Concrete flooring resurfacing is a good way to add decorative finish. Here are steps that you should know to complete this task successfully:
- Assess existing concrete floor: You need to make sure that the concrete floor is ready for the resurfacing work. Check for excess moisture, cracks, paint, carpet glue and tile adhesives.
- Remove carpet glue: This is a common problem with concrete flooring. You should choose effective and non toxic glue removal products. You need to make sure that dry glue is completely soaked with the solution. Wait for a while and scrape the glue off the concrete floor. Once the floor is dry and smooth, you can start resurfacing the floor.
- Remove paint: Remove paints using heavy duty remover solution and you can grind off the paint much more easily. It may require multiple passes before the floor is completely clean.
- Clean concrete: You can acid etch concrete to remove salts, grime, dirt and rust from the surface. When doing acid etching, you need to wear mask, due to the strong fumes. You can wash off the concrete floor after about 15 minutes. Rinse thoroughly until there’s no more acid on the surface. Gelled acid is the most effective and easiest solution to clean up concrete floor. You can roll gelled acid on the floor and agitate it with stiff bristle broom. Use scraper to remove anything that stubbornly clings on the concrete floor and then wash the surface completely with water. The acid will easily remove mold, grime and dirt, while the gel could work as a carrier.
- Repair cracks: There are many methods that you choose to fix cracks on concrete floor. First of all you need to use angle grinder to grind out the crack and vacuum out the loose dust and pieces. You can use waterproof epoxy to fill crack and it’s quite flexible. If you don’t have a grinder, you may carefully chip out crack with small chisel and clean up loose pieces.
- Reduce moisture: Concrete is quite porous, with very small capillaries and holes. Moisture pressure in concrete is known as hydrostatic pressure, which can push a consistent amount of water through concrete slab. You can solve this problem by directing away from the concrete slab. Moisture problem can happen when water runs under the slab during rainy days. So, make sure that you have a good gutter system for your roof. Another good method is to waterproof the concrete slab with epoxy solutions. This will prevent too much moisture from penetrating the slab.
- Floor cleaning is a task that you shouldn’t overlook before you resurface the concrete floor. Before doing your task, you need to make sure that the concrete slab is completely ready. Without proper preparation, the resurfacing result won’t be satisfactory. In order to clean up the concrete slab properly, you need to do your research. You need to follow the right steps and choose the right resources. Concrete resurfacing should be an excellent value-added solution.