Hydrophobisation

Colourless, low-viscosity liquids in which the active ingredient is dissolved in a solvent are used for hydrophobic coatings. If the plaster or concrete is highly absorbent, the water-repellent agents penetrate the porous building material surface to a depth of a few millimetres and the solvents evaporate. The surface and the pores close to the surface are covered with a thin, not always closed film, but no externally recognisable layer is formed. As no covering coat is applied in this way, intensive cleaning is required before hydrophobising the plaster or concrete for visual reasons in order to achieve a good appearance.

Hydrophobic coatings have the advantage that they also penetrate into cracks in the building component and also develop their water-repellent effect here with crack widths of up to approx. 0.3 mm, so that less water can penetrate in the area of cracks in the building component after hydrophobisation.

The effectiveness and service life of hydrophobic coatings is highly dependent on the type of active ingredient and the quantity of hydrophobic substances applied. A service life of approx. 10 years is expected.