AQUAdura - a waterbased clear coating with a satin or glossy finish.
Today, there are many options open to the landscape architectural, architectural, structural engineering, building, and landscape designer for the decoration and protection of exterior structures. Building facades, walls, columns, beams, roofs, pavements, road-scapes, statuary, sculpture, and other structures even bridges can be successfully designed to be protected and stunningly unique.
One popular decorative design system involves the use of a suitable clear transparent coating, applied for maximum durability with a minimum of two (2) coats and preferably three (3), over plain or integrally (‘through’) coloured with pigments, steel reinforced cast-in-place concrete.
Clear coated, integrally coloured, acrylic polymer modified cement-bound trowel applied rendered mortar finishes for walls (preferably for long-term durability, lathed with suitable reinforcing lathing) and similar surfaces are also becoming more popular by the day! The finish effects attainable are vast!
Another popular example for exterior pavements involves the integrally coloured binding cement matrix within cast-in-place concrete using suitable colouring pigments having an exposed aggregate finish.
This is where the colour of the concrete’s coarse aggregate is selected to compliment or contrast with the colour given with the use of suitable pigments of the concrete’s cement paste binder (matrix).
The concrete’s coarse aggregate is revealed at the surface by the concreter or pre-caster using careful washing and brooming techniques during the processing of cast-in-place concrete pavements, manufactured pavers / flagstones or pre-cast concrete building components such as building façade panels - prior to the concrete setting.
Alternatively, soon after hardening, the surface of the concrete is acid etched or grit blasted to partially remove the hardened coloured cement paste binder at the surface to reveal the aggregate.
Other permanent aesthetic effects vary from strong, uniform integral ‘through’ colouration to an aged, weathered, variable ‘lime-wash’ look in ochre tones.
Sometimes glazed and semi-glazed surface colour effects can involve patinated or ‘broken’ colour impressions - either smooth or rough trowelled or off-form effects.
All of these coloured concrete or mortar effects may utilise Ability’s abilox® range of 60 UV resistant mineral oxide, easy dispersing powder colouring pigments - as outlined in our abilox® Colour Specifier. This is available upon request.
One of the delightful uses of colourfast abilox® colourants, is for the permanent integral colouration of concrete and mortars, having by means of certain site processing procedures, a variety of colours in their visual statement.
Many of these colour (as well as texture) effects - especially monotone as well as multi-chromatic colouring effects - are for aesthetic finishes often preferred for cementitious surfaces to be over-coated and dust/dirt protected with a suitable clear, transparent coating or 'sealer'. Ability’s AQUAdura is such a coating.
When a durable, clear, minimum two (2) coat coating system having a semigloss (or with another further coat - a glossy) finish effect is required, Ability’s waterbased AQUAdura may, subject to your testing and evaluation with a free no charge sample provided upon request by Ability, fulfil these requirements for you.
Like a highly lacquered piece of Japanese furniture, liquid AQUAdura stone, paver and tile surface enhancing transparent coating, when applied over integrally coloured, cast-in-place concrete substrates, can give a colouring ‘depth’ effect, which is different and perhaps more appealing than those given by normal coloured paint coatings.
At Ability we have focused on producing a quality clear coating for the building industries. Example: we believe AQUAdura to be one of the very best, most durable clear coatings for concrete roof tile manufacture and their renovation available.
If required for a large project on firm advance order, clear AQUAdura may possibly be made available in colours with pigmentation similar to currently popular automotive colour finishes.
AQUAdura is free of chemical solvents and their often associated noxious toxicity. Water is the only solvent in this coating material. The product therefore cannot pollute our planet’s atmosphere; harm the ozone layer or the applicator’s health. AQUAdura has the convenience of water wash-up for application equipment and for the removal of spillage.
Many users since its introduction to the building industries by Ability in 1993 have confirmed that AQUAdura is a protective, decorative, transparent, clear coating of outstanding quality.
When considered suitable for your purpose and after you have arranged testing and evaluation of it to your satisfaction, we commend its use - possibly for your next construction or maintenance project.
For further information and fast delivery of a test sample of AQUAdura for your contractors’ careful evaluation and testing prior to use, please contact Ability. Should your requirement be for a clear, transparent coating on cementitious (cement bound) surfaces yielding a low sheen rather than a semi-glossy or glossy finish, please request information for Ability’s Duro-Seel Clear.
If your requirement is for durable, pigmented opaque coloured matte (flat) coatings for concrete and other similar building surfaces, please request information for Ability’s liquid, ready-to-use Dy-On-Crete® Mark 2 our water based, low sheen finish coating available in 20 colours and used especially but not only for making artificial rock structures in theme parks and zoos or our low sheen finish called duro paint™ Low Sheen - a heavy duty, extraordinarily high durability, high wear and water resistant pavement, floor, wall and roof coating made available in any colour may be selected and specified.
Please Note: Neither Dy-On-Crete® Mark 2 nor duro paint™ Low Sheen are available
as transparent clear products.
Alternatively if you want a subtle-textured, matte, flat, high build, very long life ‘liquid concrete’ coating suitable for walls, roofs and pavements, made to virtually any colour on firm advance order, please request information for Ability’s stellar performing the Paint (subtle ‘sandy’ stippled, textured matte finish) and duro paint™ Matte paint (a virtually smooth, matte finish version of the Paint).
Please also note that clear coatings as invariably formulated with organic resin/polymer binders, do not last as long in exterior areas unprotected from UV light as the same versions coloured with UV ray resistant and UV absorbing inorganic mineral colouring pigments such as those from Ability’s colourfast abilox® range. Therefore, many clear coatings used in exterior locations need to be maintained by typically re-coating bi-annually or sooner.
Clear AQUAdura applied with two (2) coats or layers will typically last longer than many clear coatings on the market but will still require a re-coat within approximately five years to maintain the finish.
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