Concrete Sealer Advice

[Yookdew]

I've been reading about all the different sealers/coatings in this forum but there is so much info it is hard to figure out what is best for my situation. Hopefully some of you can give me some ideas based on your experiences.

I am looking for something to protect 1200 square feet of power troweled concrete in the detached garage I am building. The pad was finished last October.

This garage will be used for automotive mechanical work so mostly looking for something that will help with automotive fluids on the concrete. This is a working garage so the floor doesn't have to be perfect. I understand even with a good sealer, staining can occur and I'm ok with that.

I am looking for something on a budget that hopefully has fairly easy installation.

I put some drops of water on my concrete and after about 5 minutes, some of the drops soaked in and some didn't. The area that were power troweled to a much darker gray color did not soak up much water. Does this mean I will also need to acid etch for any of these sealers or is there something decent that would work without etching? I will do whatever is needed to it correctly but I'm looking for the easiest option.

Thanks for any advice,

 

[Mike65]

I used Foundation Armor SX5000WB clear matte water based concrete sealer that I bought from Lowes.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Foundation-Armor-SX5000-WB-Silane-Siloxane-Clear-Matte-Transparent-Concrete-Sealer-Ready-to-use-1-Gallon/5005453473

 

[Yookdew]

Does anybody have experience with Concrete Sealers USA PS100 Sealer? It looks like it would fit my needs well since it is specific to blocking oil based stains. It also looks pretty budget friendly.

 

[Shea]

Does anybody have experience with Concrete Sealers USA PS100 Sealer? It looks like it would fit my needs well since it is specific to blocking oil based stains. It also looks pretty budget friendly.

There are two brand-specific concrete sealers that specialize in repelling oils. Concrete Sealers PS100 is one and GhostShield 8510 is the other. I suggest reading both articles posted below to learn more. Based on your needs and reasonable expectations, either one would work nicely.

Why PS100 is a Superior Oil Resistant Garage Floor Sealer | All Garage Floors

We review PS100 Fluorinated Oil Repelling Sealer. It may be the best garage floor concrete sealer for resisting oil stains for the garage and driveway.

allgaragefloors.com

Is GhostShield the Best Oil Repelling Garage Floor Sealer? | All Garage Floors

We review GhostShield Siloxa-Tec 8505 & 8510. Learn why this is an excellent concrete sealer for resisting oil & oil stains on your garage floor and driveway.

allgaragefloors.com

 

[FJ4FUN]

AcryliSeal 3501

 

[Yookdew]

It looks like any of the penetrating sealers will require acid etching since my slab is power troweled and has very low absorption.

Is there a recommended product and procedure for acid etching before the use of these products?

 

[FJ4FUN]

It looks like any of the penetrating sealers will require acid etching since my slab is power troweled and has very low absorption.

Is there a recommended product and procedure for acid etching before the use of these products?

Acid Etch tips

 

[RPH]

I used ghostshield densifier and 8505 product. All I did was clean and clean and clean before the densifier went down. Same with the 8505. Clean is required but no acid wash. Mine is in a working farm shop so it sees heavy oils and such. To this day five years later it still works like a charm.

 

[Yookdew]

Thanks for your reply. Do you remember if you checked to see of water soaked in to the concrete before you applied the products? Also, was your concrete machine troweled?

 

[Scud67]

Definitely just go with a densifier product.

 

[RPH]

Yes to both questions. In the winter water will drip from the car. It will freeze into a pancake you can pick up from the concrete.

 

[benwah]

Penetrating sealers should not have an issue with power troweled concrete. I apply penetrating sealers to 1500-3000 grit polished concrete with no issues. Spray on until concrete is saturated, mop with clean microfiber mop leaving no puddles. Waterborne sealers will dry very fast, silane/siloxane will require overnight in most cases.

 

[rixtrix1]

Do any of the products discussed above reduce dusting of the concrete, either from normal foot traffic or when swept to pick up debris? My shop slab was hand trowelled 6 times with a steel trowel on a pole. It is flat and very smooth.

 

[Beemer]

I used a commercial sodium silicate hardener/sealer about 30 years ago and have not had to reapply it since, but it is a low traffic workshop. I understand that it can be reapplied if needed.
It was pretty easy to apply.

 

[Shea]

Do any of the products discussed above reduce dusting of the concrete, either from normal foot traffic or when swept to pick up debris? My shop slab was hand trowelled 6 times with a steel trowel on a pole. It is flat and very smooth.

The AcryliSeal 3501 from AlphaGarage is a topical coating and will eliminate dusting. Densifiers work to reduce and sometimes eliminate dusting. Ironically, their effectiveness depends on the condition of the concrete to begin with. The better condition it is in, the better densifiers perform. The worse condition it is in, the less effective they perform.