Sealers (Regent Line)
When it comes to sealing any natural stone, it is important for the homeowner to understand what types of sealers are available and the protection that the various products provide. Sealers are designed to provide a window of opportunity to remove the spill before it has a chance to soak in and create a stain. It is important to wipe up any spill as soon as possible, and failure to do this can result in a stain regardless of which sealer you have used.
The most common sealers used are penetrating in nature, meaning they get down into the stone to protect from the inside out without changing the appearance of the stone. A penetrating sealer allows the stone to ‘breathe’ while providing stain protection, generally does not change a stones appearance, and has to be reapplied periodically. 
A good rule of thumb regarding when a sealer needs to be reapplied is when a liquid is spilled on the stone and it does not bead up ( much like a car that has a fresh coat of wax ) it is time to reseal.
Regent Stone Products sells two sealers that are manufactured specifically for natural stone. When a customer is looking to seal polished granite we recommend using our Silicone Impregnator. This premium product has been manufactured with the highest quality raw materials, and it provides excellent protection from oil and water based stains. In addition to its stain protection it is odorless and colorless, which may not mean much until you compare it with other products on the market. Odorless and colorless are adjectives that you will not find used to describe other sealers on the market. The use of superior raw materials means that the homeowner can expect rapid penetration of the sealer into the stone, typically the first application is absorbed in 10 to 20 minutes, and better stain protection. On especially porous stones it is necessary for a second application of the sealer to achieve the best stain protection. If the first application of sealer is absorbed rapidly, we recommend a second application of product ( wet on wet is how we describe this ) to insure that the stone is properly sealed. Wipe up any excess after 10 or 15 minutes of the second application with a clean cotton rag – do not let any of the sealer puddle and dry on the surface as it is difficult to remove if this occurs. The sealer will cure completely after 24 hours.
Zeta Seal is our premium sealer designed for the most porous stones, specifically honed limestone and marble, and it provides the maximum protection against staining. In addition to oil and water protection, Zeta Seal also provides protection against acid staining, one of the most damaging liquids that can come in contact with calcium based stones. Zeta Seal does not protect calcium based stones from etching, but since the acids cannot penetrate and stain the stone the damage is minimized. Once again, it is imperative that the spill be wiped up immediately to prevent problems. Zeta Seal is applied in the same manner as the Silicone Impregnator, with two or sometimes three applications necessary to properly seal the most porous stones. Zeta Seal also works well on polished marble and limestone, but it is not intended for use on polished granite because the product does not penetrate these stones as easily.
Regent has added two new sealants to our inventory; H20 Seal a water base sealant, and Valen Seal, a premium one step sealer.
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| Silicone Impregnator |
Zeta Seal |
H20 Seal |
Valen Seal |
Q. What is the difference between your sealers, H20, Silicone Impregnator, Valen and Zeta, other than price that is. Quality? Penetration? Longevity? What? Zeta claims acid resistance, and we know it’s a top-coat, but other than that they all sound the same.
A. The H2O sealer is water based – better for more porous stones same oil and water protection as Silicone Impregnator. Zeta Seal is a penetrating sealer, not a top coat as the customer mistakenly believes, and is made specifically for calcium based stones. Valen Seal is a step better in stain protection than Silicone Impregnator – it has a different sealing ingredient… It is basically a dilute Zeta Seal – same protection but lesser quantity of the fluorocarbons that give Zeta Seal its properties.
All of the sealers have arbitrary longevity; it depends on what is used as a cleaner, application procedure, porosity of the stone, etc. Typically it is time to reseal if water does not bead up on the surface like a car that has wax on it.
One of the big points to make is the use of only the highest quality raw materials in the manufacture of these products, which provides not only excellent stain protection, but also user friendly characteristics such as rapid penetration and in the case of the Silicone Impregnator the absence of odor and minimal darkening of the stone when applied.
