In Extremely Cold Weather, Whether the Performance of Silicone Sealant Would be Affected

The Best Air Condition for Silicone Sealant Application

When applying the sealant which guarantees the temperature between 5°C and 40°C, and the humidity at 40% to 80%.

If the temperature below 5°C, it affects the performance of silicone sealant easily.

In the well-ventilated space, the silicone sealant would be good at curing. Moreover, higher temperatures would be accelerating the curing time.

Avoid Applying the Silicone Sealant in Extremely Cold Weather

There are two reasons why avoid applying the silicone sealant in extremely cold weather.

In the general situation, we do not recommend applying the silicone sealant in cold weather.

Firstly, in the cold environment, the building material produced moisture and fog on the surface. It would be affecting the adhesion ability of silicone sealants and affect the performance of silicone sealants directly.

In extremely cold weather, the curing time of silicone sealant would be much slower than the general weather. If the worker moves the building materials in sealant does not cure completely, it leads to the sealant cracks and damage to the appearance.

The Comparisons Between the Silicone-based Sealant and Acrylic-based Sealant in Cold Condition

The silicone sealant includes the silicone sealant and acrylic silicone sealant.

In extremely cold weather, the performance of silicone-based sealant is better than the water-based sealant. In general, the silicone sealant has excellent weather-resistance ability. But, in extremely cold conditions, the performance of acrylic silicone sealant is not good, the appearance of acrylic silicone appears a crack, aging and fall off.

Thus, in cold conditions, Haohong recommends our customers used the silicone-based sealant rather than the acrylic-based silicone sealant.

Whether the quality of silicone sealant is stable in the extremely cold?

In general, premium silicone sealant has stable weatherability performance. Gradually, the premium silicone conforms the standard, which include the performance of sealant at the extremely low and high temperature.

Firstly, in the GB/T 16776-2005 of structural silicone sealant standard, the silicone sealant must pass the tensile adhesion test at -30°C, and require the sealant cannot lower than 0.45 Mpa, and the adhesive bond loss cannot more than 5%.

Secondly, in the GB/T 14683-2003 of sealant standard, the sealant must pass the tensile adhesion test at -20°Cm and cannot have the adhesion bond loss. The flexibility of sealant must conform the standard of <glazing elastic for buildings>JC/T 485, and the sealant cannot crack and damage to adhesion.

What does the constructions team need to attend to in the preparation?

First, if the project needs to complete in a short time. The workers can apply the sealants in the small part first. After, the sealant curing completely and test whether the product conforms to the project’s requirement.

But if the deadlines are not tight, the workers need to do the compatibility test first. The construction company needs to provide the building materials to your supplier. It makes sure the sealant has enough adhesive ability for the specific building materials. Also, you can test the products in extremely cold conditions. It is clear to confirm that whether the sealant matches project requirements.

Any way to reduce the influences on sealant’s performance in extremely cold conditions?

1. When the company purchase the silicone sealant, you can tell the purposes in detail to suppliers.

2. Choosing the premium silicone sealant. In normal, the premium silicone sealant has excellent weatherability between -50°C to 150°C.

3. When the apply the silicone sealant, please make sure of the temperature and humidity. In the process of sealant curing, the temperature and humidity is the most important factor.