Frequently asked questions
Written for the engineers, specifiers, builders and asset owners who carry the risk. If your question is not here, call 1300 503 929 and ask it.
An Australian-made preventative hydrogel concrete waterproofing admixture, certified to AS 1478.1-2000. It is dosed into the concrete rather than applied to it. Three products:
842 utilises the water of convenience in the concrete mix to become part of the concrete matrix itself, so pores and capillaries are stopped from forming in the first place. The hydrophobic state is the stable state of the cured concrete. It is not a coating, and it is not sitting there waiting for water to trigger it.
No — and the difference matters. Hydrogel admixtures are preventative: they stop the capillary network forming while the concrete is hydrating. Crystalline admixtures are reactive: they respond to water entering concrete in which a capillary network has already formed. Both are integral admixtures dosed into the mix, but the mechanism and the timing are different.
Yes. 842 self-heals cracks up to 0.66 mm that form in the hardened concrete after curing, in concrete of 32 MPa or greater with a water-cement ratio between 0.34 and 0.59. Keep it distinct from the prevention story — these are two separate mechanisms, and the healing is not a crystalline growth process.
No. The under-slab vapour barrier membrane stays. What 842 MVRA replaces is the surface-applied topical moisture barrier over the top of the slab — except in wet areas, which are still waterproofed in the normal way. We are deliberately precise about this, because in Australian construction both "moisture barrier" and "vapour barrier" are commonly used to mean the polyethylene under the slab.
On below-ground structures, 842 WP removes the reliance on an externally applied membrane for water resistance, because the protection is inside the concrete section. Construction joints, movement joints and service penetrations remain detailed items with waterstops and appropriate sealing. See basements and lift pits.
We do not publish one. The correct rate depends on your mix design, binder content and aggregate, so a number off a data sheet is not useful and can be wrong. Send us the mix design and we will calculate the dosage and run a free test mix against your actual mix, at your nominated pre-mix supplier. That is the fastest honest answer to this question.
842 is a liquid admixture dosed at the batching plant or on the truck, with a batch record issued for every load. No new site trade, and no change to your mix design approval pathway. We attend significant pours.
842 is certified as a concrete admixture to AS 1478.1-2000 and is used within your existing mix design and exposure classification — cover, cement content, water-to-cement ratio and curing requirements all still govern. Rather than assert an outcome, we prove it on your mix: the free test mix is also how precast yards confirm there is no impact on demould cycles or the delivered finish.
Yes. We supply a clause for the concrete section, cross-referenced from the floor finishes and waterproofing sections, plus the technical and safety data sheets, the AS 1478.1-2000 certification and the warranty wording. See resources.
Every 842 MVRA slab that is receiving a floor covering gets on-site verification testing at 72 hours, issued with the batch records. The superintendent gets documented evidence before the following trades start, not a visual sign-off after the fact.
A 25-year moisture egress warranty covering materials and labour. Most competing admixture warranties cover materials only.
Manufactured at Wingfield in Adelaide, supplying South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland. South Australia is our home market with a full delivered project history. Interstate enquiries go to [email protected] or 1300 503 929.
No. CLEVA CRETE 842 is an admixture — it is dosed into the concrete before it is placed, so it can only be specified for new concrete. It cannot be applied to existing concrete as a remedial repair. An existing structure that already leaks is a job for an applied remedial system, not for an admixture.
Yes — independent, privately owned, and manufactured in Adelaide. Not an imported system with a local sales office. That matters on projects with local content or Australian Industry Participation requirements.