HydroVault Adhesive

From the person who had it made

There's a free sausage in it for you.

We mail a live 20 oz sausage to acrylic bath dealers — no strings, nothing to sign, and we won't call you three times about it. Gun it on your next job and see what you think.

Request yours

I've been installing acrylic for 26 years, across four states — primarily on California's Central Coast, where I own a bath remodeling company today. Wet-area conversions, full remodels, about 25 people. Same business you're in.

In 26 years I've been through every generation of panel adhesive on the market. A few years ago I stopped waiting for somebody to build the one I actually wanted and went and had it built.

It's called HydroVault. Hybrid polymer. White. Standard sausage, same gun you're already holding — nothing changes on your truck, nothing new to buy. It grabs smooth ABS and acrylic with no primer, and it holds a ceiling panel without bracing.

That's the whole pitch. Gun it on your next job. If it doesn't do what you want, throw the rest away and we're square. If it does, my email is at the bottom of this page.

MichaelReliaBath™ · HydroVault™ Adhesive / Sealant

Why installers love it

Six things you notice on the first job.

Like we say on our crews: it's always more fun to do it the first time.

1

Superior adhesion

Tested side by side against the leading products in the category. Zero loose-panel issues when applied properly — and often when it isn't. A more secure installation, every time.

2

Extrudability

HydroVault gunning is where jobsite efficiency comes from. Manual gun or power gun, application is easier and faster, and it lets you run the gun at a speed that can literally cut application time in half. We recommend a Makita power gun — it will dispense a full sausage in about 11 seconds if you want it to. Fewer gun problems all around.

3

Easy loading

Each sausage is made in the ideal shape for loading — no more shaking the gun to seat a new one. They're ever so slightly narrower and longer for the same fill, and the extra length means less dead space at the end of the barrel and a more responsive start.

4

Viscosity

The initial hold is still excellent despite the much improved gunnability. Ceiling panels and warped panels have enough grab to skip bracing and support during cure.

5

Low odor

Fewer customer complaints than the stronger, more offensive-smelling adhesives your customers have lived with before.

6

Safer ingredients

This one wasn't planned. When we compared the ingredient lists against the other major brands, HydroVault came out among the least toxic of the group.

Spec card

HydroVault™ Adhesive / Sealant

What it is: One-component hybrid polymer sealant-adhesive, moisture cure
Color: White
Format: Foil sausage — NET WT 32.4 oz (920 g) and 33.8 oz (960 g). Standard barrel gun. 20 per case.
Substrates: Bonds smooth ABS and acrylic to drywall, plywood, existing tile and similar substrates — no primer
Also bonds: Flooring products, wood, countertops, drywall. Mirror-safe.
Made for: Manufactured exclusively for ReliaBath™
Coverage: 3–7 sausages per panel, depending on panel size and substrate flatness

Every line above is a property of our own product. Nothing here compares us to anyone else.

How we apply it

The way we install it on our own jobs.

Surfaces must be clean, dry and free of dust, oil, soap residue and release agents. No primer required on smooth ABS or acrylic.
Cut the nozzle to 3/8 in. Run a continuous bead around the full perimeter of each panel, then fill the field with an S-pattern 3–5 in apart.
Press panels home before the adhesive skins — about 12 minutes. Skin forms in 20–30 min at 73 °F / 50 % RH.
On wet-area horizontal seams apply extra so that excess adhesive oozes out for cleanup. Apply extra behind fixtures mounted before cure.
Cures a minimum of 2 mm per 24 hours. Allow 24 hours before loading the bond. Apply between 41 °F and 104 °F (5–40 °C).

No vertical beads, no bracing. Ceiling panels hold on their own.

Technical data

Published, so you don't have to guess.

Typical values for HydroVault™ Adhesive / Sealant. The full technical data sheet and the Safety Data Sheet are available on request and at hydrovaultadhesive.com/sds.

Performance
Chemistry	One-component hybrid polymer, moisture cure
Tensile strength	1.5–2.0 N/mm² (220–290 psi)
Elongation at break	over 300 %
Hardness	Shore A 40–45
Sag	Non-sag
Shrinkage	under 3 %
Service temperature	−40 to 194 °F (−40 to 90 °C)
VOC content	under 27 g/L

Application & handling
Skin time	20–30 min at 73 °F / 50 % RH
Press panels within	about 12 minutes
Cure rate	minimum 2 mm per 24 h
Load bond after	24 hours
Application temperature	41–104 °F (5–40 °C)
Storage	Upright, cool and dry, 50–77 °F (10–25 °C). Do not freeze.
Shelf life	12 months from date of production, unopened
Paintable	Yes. Solvent-, isocyanate- and silicone-free.

Free sample

Tell us where to send the sausage.

One live sausage per shop, mailed to acrylic bath dealers in the western US. It's yours whether or not you ever buy a case. If it wasn't for you, tell us why — that's worth more to us than the order.

Dealers who'd rather talk first: inquiries@reliabath.com.