There are dozens of ways to treat a concrete floor. Each has its pros and cons, and choosing one that’s best for your needs depends on understanding what each method entails. We’ve put together a guide to the six most common preparation methods and machines to help you to better understand the benefits of each.
Method #1 – Shot Blasting
Remove the coating, and clean and profile a surface in one step with shot blasting. This dust-free, the low-risk process can remove dirt, paint, contaminants, and coatings, by shooting tiny steel particles at a surface, which then bounce back for recycling, while the removed elements are gathered and discarded.
Method #2 – Grinding
Grinding is the perfect choice for treating large floor areas or providing a very smooth finish and can level uneven spots and joints. Grinding involves using rotating discs made from unrefined diamonds that move in a horizontal pattern.
Method #3 – Scabbling
Scabbling uses compressed air to force piston-mounted bits onto a surface, removing up to 0.5mm of coating in one session. It’s best reserved for extreme damage repair and removal and is normally followed by a smoothing method to even out any roughness.
Method #4 – Chisel Scraping
When you need to remove tiles, roofing shingles, parquet flooring, or carpets, then you need a chisel scraper. Scrapers are available in handheld air-powered machines, which are used to remove grouting, asphalt or fibreglass, or as an engine-powered machine to handle larger surfaces.
Method #5 – Scarifying
Complete several jobs with one machine using a scarifying machine. It uses a cutting wheel with removable cutting assemblies, which, depending on the cutter, means that you can clean a surface, level it, remove it, or even create shallow and evenly spaced grooves.
Method #5 – Acid Wash
Acid washing can remove loosely bonded materials, and doesn’t remove contaminants. The acid wash can only be used on oil-free concrete surfaces, and never on overhead or vertical surfaces. For an acid wash to be effective, a mild acid solution is applied to a floor and treated with a high-pressure wash. The area is then vacuumed, dried and neutralised.
If you are unsure which machine would be best for your project, contact Con-Treat today. We can advise you on the best option for your needs.
* The above information is to be used as a guide only and Con-Treat accepts no responsibility for any consequence resulting from the advice contained herein or verbally.
