Stone Info

Why seal?
Building materials such as natural stone, tile, masonry, concrete and grout are all made up of countless invisible capillary pores. This makes them porous and allows the absorption of damaging liquids such as water, water-borne salts and oils. These liquids cause the building material to deteriorate prematurely and in so doing reduce their usefulness. Examples of deterioration include; weathering, loss of strength, efflorescence, salt attack, freeze-thaw spalling, sulphate attack, alkali aggregrate reaction, unsightly staining, biological attack, reinforcement rusting, chemical attack, swelling, thermal conductivity, embrittlement and picture framing. Sealing can eliminate or significantly reduce most of these problems.

What type of sealer should I use?
There are two main types of sealers, namely, surface sealers and impregnating sealers. A surface sealer will provide a physical barrier over the surface. The result is a darkening of the surface. These coatings usually wear and weather relatively quickly, make the surface more slippery when wet and must be completely stripped off when re-coating. Salts may also build-up under the surface, causing the coating to appear cloudy. Impregnating sealers can be classified as those that repel water and those that repel both water and oil based stains. Impregnating sealers usually have little effect on the frictional properties and appearance of the surface but will not completely stop dirt and rubber getting into the open pores of the surface. When comparing similar sounding impregnating sealers the two most important questions are: (a) is it permanent? and (b) how deep does it penetrate below the surface? A good depth of penetration is critical to provide protection against traffic wear and weathering.

How do I calculate the amount of sealer required?
To determine how much sealer you'll need, measure the length and width of the area to be sealed. The amount of sealer used will depend on the particular material being sealed. For example, to seal a wet-poured cement-based paver you will need 1 litre per 7 sq.m. (1 quart per 70 sq.ft. per quart) and for sandstone you will need 1 litre per 4 sq.m. (1 quart per 40 sq.ft. per quart). Your Dealer will be able to provide a guide to the amount of sealer needed for a particular material being sealed.

Where can I buy your product?
Dry-Treat does not sell its product directly to end users. You can buy our products from one of our retail partners (Dealers) throughout the country. Please refer to our contacts list in the "where to buy" part of this web site or telephone or e-mail us to find out the easiest way for you to obtain our products.

Can someone supply and apply your product for me?
Yes. Please go to the "where to buy" section to find the nearest dealer to you. Behind the dealer tab are the details of Accredited Applicators who work with that dealer. The Accredited Applicators can provide you with a written lump sum quote to prepare, supply and apply one of our products. These Accredited Applicators are independent Contractors with proven track records and training in the use of Dry-Treat products.

How do I qualify for a written warranty and what does it mean?
If an area of porous building materials is prepared and sealed by a Dry-Treat Accredited Applicator who holds a current license you will qualify for a written warranty. The warranty is between Dry-Treat and the property owner, and states that if the sealed surface is properly maintained but fails then it will be re-sealed free of charge. The Applicator is able to log in through the Dry-Treat web site and generate and email a warranty that will include important details about the job.

How to maintain a sealed stone countertop
The kitchen is dirtier than most bathrooms. A kitchen worktop has about 10 times more bacteria than a toilet seat! Near the drain there are about 3,000 bacterial per sq.cm. Without nutrients and water, bacterial cannot grow. An impregnating sealer should make the countertop highly water and oil repellent. This doesn't mean that the surface won't get dirty, but it should stop water and oil based liquids from penetrating into the pores and causing a permanent stain, and should also make the countertop easier to clean.

Even once impregnated, natural stone still needs to be correctly cared for. Dry-Treat has created a new Countertop Care Sheet, a simple guide to caring for natural stone countertops which can be printed off and given to customers.

HANAFINN Rejuvenata for countertops™ is a gentle daily cleaner designed for natural and engineered stone countertops, which contains a touch of sealer so an extra layer of protection is added over multiple cleanings.

Should the sealer be water-based or solvent-based?
Sealers need a carrier to take the active ingredients onto or into the surface. This carrier is either water or a non-water based solvent. There is no doubt that "water-based" sounds like a more desirable product but this can be a little misleading. Many water-based impregnator still contain a considerable amount of solvent such as n-butyl acetate. As a general rule, water-based sealers are less effective than non-water based sealers. The main reasons why non-water based sealers perform better include: they are able to 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 previously sealed surface and are suitable to treat resin treated stone, which is the norm for granite kitchen counters. Fortunately, there are safe non-water based solvents available and Dry-Treat uses these where possible.