Have you ever experienced the phenomena of concrete sweating? Concrete sweating is often mistaken for a water problem since it is common to see a condensation effect on the surface of the slab.

Concrete sweating usually occurs when warm air encounters a colder temperature concrete slab. The condensation will build up on the surface and can commonly be defined as concrete sweating. The combination of temperature swings and humidity build up cause the concrete to sweat. After a humid night, water vapor in the air will encounter the cooler concrete floor and will condense into morning dew.

Concrete sweating can make concrete slippery and can be dangerous on larger concrete slabs with a lot of traffic. Concrete sweating can also be referred to as SSS or sweating slab syndrome the phenomenon where moisture intermittently develops on the surface of an interior concrete slab.

So now the question becomes, how do I stop concrete sweating.

1. You can first try to dry out the room by moving the air which can be done by using a high volume, low speed fan.

2. Also try to regulate the temperature by turning down the air conditioning or turning up the heat to keep the concrete floor temperature and the air temperature at similar levels.

3. A dehumidifier can be used to remove moisture from the air and reduce the condensation.

4. The most important step to stop concrete sweating is to use a penetrating sealer to seal the concrete and keep out moisture. We recommend using a concrete densifier first as a primer followed up by a penetrating water repellent. A penetrating concrete sealer will also help to prevent the growth of mold and mildew which can result if the concrete continues to sweat.

The Lithi-Tek 4500 is first used as a primer to densify and reduce the porosity of the concrete. The Iso-Tek 8540VOC is applied five days later as a sealer.