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Concrete floors can be classified as concrete garage floors, concrete basement floors and interior concrete floors. When it comes to choosing concrete floor sealers there are a number of factors to take into account.
- Where is the concrete floor located: basement, garage, etc.?
- What type of properties are you looking for: chemical resistance, stain repellency, waterproofing?
- What type of finish is desired: natural, gloss, polished?
Here are a few general product recommendations based on the scenarios above.
Best Concrete Floor Sealers for Concrete Basement Floors:
When it comes to sealing a basement floor you first must determine how wet or how much moisture is trapped in the concrete. Is the concrete floor wet, damp or moist? If the floor is wet or damp test the moisture content to figure out just how wet it is. If the moisture is high it may be best to use a moisture mitigating epoxy or moisture barrier coating, especially if you are going to be applying flooring. Using a moisture barrier coating product will prevent all moisture from coming up and damaging the floor.
Best Concrete Floor Sealers for Concrete Garage Floors:
Garages can range in size and scope so choosing the right sealer comes down to the functionality. Is the garage a working shop that will be exposed to heavy oils, fluids and chemicals? If so an epoxy system would be the best option. If you live in an area where salts and chlorides are used on the roadways a penetrating salt repellent sealer would be your best bet.
Best Concrete Floor Sealers for Chemical Resistance:
If you are using a concrete floor sealer on a warehouse floor that is exposed to a lot of chemicals it is highly recommended that you use an epoxy system. Even though there is a lot of surface preparation required before applying this type of coating system, chemicals and acids will be repelled and will not damage the concrete or the coating.
Best Concrete Floor Sealers for Stain Repellency:
If you are looking for long term stain repellency (the stain would sit on the surface for an extended amount of time before clean up) and you do not want any stains to touch the concrete it would be best to go with an epoxy coating system. If you prefer a more cost effective penetrating sealer and would clean spills up quickly, or pressure wash the concrete to remove the stain you can use a penetrating concrete stain repellent sealer.
Best Concrete Floor Sealers for Waterproofing:
There are two types of waterproofing concrete sealers. The first category is moisture barrier coatings that are applied to concrete floors. They are commonly used before installing carpet, hardwood flooring and tile. They are able to withstand high amounts of water vapor transmission and hydrostatic pressure. The second category is penetrating concrete sealers. They are excellent choices for preventative waterproofing and can be applied to concrete floors and concrete walls.
Best Concrete Floor Sealers – Clear: Use a penetrating concrete sealer which will not change the look of the concrete; it will dry clear as if no sealer was used.
Best Concrete Floor Sealers – Gloss:
If moisture is not an issue and you are looking for more of a decorative concrete floor sealer use a solvent based acrylic sealer which will leave a high gloss finish. If you are looking for a more durable option use an epoxy coating system which will leave a gloss finish and be extremely durable to forklift traffic, chemicals and abrasions.
Best Concrete Floor Sealers – Polished:
In order to get that polished floor look you would first need to use a concrete densifier. Concrete densifiers are silicate based and help to strengthen and harden the concrete before the polishing process. You would then use a concrete floor polishing machine with different grit floor pads to polish the concrete. The finished floor would be similar to the floors that are seen in big box hardware stores such as Home Depot and Lowes.