PCS Coatings

Vapor-Emission Control

Concrete Vapor Control | Vapor Control Solutions

PCS Coatings, Inc. serving Seattle Washington and the Puget Sound Northwest for over 35 years.

Each year across America, people are faced with a serious problem, floor covering system failures have become one of the most misunderstood phenomena in the modern construction age.

Problem:

  • All Underslab Vapor Barriers Fail; Here Is Why–

    Vapor drive is present in all concrete; changing it constantly and is a major cause in damage to floor coverings and epoxy floor failures. Also causing mold growth from trapped moisture between the concrete and flooring. The lime, PH, efflorescence, salts and Alkalinity are all caustics that eat away the bond line of mastics, adhesives and epoxies; causing delamination.


    Many assume “I have good drainage; we are at the top of a hill; There’s a vapor barrier (3mil. plastic that is punctured and causes the concrete to not cure properly); Never had a problem before”. In the greater Seattle area, there are times we have zero rain for 2-3 weeks and other times we have rain for 3 weeks solid, the ground is more than saturate and we are floating!


    It is easy to see that concrete floor coverings are a financially, critical part of the building envelope itself. If coverings are installed on an unsealed floor, then it fails unexpectedly. The cost and logistics associated and the remedy, after the fact, can be catastrophic. Billions of dollars are lost in America each year due to floor covering system failures.

Vapor Barrier | Vapor Control | Vapor Barrier

Insurances companies do not pay on moisture intrusion; “it is structural”, they know that the ACI (American Concrete Institute) has stated that concrete breathes and is always transferring moisture vapor. Old designs call for various underslab plastic vapor barriers. These and more expensive underslab systems are not effective, for all you need is one pin-hole in that vapor barrier and you have a trapped lake of water under your slab that has nowhere to go but up. Underslab systems are un-traceable for the cause of failure. We have seen concrete placement crews purposely punching holes in the vapor barrier, to help the concrete cure better/faster!

Moisture issues in lightweight concrete – placed on steel pan; with pea-gravel that is pre-soaked with water? You need to seal the concrete after the first day with the PCS Topical Moisture Block system. PCS Topical Moisture Block will act as a curing agent, by controlling the Vapor Drive to under 3lbs/1000SF for the life of the slab, which helps in new construction and scheduling, and for ongoing moisture challenges from occupancy of the building. This protects your concrete floor covering products from moisture related delamination challenges and potential mold growing from trapped water under the carpet and matting.

SBS (Sick Building Syndrome); caused by mold spores in carpet from trapped moisture underneath. We can remedy this challenge long term and reduce the liability significantly, for all parties involved, by applying the PCS Topical Moisture Block system to the concrete slab on grade.

Solution: Topical Vapor Barrier

Designed for negative side waterproofing, the PCS Topical Moisture Block system has no upper limits against vapor drive. PCS Topical Moisture Block is a vapor barrier high performance coating that can be applied on green concrete, slab on grade as a curing agent, or on cured concrete in occupied buildings.

The PCS Topical Moisture Block Industrial concrete floor coatings controls vapor drive to under 3lbs/1,000 sq. ft.; even if the floor was showing 18lbs+ from a Calcium Chloride test. (We offer these tests as well.) In its cured state, the PCS Topical Moisture Block is unaffected by Alkalinity, PH, lime, efflorescence and salts. These are the caustics that cause the delamination of epoxy flooring, and dissolve/eat away the adhesives of concrete floor coverings.

You are now protected against moisture/alkalinity damage for a warranted 15 years from the date of application.

100% synthetic; No VOC’s; shipping is class 55 – non hazardous sealant.

We assist architects, spec writers, contractors and owners on finding and understanding the most cost-effective path to slab moisture compliance. Please contact our Specifications Writer for complete information packages in CSI format.

We Also Serve These Cities

  • Olympia
  • Tumwater
  • Rochester
  • Centralia
  • Chehalis
  • I-5 Corridor
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