Butyl Used as a waterproofing and moisture/vapour sealing system in the building and construction industries has many advantages over Bitumen:
· Butyl is permanently visco-elastic (highly conformable, withstands expansion and contraction)
· Butyl's visco-elasticity is retained at low temperatures - soft and conformable to -30°C
· Butyl's visco-elasticity is retained at high temperatures - does not flow at 110°C
· Butyl is UV Resistant - it does not harden with time
· Butyl is pressure sensitive - no external heat required for application in all situations
· Butyl has excellent sound and vibration absorption over entire product's life
· Butyl is self-healing (if punctured will fuse back to re-create seal as sharp object removed)
· No volatile organic content in butyl products or used in its manufacture (environmentally safe)
· Butyl has some degree of resistance to organic solvents
· Butyl has a long shelf life
· Butyl will not stain surfaces or leach oils (no messy clean-up)
· Butyl bonds to all non-porous standard building materials (including HEVAC building wraps), bitumen does not
· Butyl is available in flame retardant versions, bitumen is not
· Butyl and bitumen are both available in formats tested for water potability
· Butyl is available in thin gauges down to 0.5mm
· Butyl is compatible with all common acrylic, polyurethane, and neutral cure silicone sealants
· Butyl is available in versions compatible with oil/solvent-based paints
· Butyl is compatible with water/acrylic-based paints
· Butyl is resistant to mildew
· Butyl's application temperature is a wider range: 5° - 40°C. Bitumen's application temperature is 15° - 30°C.
· Butyl's operating temperature is Minus 30° - 80°+C. Bitumen's operating temperature is Minus 10° - 55°C Max.