Question:

I have a pond with waterfalls, and it is leaking due to cracked concrete in the base. There are also some areas around the rocks leaking. What can I do to seal or fill the cracks and keep water from leaking? I need it to waterproof, and fix some of the problems I have now with the concrete base.

Answer:

The best DIY product on our Spray Lining and Coatings Storefront would be our Seal Tite Ultra product. It’s only available in Black, but it would allow maximum flexibility and elongation. This would help accommodate any possible future shifting. It also has the greatest adhesion, tensile strength, and abrasion resistance of all our DIY products.

We also have a commercial product: Diamondback DB-1081 available in cement grey which you can add color tint to. While this product is generally available in 5 gallon units, it is a polyurea product, and formulated for your specific issues. For additional information, please contact us directly at 855-545-4900 extension 902.

Our standard Seal Tite product line would also work if you are confident that there is no anticipated future expansion, contraction, or shifting. While our standard line can be varied in flexibility, it doesn’t have the same elongation ability as the Ultra line. The advantage of the standard Seal Tite is that the color is basically up to you. The easiest application is to apply in a shade of Grey. You can also apply the Grey as a base coat and top coat with the color coat if other colors are desired.

You can also top coat the Seal Tite Ultra with our standard product line to change from Black if you don’t expect significant future shifting. This would provide greater adhesion and strength in the primary coating. As long as you went with the more flexible version of the top coat, you shouldn’t get any future cracking there.

The other product options are pretty much only for larger applications applied by commercial applicators, as they require specialized spray equipment. They’re also only available for commercial application, and have larger quantity requirements.

General cost for the Seal Tite standard products is about $70 per gallon if using the normal 50/50 (liquid/powder) ratio. The Ultra is a bit higher, and can’t accommodate as much powder since it’s already a very thick product. It runs about $95 per gallon using the 66/34 (liquid/powder) ratio. Colors other than Grey require a top coat application without powder, so the price per gallon is about $115.

These products are 100% solids, so unlike paints, they don’t shrink as they cure. Your goal will be to apply a thick coating versus just “painting”. While you could apply the coating thinner, you would be best to plan a good 40 or so mils thickness (about the same as a layer of EPDM). The amount you require is all based on your square footage. If you get a good idea how much square footage you need to cover, you can estimate the number of gallons required here: Coating Estimator . This will give you some general idea how much your coating would cost using the price per gallon above.