounded especially in floor materials that don’t allow concrete to breathe. Flooring materials such as linoleum, epoxy, wood, and glued on laminate, can seal the surface. This leads to a buildup of moisture pressure in the concrete. When the pressure rises to a certain level, usually over 3 lbs per 1000 square feet within a period of 24 hours, the flooring materials can peel, lift, blister, and even buckle.
The extent of the damage depends on the amount of water vapor trying to escape. If you are planning to apply a certain flooring material on your concrete floor, then you should first test the moisture level in the concrete, even if the surface appears dry.
As previously highlighted, concrete is a porous material and the moisture might be evaporating as soon as it hits the surface, making it unnoticeable.
You can conduct a simple calcium chloride test. This procedure helps to determine how fast moisture vapor escapes from the surface.
Majority of the flooring manufacturers recommend that transmission of moisture vapor from a concrete floor should be below a specific rate before installation of flooring materials.
Materials for Blocking Moisture Vapor
There are numerous materials on the market, which can be used as vapor barriers for concrete. The material chosen depends on the flooring materials, as well as personal preferences. However, one of the best concrete floor moisture sealers is a compound known as RadonSeal. It is a deep concrete penetrating sealer, which achieves the following.
- Waterproofs strengthens and mitigates concrete
- Blocks moisture vapor from seeping through the surface
- Penetrates the concrete substrate and permanently seals outdoor and indoor poured concrete as well as concrete blocks from water seepage
- Eliminates or reduces radon gas, which is unhealthy
- Hardens and densifies concrete, thus blocking the pores and minimizing instances of water vapor from reaching the surface
- Stops hydrostatic pressure
- Prevents cracking, spalling and dusting.
RadonSealer can also be used for sealing basement floors, basement walls, crawlspaces, slab-on-grade foundations, warehouse floors, driveways and parking areas. This concrete floor moisture sealer is water-based. Therefore, it doesn’t leave behind a film on the concrete’s surface. Furthermore, it is paintable, slip-resistant and has zero VOCs. It also has a money-back lifetime guarantee, which is a mark of a quality product.
Apart from the obvious fact of preventing moisture from seeping through to the surface, they also seal voids and capillaries. This helps to strengthen the integrity of the concrete. Furthermore, a concrete floor moisture sealer increases adhesion of paints and coatings, increases surface abrasion resistance, increases the strength of concrete, adds density, improves chemical and acid resistance, improves thermal resistance and prevents internal water migration, just to name a few.
Final Word
If you are planning to apply a coating or a decorative element to your concrete floor, then you should first ask your contractor, to test the floor for moisture vapor transmission. It is an easy and inexpensive process, which will take only a few minutes to complete. It will save you from moisture issues in future. If the moisture reading is higher than the coating’s rating, then you should use a vapor barrier for concrete or a moisture vapor blocker. After that, test the concrete again using the same procedure. You should only apply the coating until the results prove that moisture content is below the coating’s rating. Protection is always better than cure.
Garages and basements, which are mainly made of concrete floors, are highly vulnerable to poor air circulation. This means that moisture has nowhere to go, after seeping through the floor. The good news is that placing a vapor barrier under the concrete slab can prevent this moisture from seeping through. This helps to prevent your concrete floors, as well as your valuables.
Vapor Barrier for Concrete
A vapor barrier for concrete is a form of concrete sealer. It prevents water or moisture from seeping through the concrete floor. High moisture vapor emission rates might be due to clogged or blocked drain pipes, broken water pipe, poor exterior landscaping, and high water table, just to name a few. There are two main types of concrete sealers.
These are regular concrete sealer, and moisture blocking sealer. However, there are slight differences between the two sealers.
A moisture vapor blocker penetrates deeply into the capillary structure of hardened concretes. This means that it fills up all the pores, thus solidifying the inner structure of the concrete while blocking any access the moisture vapor would use, to seep through to the surface. If it is properly installed before the concrete floor is poured, then you would not have to block moisture reaching the surface of the concrete.
In short, the moisture would have been eliminated from the source, which is the sub-base. Furthermore, this would cut costs that are associated with repairing or sealing concrete floors, after moisture starts seeping through. When vapor barrier is not used at the time of pouring, the most appropriate solution would be waterproofing the concrete from the surface. This procedure takes advantage of the porous nature of concrete.
Moisture vapor barriers work by penetrating deep into the concrete substrate and then forming a hydrophilic and hygroscopic crystalline material, which blocks the concrete pores permanently. This way, no amount of water vapor or moisture can seep from under the concrete to the surface. This crystallization procedure gradually fills in and blocks the capillaries even during constant hydrostatic pressure.
Within a certain period, all the pores in concrete are completely blocked, thus eliminating any chance of water vapor seeping through. As you can see, the two methods serve the same purpose but mainly differ in application.
Benefits of Preventing Moisture Transmission in Concrete Floors
Once moisture vapor seeps through to the concrete’s surface, it can lead to numerous problems. The problems are more compounded especially in floor materials that don’t allow concrete to breathe. Flooring materials such as linoleum, epoxy, wood, and glued on laminate, can seal the surface. This leads to a buildup of moisture pressure in the concrete. When the pressure rises to a certain level, usually over 3 lbs per 1000 square feet within a period of 24 hours, the flooring materials can peel, lift, blister, and even buckle.
The extent of the damage depends on the amount of water vapor trying to escape. If you are planning to apply a certain flooring material on your concrete floor, then you should first test the moisture level in the concrete, even if the surface appears dry.
As previously highlighted, concrete is a porous material and the moisture might be evaporating as soon as it hits the surface, making it unnoticeable.
You can conduct a simple calcium chloride test. This procedure helps to determine how fast moisture vapor escapes from the surface.
Majority of the flooring manufacturers recommend that transmission of moisture vapor from a concrete floor should be below a specific rate before installation of flooring materials.
Materials for Blocking Moisture Vapor
There are numerous materials on the market, which can be used as vapor barriers for concrete. The material chosen depends on the flooring materials, as well as personal preferences. However, one of the best concrete floor moisture sealers is a compound known as RadonSeal. It is a deep concrete penetrating sealer, which achieves the following.
- Waterproofs strengthens and mitigates concrete
- Blocks moisture vapor from seeping through the surface
- Penetrates the concrete substrate and permanently seals outdoor and indoor poured concrete as well as concrete blocks from water seepage
- Eliminates or reduces radon gas, which is unhealthy
- Hardens and densifies concrete, thus blocking the pores and minimizing instances of water vapor from reaching the surface
- Stops hydrostatic pressure
- Prevents cracking, spalling and dusting.
RadonSealer can also be used for sealing basement floors, basement walls, crawlspaces, slab-on-grade foundations, warehouse floors, driveways and parking areas. This concrete floor moisture sealer is water-based. Therefore, it doesn’t leave behind a film on the concrete’s surface. Furthermore, it is paintable, slip-resistant and has zero VOCs. It also has a money-back lifetime guarantee, which is a mark of a quality product.
Additional Benefits of Concrete Floor Moisture Sealing
Apart from the obvious fact of preventing moisture from seeping through to the surface, they also seal voids and capillaries. This helps to strengthen the integrity of the concrete. Furthermore, a concrete floor moisture sealer increases adhesion of paints and coatings, increases surface abrasion resistance, increases the strength of concrete, adds density, improves chemical and acid resistance, improves thermal resistance and prevents internal water migration, just to name a few.
Final Word
If you are planning to apply a coating or a decorative element to your concrete floor, then you should first ask your contractor, to test the floor for moisture vapor transmission. It is an easy and inexpensive process, which will take only a few minutes to complete. It will save you from moisture issues in future. If the moisture reading is higher than the coating’s rating, then you should use a vapor barrier for concrete or a moisture vapor blocker. After that, test the concrete again using the same procedure. You should only apply the coating until the results prove that moisture content is below the coating’s rating. Protection is always better than cure.
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