ConstructionChemicals.net is an independent reference on construction chemicals that covers 15 product families and 110 product classes, from waterproofing membranes to fireproofing, and states every value with its source, edition and date. Who publishes it, where do its numbers come from, and why does it sell nothing?
The reference is written for specifiers, contractors and applicators, distributors and procurement teams who compare a data sheet with a requirement. Construction chemicals are formulated specialty products, applied on site or in precast plants, that waterproof, repair, protect, join, bed, level, finish, cure, release or fire-protect concrete, masonry and structural steel; the families are compared on the overview of construction chemicals.
The sections below run from identity and readers to scope, the 12 primary sources and their conventions, independence and authorship.
Standards, codes and regulations are checked against their issuing bodies, product values against the named data sheet and prices against the dated source named in the sentence; see our methodology and fact-checking.
What Kind of Publication Is ConstructionChemicals.net?#
ConstructionChemicals.net is a vendor-neutral technical reference on the specialty products that specifiers, contractors and applicators select and apply to waterproof, repair, protect, join, bed, level, finish, cure, release or fire-protect concrete, masonry and structural steel. Its pages answer 5 tasks: know a product class, choose between classes, specify one, apply it and source it.
Three things the reference is not follow from that role. It sells no product and takes no order. It is not an applicator. It is not a standards body: EN, ASTM and ANSI documents, codes and rules stay with their issuers, and the reference cites them by edition.
Who is the construction chemicals reference written for?#
The construction chemicals reference is written for 4 reader groups, listed below.
- Specifiers: architects and structural, facade and waterproofing engineers who write a product into a specification.
- Contractors and applicators who install a system and read its data sheet on site.
- Distributors who compare product classes and the standards each one meets.
- Procurement teams who request quotes against one specification.
Residential readers get system selection, standards and cost factors, never step-by-step instructions.
What Does the Construction Chemicals Reference Cover?#
The construction chemicals reference covers 15 product families, 8 application areas from basements to masonry, their standards and test methods, the materials behind them, and the tools and sourcing pages listed in Table 1. Table 1 compares the 10 sections by what each answers and gives one example question per section.
| Section | What it answers | Example question |
|---|---|---|
| Products | 15 families, 110 product classes | Which class seals a moving joint? |
| construction chemicals by application | 8 problem and structure areas: basements, roofs, parking, infrastructure, tanks, cracks, spalling, masonry | Which system works on a negative-side wall? |
| construction chemicals standards | EN, ASTM, ANSI, DIN and BS documents, VOC and CPR rules | What does an R4 class require? |
| application and test methods | surface preparation, moisture, adhesion and inspection methods | How is a surface profile graded? |
| construction chemicals compared | class against class | Epoxy or polyurethane injection? |
| construction chemistry | resins, polymers and binders behind the products | Why do amine hardeners blush? |
| calculators and quote tools | coverage, joint and dew-point calculators, the 2 request forms | How much material covers a floor? |
| construction chemical applicators | how applicator work is compared | What does a waterproofing quote include? |
| construction chemicals manufacturers and suppliers | supplier types and how data sheets compare | Who makes and distributes a class? |
| construction chemicals news | standard revisions, VOC and CPR milestones | What changed in a rule? |
The 2 axes link to each other: a product page names the 8 application areas it serves, and an application page names every product class its system uses. Which uses fall outside this scope?
Where does the reference's scope end?#
The reference ends where a product stops being a chemical that a specifier, contractor or applicator selects and applies to a structure; the 6 exclusions are listed below.
- No concrete admixtures, supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) or fibers.
- No cement additives or grinding aids.
- No asphalt and blacktop sealers.
- No water-treatment chemistry.
- No consumer retail products, interior paint, wood finishes, drywall or construction adhesives.
- No local contractor search.
A chemistry with several uses, such as an epoxy resin, is described for its construction use only.
Which Primary Sources Does ConstructionChemicals.net Use?#
ConstructionChemicals.net takes its values from 12 primary sources: CEN, ASTM, ANSI and TCNA, ICC-ES, UL, EUR-Lex, the eCFR, the South Coast AQMD, CARB, ECHA, OSHA and PubChem, each named in the sentence that uses it. Table 2 lists each source with its issuer, the value type it supplies and one dated example.
| Source | Issuer | What it supplies | Example as cited |
|---|---|---|---|
| EN standards, such as EN 1504 | CEN | European product standards and classes | EN 1504-3:2005 R4: compressive strength at least 45 MPa (6,527 psi), bond at least 2.0 MPa (290 psi) |
| ASTM standards, such as ASTM C881 | ASTM International | US product and test standards | ASTM C881/C881M-20a classes by hardened concrete surface temperature: A below 4 °C (40 °F), B 4 to 15 °C (40 to 60 °F), C above 15 °C (60 °F) |
| ANSI tile standards, such as ANSI A118 | ANSI, published by TCNA | US tile mortars, grouts and membranes | ANSI A118.10-2023 (TCNA list dated 2026-09-10) |
| ICC-ES acceptance criteria, such as for anchor approvals | ICC Evaluation Service | US anchor and product evaluations | ICC-ES AC308 (24), published April 2025, with ACI 355.4 |
| UL standards, such as UL 263 | UL Standards and Engagement | fire-resistance ratings | UL 263, 14th edition (2011-06-21), revised and ANSI approved 2025-09-02 |
| EUR-Lex, such as the EU Construction Products Regulation | Publications Office of the EU | EU regulations and directives | Regulation (EU) 2024/3110, in force 2025-01-07, applies from 2026-01-08 |
| eCFR | US Office of the Federal Register | federal rules | 40 CFR 59 subpart D: waterproofing sealers 600 g/L (5.01 lb/gal), products made on or after 1999-09-13 |
| South Coast AQMD rules, the base of the VOC limits for construction chemicals | South Coast Air Quality Management District | California air-district VOC limits | Rule 1113 (amended 2016-02-05): waterproofing concrete and masonry sealers 100 g/L (0.83 lb/gal) |
| CARB | California Air Resources Board | model VOC rules | 2019 Suggested Control Measure: a model rule that binds only where an air district adopts it |
| ECHA | European Chemicals Agency | EU hazard classification | harmonised (CLP Annex VI): bisphenol A diglycidyl ether (BADGE), index 603-073-00-2: H315, H317, H319; notified: portland cement, No Annex VI entry; ECHA C&L notified classification: H315, H317, H318, H335; see the product SDS |
| OSHA | US Occupational Safety and Health Administration | US exposure limits | 29 CFR 1926.1153: respirable crystalline silica PEL 50 µg/m³ (8-h TWA), action level 25 µg/m³, effective 2016-06-23 |
| PubChem | US National Library of Medicine | substance identity: CAS number, formula | bisphenol A diglycidyl ether (BADGE), CAS 1675-54-3 |
Manufacturer declarations of performance (DoPs) and technical data sheets (TDSs) appear only as product evidence, labeled "typical value of" the named product or "manufacturer claim", never as a requirement. A manufacturer TDS never beats a standard, and a newer official source, such as a revised rule on the eCFR, beats the reference itself.
How are values dated, converted and labeled?#
Every standard carries its full edition and every rule its instrument, section and date, so EN 1504-3:2005 and ASTM C881/C881M-20a name the exact version a number comes from. Table 3 compares the convention for each value type with one example.
| Value type | Convention | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | full edition; CE basis and CEN current kept apart | EN 12004:2007+A1:2012 (CE basis) vs EN 12004-1:2017 (CEN current, not harmonised) |
| Rule | instrument, section, effective and amendment date | SCAQMD Rule 1113, amended 2016-02-05 |
| Product value | named product or "manufacturer claim", never the requirement | manufacturer claim: crystalline coatings seal static cracks up to 0.5 mm (0.02 in); no standard measures it |
| Units | metric first, US in parallel | MPa (psi), mm (in or mils), °C (°F), g/L (lb/gal), m²/L (ft²/gal), kg/m² (lb/ft²), L (US gal) |
| Coverage | basis stated: theoretical or practical, per coat, at which DFT | 1,604 ft² per US gal at 1 mil DFT and 100 % volume solids; m²/L = 1,000 × VS / DFT (µm) |
| Film thickness | wet (WFT) or dry (DFT) named | DFT = WFT × volume solids |
| Application window | measured on the substrate, not in the air | substrate at least 3 °C (5.4 °F) above the dew point, ISO 8502-4:2017 |
| Cure, moisture | cure with temperature; moisture limits are the maker's | ASTM F2170-19a and F1869-23 set no pass/fail |
| Cost | range, currency, basis, region, date and source | USD per m² (USD per ft²), dated |
A standard can exist in two editions at once: tile adhesives carry DoPs issued against EN 12004:2007+A1:2012 (CE basis), while EN 12004-1:2017 is current at CEN but not harmonised. A value that no primary source confirms is left out rather than estimated; each check step is described in our fact-checking methodology.
How Does ConstructionChemicals.net Stay Independent?#
ConstructionChemicals.net stays independent because it sells no product, ranks no brand and no company pays for placement in its tables, comparisons or answers. No company has a contract to receive requests.
Family hubs, product-class pages and application pages name no company. A question about a brand is answered by standard compliance: "Is this product R4?" becomes what an EN 1504-3:2005 R4 claim requires and where to read it on the DoP or TDS.
The tools section holds 2 request forms, one for applicator work and one for supplier quotes, and neither names a company. Requests go to independent applicators and suppliers. No company pays for placement; see our editorial policy.
Who Writes ConstructionChemicals.net?#
ConstructionChemicals.net is written and maintained by the ConstructionChemicals.net Editorial Team, which compiles each page from the primary sources in Table 2 and publishes under one organization byline. A value that cannot be confirmed against its source is left out, not estimated or hedged. The byline names the team, not a person.
How Can Readers Contact the Editors or Report an Error?#
Readers reach the editors at editorial@constructionchemicals.net or through the contact form, for a question about a value, a page or a request. An error report names the page and the value in question.
The form and its fields are on the contact page. How form data is kept is set out in the privacy policy, and how corrections are decided is set out in the editorial policy.
Why do product pages name no company?#
Product pages name no company because the reference compares product classes by standard and class, and a maker appears only as the source of one product value. A comparison by class, such as EN 1504-3:2005 R3 against R4, holds for every product that declares the class.
Does the reference replace a DoP, TDS, SDS or building code?#
No: for a specific product, its DoP, TDS and SDS govern, and for a legal or code requirement the rule or code itself governs; the reference cites them and gives no medical advice.
Why are values given in metric and US units?#
Values appear in metric units first with US units in parallel, such as MPa (psi) and g/L (lb/gal), because EN and ASTM or ANSI documents govern the same product classes side by side. Conversions are exact, and only the second unit is rounded: 45 MPa becomes 6,527 psi.