I am Scott Paul, a leading exterior paver restoration contractor and business owner with over 30 years of experience in sealing and protecting. For info about who I am, please read my full bio here.
My Tips To Fix Concrete Sealer Bubbles
I often hear and see those pesky bubbles appearing in finished concrete sealer projects. In this updated article, I will explain how to avoid and fix concrete sealer bubbles. If you have encountered concrete sealer bubbles and have any suggestions or questions, please comment below.
Concrete Sealer Bubbles
Solvent-based Acrylic Concrete Sealers are designed to enhance, darken, and give a sheen to decorative concrete surfaces. Unfortunately, when misapplied or overapplied, you may have issues with “bubbles” forming in the sealer. This typically happens to Stamped Concrete or smooth decorative concrete surfaces.
When a solvent-based acrylic sealer is applied, some sealer penetrates into the porous concrete. If the application is too thick, or if too many coatings are applied, the solvent is not able to evaporate before the sealer dries. When that happens, the solvent gets trapped and eventually creates enough pressure that it forces its way out, creating bubbles.
My Tips For Applying a Solvent Acrylic Sealer:
- Follow the manufacturer’s directions on the proper spread rate
- Do not over-apply. Adding too much sealer is not better and may create issues
- Concrete porosity differs. The more porous the concrete is, the more sealer can be applied
- If applying more than one coat, allow the coatings to dry thoroughly between applications
So what to do if you get the sealer “bubbles? Here are my steps to take to try and remedy the situation.
- Sweep or blow off the dirt and grime
- Wait until there is no direct sunlight. Usually, late in the day is best.
- Applying a solvent like Xylene to reset the sealer and “melt” the bubbles.
- Let the sealer sit overnight and dry properly.
Note: The bubbles may still come back. In many cases, the above steps will fix the issue. If this does not prevent the bubbles from reforming, you will need to strip off all of the sealer and start over.
I want a sealer for my stained concrete floors but I want a low luster and non slip? Any recommendations? I was consider Superseal 25 but the non slip is important.
You can add the Super Grip into the Super Seal 25 or the Super Seal Matte for traction. https://www.opwdecks.com/supergrip.htm
Matte is less shiny than the SS25.
Scott, here is a picture.
Scott, I put seal kreat epoxy with the chips, waiting a couple of days, then applied seal kreat water based acrylic sealer with a satin finish. It bubbled on me. Can I use xylene on a water based sealer or do I use something else? Thanks man.
Sorry but I do not think the xylene will work here. Not sure what can be done to fix this.
Hi Scott.
I have a half pail of Super Diamond Clear 350 left over from previous resealing. My local supply house does not stock it any longer and is recommending Everclear 350. With the cost of the sealer and me hating to waste sealer is it possible to mix these two sealers together? I’m not concerned with the gloss level but just getting some much needed sealer on my stamped concrete. Thanks.
Sorry but not sure if that will work. The main difference between those 2 is that the Everclear is a breathable styrene acyrlic and the Diamond Clear is a solid acrylic. Try asking Euclid Chemicals who makes them.
Hey Scott, we sealed our floor immediately after we poured it and it looked great until a couple of weeks ago the insulation installers didn’t get the memo that the wouldn’t be any floor covering and that the concrete would be the finished surface for the house. They decided to cut the batt insulation with a utility knife and left gashes and scratches in every room. We were planning to put on one more coat of super seal 25 before we move in , but now we need repairs . Can you suggest a fix for my problem? The floor… Read more »
Need pictures.
Hey Scott! We’ve got a couple spots where the acrylic either bubbled (very little) or puddled (because it was being spread at low light). I was wondering if just spreading the Xylene on the puddled spots would also give the same results as the bubbled areas? The acrylic has been spread over concrete that was stained, so I don’t know if that makes a difference as to how the Xylene would react or if it didn’t really matter. Thanks!
Not sure but it will not hurt to try.
is it better to let the sealer totally dry before applying xylene to get the bubbles out? Or can it be applied while still wet
Needs to be dry.
We had some bubbling after applying the sealer today likely from the sun or applying too thick. I’m going to spray the whole patio tonight, and I’m guessing we just leave it on overnight?
Can we pressure wash it tomorrow or hose it off in the morning to get the chemicals off?
You do not pressure wash off the solvent. Just apply and let it disolve the bubbles and then the sealer will harden back up.
Thanks for your help. We tested an area last night with a lighter coat of xylene but it didn’t work, how heavy do you need to coat it? The sealer was acrylic.
Also what happens if we leave the bubbles? By stepping on them and rubbing them with a shoe it seems like they’ll wear off after some traffic. Or could we pressure wash them or scrub them with a firm broom?
Satruate the bubbles with the xylene to melt them down. You can leave them, no issues. You cannot pressure them off in our experience.
Have very recently had my driveway re sealed and colour tinted by a company using an acrylic sealer
There are many bubbles on the surface
The contractor has told me that they will disappear when the weather gets cooler
Would you agree with this ?
Look forward to hearing from you
Nigel
Probably not going to disappear but it is possible.
What part of the article? Should I try xylene?
Hi, I used super diamond clear 350 to seal my 1 year old stamped concrete patio. It was recommend to me but one week after my second thin coat I started getting very tiny bubble. I did the coats during perfect weather conditions according to the instruction 3 days apart. Any suggestions on how to repair this?
Please read the article as it will explain this.
I have about a 1600 square-foot of stamped patio. I put a second coat of vex con sealer and I have small little bubbles. I read one of your post you recommended xylene what’s the ratio mixture for the Celine straight or do you mix it with water and you spray it on a roll it on, and after you do this, do you reseal it again?
Spray the Xylene on straight. No need to reseal after.
I applied SafeT Deck on clean, power washed, pool deck after priming it with the recommended primer and am getting bubbles when it gets hot. Anything that can be done to prevent/repair the bubbles?
Sorry, but no idea with this product.
Can I use a torch to melt bubbles!
No.
Too late!!! I already did and it works great!
Glad it worked but you could have burnt the sealer, leaving black marks. Depends on the sealer base/type.
Effects of over application
??