How to Repair Cracks in Concrete Using Polyurethane Sealant

Concrete cracks are an unpleasant fact. Expansion and contraction, freezes and thaws, settling and weight overload are all contributors to cracking. Left alone, the concrete will only get worse and could fail completely, resulting in hundreds or thousands of dollars in damage. Following the below instructions will let you extend the life of your concrete for many more years.

Tools and materials needed are a pressure washer, caulking gun, PL Polyurethane Self-leveling Concrete Crack Sealant, weed killer and sand. This sealant is available at in least one of the big box home improvement stores.

Polyurethane sealant has its advantages over concrete patch . This sealant is packaged in a caulking type tube, making it easy to apply. It also is weatherproof as well as waterproof and retains its flexibility. These are the characteristics that make polyurethane sealant superior over the old concrete crack patching material.

1. If grass and weeds are growing through the cracks apply a good grass and weed killer and allow the weed killer to work before moving to step two.

2. Clean up dead weeds and grass, pressure wash to clean entire surface of concrete to be repaired and allow to dry thoroughly.

3. Read and follow the application instructions according to package directions. Cut the tip of the tube using the cutter on the caulking gun or use a knife and puncture the foil seal inside the tube.

4. Fill the cracks with sand up to about 1/8” from the top. This will prevent the sealant from falling into a deep crack.

5. Apply the sealant to the crack, moving at a steady pace from one end of the crack to the other. When you reach the end of the crack quickly release the pressure on the gun, to stop the flow of sealant. Apply sealant to all of the cracks and allow to level.

6. Let the sealant cure for the recommended period of time on the package. This can take up to three days so you may want to do this project in two stages if you have a doublewide driveway.

Tip: Immediately following the polyurethane application, pour a generous amount of sand over all repaired cracks. Leave the sand on the poly until it is cured. Placing the sand over the repair does two things. First it will match the color of the concrete better (the urethane is gray); second it will prevent the poly from turning black if you drive over it.

Keep something handy (like a coffee can lid) to put the caulking gun on so the polyurethane won’t drip on your good concrete.

Comments (1)

rcryder said:

	... good job
	report abuse vote down vote up

September 14, 2009
Votes: +0