Expansion joint sealing fail

[Tgo01]

I used a self leveling expansion joint sealer on the sidewalk on our property and that turned out great. I was so impressed with how well it worked and how easy it was to use that I decided to do our entire driveway.

After I applied it to our driveway expansion joints it looked great during the day but the next morning the stuff sort of bumped up on some expansion joints during the night.

7034

You can kind of see what I'm talking about in the above picture; on the left it's flat inside of the joint but on the right there is a noticeable bump.

Anyone have any idea what went wrong? Did I use too much? Is it too cold out to use it? Am I looking at this wrong and it's supposed to bump like that?

What really gets me is I only did 2 expansion joints the first day because I wanted to make sure it would look right when dry before I did the whole driveway and those first 2 expansion joints looked fine. The vertical expansion joint looks fine as well. It's just certain horizontal expansion joints that bumped up.

[Wrathbringer]

I used a self leveling expansion joint sealer on the sidewalk on our property and that turned out great. I was so impressed with how well it worked and how easy it was to use that I decided to do our entire driveway.

After I applied it to our driveway expansion joints it looked great during the day but the next morning the stuff sort of bumped up on some expansion joints during the night.

7034

You can kind of see what I'm talking about in the above picture; on the left it's flat inside of the joint but on the right there is a noticeable bump.

Anyone have any idea what went wrong? Did I use too much? Is it too cold out to use it? Am I looking at this wrong and it's supposed to bump like that?

What really gets me is I only did 2 expansion joints the first day because I wanted to make sure it would look right when dry before I did the whole driveway and those first 2 expansion joints looked fine. The vertical expansion joint looks fine as well. It's just certain horizontal expansion joints that bumped up.

I see some rain there. Any chance this was caused by hydraulic pressure?

[Tgo01]

I see some rain there. Any chance this was caused by hydraulic pressure?

It just started raining today but I applied this stuff about a week ago.

[Wrathbringer]

It just started raining today but I applied this stuff about a week ago.

Any chance the application was too thin in those areas and air trapped underneath pushed it up as it dried? That's all I've got. No direct experience with this particular product.

Edit: I'd trim it with a razor blade, and if hollow (it was a bubble) take it out and redo it. If not, I think you're good. Best of luck.

[Astray]

What's the firmness of the bubbles? You should be able to tell what went wrong by giving them a poke.

[Tgo01]

Any chance the application was too thin in those areas and air trapped underneath pushed it up as it dried? That's all I've got. No direct experience with this particular product.

I suppose it's possible but I think I applied it pretty thick.


Edit: I'd trim it with a razor blade, and if hollow (it was a bubble) take it out and redo it. If not, I think you're good. Best of luck.

I tried cutting a small piece off with a razor blade to see what it would look like and it looked pretty solid underneath except it was very porous and I figured a porous sealer was kind of defeating the purpose of the sealer :/


What's the firmness of the bubbles? You should be able to tell what went wrong by giving them a poke.

It feels just like the parts of the joints that are flat.

[Astray]

Okay so it feels solid but looks like a bubble and has a porous interior.

It looks to me like the stuff just congealed in the center and then started to solidify. Crevice of some kind fucked it up.

[Latrinsorm]

You can't solve your problems with joints, Terrence, expansion or otherwise.

[Tgo01]

Okay so it feels solid but looks like a bubble and has a porous interior.

It looks to me like the stuff just congealed in the center and then started to solidify. Crevice of some kind fucked it up.

Other than looking ugly do you think it will still do its job? I suppose it's not the end of the world as long as it keeps water out of the joint.

[Astray]

Did you see any cracks, veins, etc running through the line?

[Tgo01]

Did you see any cracks, veins, etc running through the line?

No. Today I noticed some very tiny holes in some places but those appear even in the flat parts.

[Wrathbringer]

Other than looking ugly do you think it will still do its job? I suppose it's not the end of the world as long as it keeps water out of the joint.

Good thing about this type of product is that if it is for some reason unable to do its job, it'll end up coming out on its own over time or the first time it freezes, letting you know that it's not doing its job.

[Wrathbringer]

Wait, did you afk script this application? That may be your problem.

[Tgo01]

Wait, did you afk script this application? That may be your problem.

Curses! Foiled again! :(

[Archigeek]

It might help to know what kind of sealant it is, other than self-leveling. There tons and tons of sealants out there. Give us a make and model.