To stop a leaking flat concrete roof, clean and repair the surface, seal cracks and joints, then apply a waterproof coating over the whole roof. For an exposed roof, a ready-to-use acrylic membrane such as Sikalastic-510 (primer plus 2–3 coats at about 0.5 kg/m² per coat, reinforced with Sika Fab-1 mesh at cracks and corners) is the simplest DIY fix. Where the roof will be covered with tiles or a screed, a cementitious slurry such as SikaSeal-105 or SikaTop-107 Seal goes underneath.
Read the guide →Wall seepage (seelan) is stopped by removing the damaged plaster, applying a cementitious waterproofing slurry to the wall, and re-plastering with a waterproofed mortar. Strip the plaster about 0.5–1 m above the visible damp line, apply two coats of SikaTop-107 Seal or SikaSeal-105 to the bare wall, then re-plaster using Sika-1 or Sikalite-101 in the mix. Painting over a damp wall does not cure it — the water source must be blocked first.
Read the guide →Most bathroom leaks come through cracked or porous tile grout and gaps around the floor drain, pipes and fittings. Without removing tiles, rake out the old grout, re-grout with an epoxy grout such as SikaCeram-850 Design and seal gaps around fittings with Sikaflex sealant. If water is coming through the slab itself, the tiles must come up: apply two coats of SikaTop-107 Seal to the floor and 30 cm up the walls (higher in the shower), then re-tile with a polymer tile adhesive such as SikaCeram-205.
Read the guide →To repair a leaking concrete water tank, empty and clean it, repair cracks and honeycombed concrete, then apply a cementitious waterproofing slurry to the inside. For water-retaining structures SikaSeal-105 is applied at 3.0–6.0 kg/m² in total, in a minimum of two coats; Sikadur-31 CF Slow epoxy repairs damaged concrete before coating. For drinking-water tanks, confirm the product's potable-water suitability on the current Sika datasheet before use.
Read the guide →Use a cement-based tile adhesive (often called tile bond) instead of a sand-cement mortar bed: it grips better, needs a thinner layer and avoids hollow tiles. For ordinary ceramic tiles SikaCeram-90 (20 kg and 40 kg bags) is the economical choice; for porcelain, large tiles and marble use the flexible C2TE-rated SikaCeram-205, or the white SikaCeram-103 for marble and light stone. Coverage is roughly 3–4 kg/m² for normal 20×20–40×40 cm tiles with an 8 mm notched trowel.
Read the guide →Match the product to the crack. Fine non-structural cracks in concrete are sealed by gravity-feeding the low-viscosity epoxy Sikadur-20 Crack Seal into a vee-notched crack (up to 10 mm wide). Broken or spalled concrete is rebuilt with Sikadur-31 CF Slow epoxy mortar. Cracks that open and close with temperature are joints, so they need a flexible sealant such as Sikaflex Construction or Sikacryl-110. Hairline plaster cracks are filled and smoothed with SikaWall-720 E skim coat. Wide, growing or diagonal cracks in beams and columns need a structural engineer.
Read the guide →Add an integral waterproofer to the mix so the plaster, screed or concrete itself resists water. Sika-1 is a liquid: dilute 1 part Sika-1 in 10 parts water (about 3% of the cement content) and use that as the mixing water; with very wet sand use 1:8. Sikalite-101 is a powder dosed at 2% of the cement weight. Both reduce water absorption but don't replace a surface waterproofing membrane on roofs, tanks and wet areas.
Read the guide →Roof heat proofing reduces the sun's heat that a flat concrete roof soaks up and passes into the rooms below. The simplest step is a light-coloured coating on the roof: a light surface reflects more sunlight than bare grey concrete, so the slab heats up less. Because a roof that leaks also loses any heat-proofing layer, do it together with waterproofing: repair cracks, then apply a light-coloured elastic membrane such as Sikalastic-510 over the whole roof. For a large drop in indoor temperature, an insulation layer (for example foam boards under tiles) is added as well; check each product's datasheet for its colour and reflectivity before choosing.
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