WHAT IS POLYUREA?
Polyurea is a unique coating, lining, and joint sealant technology. Polyurea coatings are 100 percent solid substances formed by the reaction between an isocyanate, which can also be aromatic or aliphatic, and an amine resin. Polyurea coatings are easy to apply and they have a rapid-curing reaction that is not affected by moisture or temperature, unlike other coatings. Polyurea can smoothly adhere to virtually any roof substrate and bolster the roofline along the way.
Polyurea protective coatings are commonly used for structural enhancement, corrosion protection, waterproofing, structural enhancement, and abrasion, chemical, environmental, and atmospheric resistance.
For decades, traditional materials such as paint, epoxy, fiberglass, and vinyl esters have all been used to perform these various types of protective coating utilization.
Polyurea coating technology is not new. It has been around and in use for almost three decades now. Polyurea is newer and more superior to these traditional coating systems and offers many advantages to the owner, specifier, and contractor.
These advantages come mainly in important achievable physical properties and its fast-set, return-to-service characteristics. It can also be applied to various substrates in a wide range of heat and humidity conditions.
However, like all protective coatings, using polyurea is no excuse to neglect conventional surface preparation and quality control testing during application.
Polyurea’s major benefit is its ability to cure and set rapidly. It can typically return an area to service many times faster than conventional coatings, allowing the owner to put a facility back in use without days or weeks of revenue losing down-time. Downtime for maintenance and coatings on water tanks, wastewater clarifiers, parking garages, and chemical storage containers costs the facility owner a great deal of money since these areas must be taken out of service. In contrast, other coatings are applied and drying.
Most industrial use polyureas are spray-applied, so it is fast to apply and accurately proportioned and blended. This application style allows for virtually any mil thickness to be applied in one or multiple passes. Additional characteristics such as slip-resistant additives and exterior textures can also be incorporated. UV stable colors can be achieved, and even NSF potable water approved systems are also possible with polyurea.
Almost no coating compares to polyurea when it comes to achievable physical properties. Polyureas can be formulated to achieve a tremendous range of properties — from high elongation to superior tensile strength to hard or soft, based on how the material is formulated and correctly applied.
In addition to its different applications, protective coatings and linings also have huge benefits over traditional elements for joint fill and caulk applications due to their fast set nature, high elongation, and durability/abrasion properties. Polyurea can be molded and shaped by spraying it into molds. Similarly, polyurea is also utilized as a hard coat protective shell over expanded polystyrene for structural molded fascia applications.
In addition to spray foam application services in the US, we may be able to help you find the perfect polyurea application for your project.
Complete Waterproofing:Polyurea is so waterproof that it can actually withstand long-term standing pools of water. No other roof coating or system can make this claim. Polyurea has such effectiveness in this regard that it also serves as a coating for pond liners.
Highly Adaptive: A skilled installer such as ArmorThane can formulate polyurea to achieve different properties on a roof. The substance can achieve superior flexibility or a high tensile strength with virtual impenetrability to punctures. We can also render the material hard or soft, depending on preference, climate, and structural needs.
Chemical Resistance: Polyurea also has a high resistance to chemical corrosion. The chemical fallout from your building or a neighbor can corrode and undermine most roofing systems. With polyurea, the roof has a barrier that will not succumb to corrosive effects.
Easy Application: Compared to full roof replacement or restoration, the application of a polyurea roof coating takes practically no time at all. The coating dries almost instantly and boasts a resistance to punctures 10x that of standard ArmorThane roofing.