All invoicing and payments are only done through Zelle (preferred method) or PayPal. 

SILOX Original Adobe/Rammed Earth Water Repellent is our flagship product formulated specifically for adobe and rammed earth. Excellent for all types of earth blocks, including asphalt, cement stabilized mud and burnt adobes. Exceptional application for rammed earth. Price for a five-gallon pail is $165.00.  

Please note that other websites sell water repellents under the “Silox” name; none of these are associated with the speciality adobe and rammed earth water repellents sold on this site.  Our products are only available through this website and local pickup in Tucson and in the Phoenix area.  If you have doubts, please contact Roy Spears at (520) 331-4004.

---

“SILOX Original”:  specially formulated for the specialized needs of adobe and rammed earth.

---

Call or text Roy Spears at (520) 331-4004 or email him at adobemastr@gmail.com for ordering information and general questions.

---

Silox Adobe/Rammed Earth Water Repellents are formulated specifically for adobe and rammed earth. An “Adobe Master” approved product: the Silox Original is $165.00 per five-gallon bucket; single gallons are NOT available.

Call (520) 331-4004 to Order Today!

---

---

Phone testimonial from Sheila about her success with the Silox Adobe/Rammed Earth Water Repellent:

---

Raving fan phone testimonial from Craig S. on his experience with the Silox (Original) Adobe/ Rammed Earth Water Repellent:

---

Phone testimonial from Chad Finch, owner of “Hidden Oasis,” a b&b on his success with the “Silox Adobe/Rammed Earth Water Repellent”:

---

Here are some helpful video’s for properly applying the Silox (click on the link immediately below):

https://adobemaster.com/tutorials/

Look on the labels of the majority of other “sealers” and water-repellents and see if the word “adobe” or “rammed earth” is mentioned. The SILOX was formulated for adobe and rammed earth. If you purchase the Silox from Adobe Masters, you will be using the same quality product on your home that I have been using on my customer’s homes for over thirty years.

The Silox is water-based. This means it is easy clean-up and won’t harm the environment like solvent-based products. Being water-based, it is safer for pets, plants and is easier to clean off of items you might accidentally overspray on…your neighbors cars or yourself, for example.

(Photo above: A burnt adobe brick treated on the left side with the Silox Original Adobe/Rammed Earth Water Repellent and the right side remaining untreated. The brick was then sprayed with water. Notice the water was quickly absorbed on the untreated side and how it is beading up on the side treated with the Silox.)

Because the Silox is water-based, you will not have to use potentially dangerous and harmful solvents—paint thinners—to clean your equipment or your hands. Being able to use water for clean-up is a huge advantage over solvent-based products.

The Silox Original and Xtra Adobe/Rammed Earth Water Repellents are both a penetrating and surface water repellent, combining the best of both chemistries to protect your adobe or rammed earth.

A “penetrating” water repellent absorbs into the porous adobe to protect it from within, allowing the adobe to “breathe” (or release moisture back into the atmosphere if water enters the adobe). A “surface” water repellent puts a thin, almost invisible vapor permeable acrylic barrier over the adobes to add an additional layer of protection from water penetration.  The Silox brings both of these benefits together into one product that is breathable.

This acrylic barrier allows moisture to also permeate out to the atmosphere, but performs an important function: it “stabilizes” the often times loose, crumbling and “dusty” surface of the adobe and rammed earth and prevents these loose particles from delaminating, falling onto your expensive flooring, and causing damage.  This benefit is more pronounced and of greater benefit when your home is built with unstabilized mud adobe, asphalt and/or cement stabilized adobe, or rammed earth.

This acrylic moisture barrier and stabilizing agent can, in certain light, be visible as a slight satin finish and, as an added benefit, helps to bring out the beautiful, rich colors of burnt adobe.

If you want to tackle the challenging project of applying the SILOX by yourself, I can help. If your adobe home is typical southwest style (i.e., high territorial style walls, flat roof, more than 1,500 s.f.), you have your work cut out for you. It is not easy to treat a home like this by yourself. When you purchase the SILOX from Adobe Masters, I will show you some professional tips that will save you numerous headaches. Additionally, you can rent some of my equipment that I use on customer’s homes that will make the difference between a frustrating nightmare into one you can be proud of. You will also save yourself some money in the process.

---

Shipping information:  Shipping costs are, unfortunately, ridiculously expensive.  Each five gallon bucket of the SILOX is approximately 45 pounds.  UPS and FedEx, in general, charge approximately $40-$50 per bucket to ship to California, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah.  For the least expensive rates with both companies, I have to put each five gallon bucket in their own separate box (previously, I shipped them unboxed and the price was much higher.  Now, the cost of the box, the tape to secure it, the time it takes to package each and every five gallon bucket, means it costs me additional to ship, but I save by getting a lower price).

If you live in the boondocks where UPS or FedEx have a difficult time finding your place, the rates can skyrocket.  Any reason these shipping companies can dream up that allegedly make any delivery more difficult is an excuse for them to jack up the rates.

Since I realize I would not sell much Silox if each customer had to pay approximately $40 more for each bucket, I usually split this cost with you:  I pay $20-$25 and you pay $20-$25.  Most customers appreciate this sharing of the shipping costs and I have yet to have any one grumble.

If the price per bucket is over $50, I never ask the customer for more money but pay the extra myself; it has frequently happened.  Neither UPS or FedEx will honor their shipping estimates when, after they quote me a price and I send out the order, they have some issue with the delivery and usually I end up paying more than the quote.  Since I have an account with both, I have to pay whatever they say it cost them to finally reach the customer.  And I never know exactly how much they are going to charge me until after they deliver the buckets to your home and I get billed.

Sometimes the price is less than the approximate $40-$50 they charge me.  Unless it is significantly less, since I never charge for the box, tape or travel time and gas to package each order and take them to the UPS or FedEx store or drop off location, I will put this extra money to those costs and expenses.

Unfortunately, all orders will now usually be shipped with an additional cost for shipping insurance.  UPS and FedEx lose or damage so many of my five gallon buckets that this additional charge has become mandatory.  Without shipping insurance, these companies require me to jump through their many time-consuming, bureaucratic hoops in order to get reimbursed for their negligence and carelessness; shipping insurance makes this process much easier and simpler.   

For large orders, say 20 buckets at a time and more, I use another shipping company that gives me a better pallet rate; then, the rates are drastically reduced if it is a half pallet or larger.  It helps if the customer, on these larger orders, have a forklift or loading dock to receive the pallet.  If you have neither, that’s okay…you will have to pay extra for a “lift truck” (remember, any excuse to charge the customer additional money).

I take the time to explain all of this to let you know of the extra cost to ship product to you from Tucson, AZ.  Thank you for understanding.  Shipping and all the costs, headaches, and nonsense dealing with these shipping companies is probably the worst part of this business.

---

It is expensive to hire a professional contractor like Adobe Masters to treat your home with a first class water repellent; it is labor intensive with time critical sequence of events that must be followed. If you tackle such a project on your own without any guidance and no experience, serious problems can occur. Yet with someone with over 30 years of experience walking you through the process, it will make your project easier.

The SILOX Adobe/Rammed Earth Water Repellent is a product that is formulated especially for adobe; this is a critical point to realize. There are “cheaper” water repellents that you can purchase at Home Depot or Loews, but read the product description on the label of the material you might purchase there. Is it made just for adobe? Do they mention the word “adobe” anywhere on the label? Probably not. Adobe is a unique building material and the SILOX was formulated with this in mind.

When you purchase the SILOX from Adobe Masters, you will be getting professional, tried and proven advice geared exactly for your project, from the owner of the company.

---

Testimonials:

“I recently sealed my entire house and large adobe wall ( over 9000 sq ft) using Adobe Masters’ product, Silox. I am very pleased with the results. Roy was very helpful and informative. He gave me excellent advice, and the seal is performing as advertised. I will definitely use this product again. He gladly refunded me for any unused buckets of Silox, and was very easy to deal with. Five stars for this service.”

John Bush, Tucson, AZ

****

“Very cool. Thanks. Silox is amazing–water is bouncing off the walls…”

Larry, St. Anthony Earthworks, Tucson, AZ. Larry makes cement-stabilized mud adobes and uses the Silox to treat them. He loves the product! Call him at (520)-780-0209 for more information.

****

“Brother Roy!  Thanks for the note, and sorry I didn’t write earlier….  The Silox worked KILLER GREAT ….. The treated adobes now feel like they have a thin layer of plastic on them and shed NO sand/particles whatsoever as you run your finger hard over them…. as if everything’s ‘locked up.’  Very cool….. and just what we needed in our situation.  So…. thank you! …… and thank you for getting it to me so quickly; we used it right away. Best,”

Charles Salman, New Mexico

****

Here is Charlene’s (Char) testimonial in an audio format:

****

“It worked great.”

Glenn W. Miller, G.W. Miller Custom Painting, Phoenix, AZ

For additional testimonials, click here.

---

To determine how much SILOX you will need for your project, first measure the square feet of your adobe walls. If you are measuring your house, don’t worry about subtracting the square feet that your doors and windows comprise, unless you have windows that cover a large portion of any one wall. You should subtract the garage door due to its significant square footage. After determining your adobe wall square footage, divide this number by 70 if your house is constructed from burnt adobe and has never before been treated with a water repellent.  If previously treated, you may be able to stretch this figure to no more than 100 s.f. per gallon.  Applying a “flood coat” is the best indicator of how much of the Silox to apply.

For example, assume you measured your exterior walls (don’t forget to measure the parapet adobes and the chimney, if applicable.) This figure is 3,500 square feet. Dividing 3,500 by 70 gives you a figure of 50, giving you the approximate number of gallons needed. I would purchase 55 gallons to insure I have enough product to finish the walls. Running out of material in the middle of a wall can be a disaster. Again, if the walls were previously treated, you may be able to stretch this to 100 s.f. per gallon.  It’s always better to calculate as close as possible to the figure of 70 s.f. per gallon to insure proper saturation and penetration rate of the Silox onto and into the burnt adobe.

For asphalt or cement stabilized mud adobe and rammed earth, these square foot figures must be reduced to only 50 s.f. per gallon.  In other words, treating your asphalt, cement stabilized, un-stabilized, or rammed earth requires far more product than burnt adobe.

Using our figure above of 3,500 s.f. (but this time we will be measuring for an asphalt, cement stabilized, un-stabilized, or rammed earth home), we divide this by 50, giving us a figure of 70, or 70 gallons of the SILOX.  These kind of adobes and rammed earth are thirsty, and it is possible you may need more product to adequately treat the walls.

If you have any product left over, unopened, I will purchase it back. I only sell the SILOX in five gallon containers, so if you overbuy and have some left over, bring it back and I will refund you that portion of your money. And I won’t scam you by demanding a so-called “restocking fee” for you to bring it back. If you have four gallons left over from the five gallon bucket, I will refund what you return in full (the unused portion must be clean…no dirt, leaves, sticks, etc. inside the bucket). This way you are not letting your hard earned money sit around in unused water repellent. Please note that this offer to re-buy your unused SILOX is only available to local Tucson customers.

If you have an asphalt, cement stabilized mud adobe or rammed earth, these materials are much more porous than burnt adobe. Figure only about 50-60 square feet per gallon. The same for rammed earth.

Key Benefits:

• Offers outstanding, long-lasting protection against the elements.
• State-of-the-art chemistry.
• Formulated for the unique characteristics of adobe.
• Five-year warranties if used in accordance with our instructions and specifications…one of the best in the industry.
• Pricing: (please note that these are Tucson prices with no shipping charges or taxes added. Ask about volume discounts.)

My storage facility where the Silox is stored is located near Fort Lowell and Dodge. If you are interested in purchasing the Silox, please plan on meeting me there. Remember, I will gladly buy back any unused, clean product.

Five gallon bucket for Silox Original: $139.00. Silox Xtra:  $189.00.  Check for available sales and discounts.

Payment in cash, personal check, most credit cards, or PayPal.

SILOX ADOBE AND RAMMED WATER REPELLENTS
(Exterior use)

Formulated for the particular needs of all adobe bricks and earth type plasters for exterior use.

Technical Data and General Information Sheet

Product Description:

SILOX Adobe Water Repellent (SAWR) (Exterior Use) is a small particle acrylic latex polymer with a methyl potassium siliconate as a vehicle.

This formulation is available to adobe home owners to help solve the damaging effects of water penetrating and damaging their earth and/or clay walls. SAWR methyl potassium siliconate is not only a penetrating product which helps to repel exterior water but there is added acrylic resins that preserves the surface by causing a chemical reaction that solidifies all component products into a cohesive surface tension.

Shelf life:

If kept in a closed container and stored at an ambient temperature of 75 degrees F at 50% relative humidity, products shelf life is over two years.

Surface preparation:

Adobe walls should be clean and free from all contaminants. Head joints and bed joints should be free of any cracks larger than 1/16 ” wide. Sealer will bridge thin cracks 1/16″ wide and less, but larger cracks will allow water to penetrate in. Repair and fill any voids larger than 1/16″ with the same material as the crack or void is in. Do not use any materials different than what the wall is constructed from.

Windows must be properly masked with plastic. Cured Silox may permanently etch glass. Remove all Silox from windows immediately if masking fails.

APPLICATION:

Please spend a few minutes viewing the videos at the link here. It will show you exactly how to properly apply the Silox to your adobe walls. Also, there are other videos on this page that will give you some professional tips on masking windows and other tips to make your project easier.

Before beginning project, first apply a test patch, using the recommended coverage rates, to an inconspicuous area of the wall(s) to insure that you will be satisfied with the end results.

Gently stir the Silox before using.

For best results, use low pressure airless spray equipment, hand pump backpack sprayers, or pump-up garden sprayers. Satisfactory results can be achieved by using rollers or brushes. When using spray equipment, hold spray tip approximately 12-18 inches from surface and apply enough material so that SAWR floods the surface by using this method of application for the first coat. Always work from top to bottom of wall in three to four foot sections at a time. Complete and total saturation of the substrate is crucial to insure adequate protection.

Test SAWR in a small, inconspicuous area first prior to doing complete job. This will insure proper results and determine proper coverage and application.

The resins in the Silox may require up to a 72 hour cure window, depending on the outside temperature and humidity. Lower temperatures with high humidity levels may slow down the total cure rate for the Silox. This means, for optimum application conditions, best practice is to spray your adobe walls when no drenching, heavy monsoon downpours that directly pummel the adobe are immediately expected…simple common sense.

A brief, sprinkling rain falling several hours after spraying your walls should not adversely affect long-term performance of the Silox, especially if the outside temperatures are consistently above 90 degrees F. with low humidity. In general, when you are ready to spray your adobe home and/or walls with the Silox, look for a time frame of one to three days after spraying your walls when heavy monsoon rains directly battering the freshly treated walls are not expected.

When first applied, SAWR emulsified resins appear milky white with a slight purplish hue. However, depending on the temperature and humidity of the air and also the substrate, these resins soon coalesce (fuse together) and dry clear and colorless. The milky appearance in hot, dry weather should last no longer than fifteen minutes. Strike out or roll out any obvious drips, runs or puddles after this time. Excess sealer must not be allowed to remain on surface after this time. An application of a second, light (or mist) coat is essential for maximum protection. Apply this second coat just after the milky white appearance of the first coat has disappeared but before the first coat has a chance to dry. Sealer should dry within 1/2 – two hours of time.

Temperatures must be at least 55° and rising. Do not apply in temperatures below this. In cold weather, complete your project so that the water repellent has at least two hours to dry before the sun sets. Insure that all product, in cold weather, has been absorbed into the walls and that the milky white appearance has disappeared. Failure to follow these cold weather instructions can result in the walls being permanently stained with the milky white or purplish hue of the curing product.

APPROXIMATE COVERAGES:

For most sun-dried earth and straw type bricks, expect approximately 40-50 square feet per gallon. Sun-dried asphalt emulsion type adobes: 50 s/f per gallon. Kiln dried Sasabe type bricks: 70-90 s/f per gallon. Smooth troweled earth type plasters and rammed earth, expect no more than 60-90 s/f per gallon.  All calculations are for raw, untreated adobes that have never had a water repellent applied in its history.  If your adobes were correctly treated in the past, you may be able to increase the square footage rates by a slight margin (10-15% or so).

SILOX Adobe And Rammed Earth Water Repellents are not suitable for below grade application or where water pressure is from the interior of the wall. It will not prevent water penetration through unsound or cracked surfaces and must not be used in planter box applications.

WARRANTY: If applied exactly according to instructions with the recommended coverage rates, we will warranty this product for three years on burnt, asphalt and cement stabilized adobe and rammed earth vertical surfaces.  No warranty whatsoever, either expressed or implied, for customers who incorrectly use the Silox for any kind of floor treatment, whether interior or exterior horizontal surfaces.   To exercise the right of your warranty, you must supply manufacturer with an original and dated proof of purchase sales slip, a short written statement of what problem(s) you are experiencing, and your method of application. Since use of this product is beyond our control, the only remedy of the buyer or users shall be replacement of product deemed defective. Labor costs to reapply any Silox is not covered.  No other warranty is expressed or implied. Neither the seller or manufacturer shall be liable for any injury, loss or damage, direct, incidental or consequential, arising out of the use of or misuse of this product. Before using this product the applicator shall determine the suitability of this product of the intended use and the applicator assumes all liability whatsoever in connection therewith. VOC compliant.

CLEAN UP: Equipment, brushes, roller, etc…. Use hot soapy water immediately after use. Fully cured resins can only be removed with strong solvents. Before using any solvents to clean any surface, determine beforehand the suitability and compatibility of solvent with surface to be cleaned. Be certain your chosen method of cleaning will not harm surfaces.

SAFETY AND FIRST AID: Use appropriate eye, face, skin and respiratory protection. Improper use of airless spray equipment is potentially dangerous. Know your equipment and respect it’s ability to cause harm to you and others. If injected into skin with any type of pressurized spray equipment (particularly airless spray equipment), seek medical attention immediately! If product comes in contact with skin, immediately wash with soap and water. If clothing becomes soaked with sealer, remove and wash both skin and clothing. Eyes: immediately flush with water and seek medical attention and advice. Do not drink, wash with, or breathe this product. Close container after each use. KEEP OUT OF THE REACH OF CHILDREN!! Keep from freezing and high temperatures.  Do not store outside, either in the sun or shade. Store inside a well ventilated and protected storage space away from extreme temperatures.

If stored in a well protected and insulated interior environment with the lid tightly closed, the Silox can last for at least three years with no ill effects.