Concrete is hard and long-lasting, making it a top-notch floor material for most buildings. Given its repute, it may stun you to hear that concrete is in fact porous. Given sufficient time, water from under walkways or slabs makes its way through the concrete to the surface, where the water then evaporates. During its travel, the water picks up salts dissolved from the concrete. These salts become an unwanted white powder called efflorescence when the water evaporates on the surface of the concrete.
If you see joints or cracks in your floor that never completely dry, this points to a significant cache of moisture underneath your slab. Some people try to cover up the issue with ceramic tiles or DIY epoxy. Without a quality sealant, however, the water finds its way through, resulting in loose tiles or coatings that bubble and peel away. Then the problem becomes worse and more expensive to fix.
What to Do About Ground Water
Depending on severity, you may need to resolve the water problem before proceeding (sealing the foundation may not prevent challenges in the walls or other spots). If the situation is localized to the concrete, some cleanup and epoxy sealing should prevent water from accumulating. West Coast Epoxy adds a moisture barrier to our epoxy sealer that stops bubbling from water vapor. After this procedure is complete, the concrete foundation is waterproof and can be safely overlaid with ceramic tiles, wood, carpet, or laminates. The epoxy sealant ensures your floor surface will not be vulnerable to moisture again.
For epoxy sealants, the age of the concrete generally does not matter as long as it is reliable. Epoxy coatings dry rapidly, minimizing delays, but it cannot be applied to green concrete until the material is fully set. To discover more about moisture remediation for concrete floors in Lodi, call West Coast Epoxy!