Acrylic

Acrylic is easiest to understand next to urethane, the other glossy chemistry, at the point where either one wears out.

Once an acrylic coat is soiled or worn, ICPI says the pavers can be easily cleaned and resealed, and without extremely hazardous materials. Urethane does not get that sentence: ICPI says urethanes cannot be rejuvenated simply by re-coating. How that difference plays out when a worn surface is renewed is covered, alongside the two carriers a sealer comes in, under what happens when a sealer wears, and the other side of the comparison has its own entry at urethane.

ICPI describes acrylic sealers by their carrier, their look, their resistance to stains and one kind of pavement they do not belong on.

Acrylic sealers can be solvent or water based, in ICPI's description, and they enhance paver colors well, create a gloss on the surface and provide good stain resistance. The same document says acrylics should not be used on high abrasion areas such as industrial pavements or floors, and notes that acrylic sealants are widely used in residential and commercial paver applications. How acrylic compares with the penetrating family for finish and strengths is laid out in the paver sealing section of the service page.

Acrylic names a category, and two makers' data sheets show two different products inside it.

Techniseal's data sheet for its Wet Look WL1-2 Protector says the product is made of acrylic and plasticizers and designed to protect concrete pavers. SEK-Surebond describes SB-1300 as a water based, single component, acrylic co-polymer sealer and joint sand stabilizer. Sharing a chemistry does not make two products interchangeable: coverage, temperature window and coat count for any surface come from the label of the product actually applied, never from the chemistry name alone.

ICPI's only service-life wording for a sealer family is about acrylic, and it is a hedge rather than a number.

Acrylic sealants, ICPI says, generally last a few years in residential and commercial paver applications before re-coating is required. The institute prints no count of years behind that phrase, and none should be read into it. What wears a coat down, and the signs that one is due, are covered at how long paver sealer lasts.