subject: Joint Sealants….. Are you thinking what I am thinking? [print this page] Joint Sealants.Joint Sealants.. Are you thinking what I am thinking?
Sealants have been used over hundreds of year ago, the historical Tower of Babel, in the book of genesis, was suggested to have been built with mortar and tar or pitch as a sealant.
Naturally derived bitumen and asphalt materials have in fact been used as sealants for many centuries, however prior to the 1900's, it is thought that most sealants evolved from natural vegetable, animal or even mineral substances.
Sealants are used to fasten joints and openings and are essentially critical components for building designs and construction methods. The general purpose of sealants is to prevent air, water, and other environment elements from entering or exiting a building. Specialty sealants are used in more specific applications, such as for fire stops, electrical or thermal insulation, and aircraft applications.
Joint sealants are used in a variety of commercial and residential applications, and for that reason there is a generous selection of materials available for application. Common sealants include silicone, acrylic, urethane, butyl and other polymeric types.
There are two types of joints that need sealing:
Moving Joint where the shape and size of the sealant joint changes significantly when movement occurs for example, at expansion, lap, butt, and stack joints
Static Joint which are joints that are mechanically fixed to prevent movement for example, at isolation and control joints, and air and water seals in windows and curtain walls.
The types of application that joint sealants are used for, to name a few are:
Exterior and interior edge of windows
Roofing
Building and material expansion joints
Interior and exterior borders of doors
Airport runway
Bridge and motorway pavement joints
Car parks
Water and wastewater treatment facilities
Structural sealant glazing
However there can be some problems when it comes to joint sealants:
Sealants are often the least thought when it comes to a building project, however they can become a serious, or for hidden or concealed joints, impossible problem to correct when a sealed joint fails.
There is both a science (joint design, adhesion and compatibility testing) and an art (sealant and joint components installation) to successful completion of a functional joint sealant.
