DAP

About DAP: Over 155 Years of Sealing, Bonding, and Repairing

Few brands in the building materials and repair world carry the kind of history and credibility that DAP does. Founded in 1865 in Dayton, Ohio — when Robert H. Dicks and Elmer Wiggim began producing sealing wax in a garage — the company evolved over the next century and a half into one of North America's most trusted names in caulks, sealants, insulating foams, adhesives, and patch-and-repair solutions. The name "DAP" itself comes from the 1957 merger that brought together the Dicks-Armstrong-Pontius companies, a name later shortened into the iconic brand recognized on jobsites and in workshops everywhere.

Headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, and operating as a subsidiary of RPM International, DAP holds the #1 brand recognition and market share position in the U.S. and Canada for the residential caulk and sealant market, as well as the top spot in the U.S. for wall and wood repair solutions. That dominance wasn't handed to them — it was earned through decades of first-to-market innovation. In 1964, DAP revolutionized the industry with the creation of latex caulking compounds. In 1980, they introduced the first Siliconized Latex Caulk to the market. And in more recent years, their patented Weather Max Technology® brought all-weather UV protection to exterior sealants, while the DryDex® Dry Time Indicator — a formula that goes on pink and dries to natural — took the guesswork out of wall repair timing.

Whether you're a professional contractor tackling a commercial build, a remodeler weatherizing a home, or a weekend DIYer sealing a gap in your boat hull, DAP makes a product specifically engineered for the task. Their catalog spans an impressive range of applications: kitchen and bath, gutters and roofing, window and door installation, HVAC, concrete and masonry, marine, and automotive — making DAP a go-to resource well beyond the paint aisle.

DAP Product Categories

DAP's product lineup covers three core areas that are especially relevant for repair, maintenance, and protection work:

• Foam Sealants & Flotation — DAP's expanding foam products, including their widely used Touch 'N Foam and DAPtex® lines, provide fast, reliable insulation and gap-filling for a wide variety of applications.
• Caulks & Sealants — The cornerstone of the DAP brand, their caulks and sealants cover everything from silicone and latex formulations to specialty products for exterior weatherization and underwater applications.
• Fillers — From the iconic Plastic Wood® wood filler to professional-grade spackling compounds, DAP's fillers restore surfaces efficiently and are trusted by both tradespeople and homeowners.

DAP's longevity in the market is a testament to their consistent commitment to quality, innovation, and meeting the real-world needs of the people who use their products every single day. When a job calls for a dependable seal, a strong bond, or a smooth repair, DAP has a solution that's been refined over generations.