Ways To Get Rid Of Damage To Concrete Floor Screed On Your Own

2023 Author: Philip Bishop | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-08-25 07:54

• The reasons
• Preliminary work
• Solution preparation
• Getting rid of potholes
• Solving problems with cracks and cobwebs
• Removing uneven areas
• Large amount of dust
• Correction of deformation seams
• Overhaul

No one doubts the huge number of positive qualities of concrete floors. These are not only operational characteristics, but also the installation process itself, which does not require certain knowledge. But over time, you will still have to carry out repair work on such a screed for numerous reasons. It is possible to cope with minor surface defects. But situations may arise when you have to arrange a major overhaul.

The reasons

When it comes to the primary source of cracks or potholes on the concrete floor, then all the reasons should be divided into several groups:

1. Destruction due to soil action. In winter, the soil tends to swell. This happens in rooms with poor heating. In addition, the soil backfill layer could be poorly rammed and compacted. Over time, each structure is capable of shrinking, which causes deformation of all surfaces. Externally, the floor covering can remain beautiful. But if you look inside, then all the problems will hide there. The consequences are most dire if the defect is not eliminated in time.

   

2. Internal factors. Cracks may appear due to poor quality care after pouring, mortar shrinkage during the drying process.
3. External negative. During operation, concrete begins to dust, and with constant exposure to heavy objects, potholes appear.

Each of the types of concrete floor defects can be eliminated in a short time. But if the scale is significant, then it is best to resort to major repairs and complete removal of the damaged layer.

Preliminary work

Damage to the concrete floor, externally and internally, is of concern. It should be noted that at the same time, it is easier to eliminate any minor elements in time than to carry out more global restoration work later.

Before starting the repair, several very important steps should be performed, which are preparatory measures. If there is a floor covering, then it should be dismantled, if possible.

Any debris, dust, dirt must be removed from the surface using special tools and equipment. Mold, fungus, traces of rust and other negative manifestations of exploitation may appear on the concrete floor. This is all cleaned with a metal brush. It will not be superfluous to treat it with antiseptic properties. If fragments of reinforcement stick out from the screed, then treat them with anti-corrosion agents.

When all this is done, you can proceed to the next step to eliminate surface defects. The list of measures will depend on the specific variant of the detected damage. At the same time, it is important to prepare a working mixture for repairing the floor screed, with which all cracks or potholes will be sealed.

Solution preparation

The preparation of the mixture for the repair of floors will depend on the amount of damage, their specific type. All small cracks, potholes are sealed with ordinary mortar, to which PVA glue is added. But there are subtleties here too. To begin with, glue is added to the water in a ratio of 4 to 1. This is all poured into a cement-sand mixture prepared in proportions of 1 to 3. It remains only to mix everything until a homogeneous mass is obtained.

Building mixtures, which are plentiful in stores, are useful for more significant repair work. As a result, strength is guaranteed by the components available in their composition.

Much will depend on mixing the solution. The best result is obtained, for example, when using a mixer. In addition, the strength of the used mixture is increased by about half, compared to the usual stirring with a shovel or other improvised means. When we have the mortar available and can be used to eliminate the imperfections of the concrete surface, we will begin to consider the existing damage.

Getting rid of potholes

If anything heavy falls on the floor, potholes may appear. Their size depends not only on the weight of the object that became their source, but also on the period before the start of work. The sooner everything is eliminated, the fewer manifestations will arise.

After cleaning the pothole surface from debris, it is covered with a layer of primer to improve adhesion. In some cases, substances are added to the existing cement compositions for strengthening. Such mixtures are sold ready-made in stores. Each package of concrete floor repair mortar contains an indication of the conditions under which the mortar should dry.

They should be adhered to to obtain a quality result. No stress on the surface should occur in the first week and a half after the repair.

There is another option for getting rid of potholes - to make an incision along its perimeter, up to 20 mm deep. The old coating is removed completely. This will help a chisel, perforator, grinder. Then all that remains is to clean it of debris, prime it and fill it with a solution. After drying, the surface is sanded.

Solving problems with cracks and cobwebs

When faced with the repair of cracks in the floor screed, you should pay attention to their number and volume. Small cracks naturally take less time to repair. To begin with, they are examined, after which the screed is removed next to the crack. This will allow you to subsequently avoid the appearance of chips on the surface. Even hidden chips will thus be detected and repaired. The shape of the crack in depth should resemble a cone.

Any debris is removed from the inside, water is sprinkled to increase humidity.

During the drying process, any prepared mixture will shrink. For this reason, the solution is not poured flush with the floor level, but slightly higher. It is not worth worrying about, because later you can easily remove the “cap” with a grinder.

The tools at hand will not help if significant cracks are found. Cuts are made along the damage with a circular saw. The best option here is to use a diamond disc rather than the other.

Concrete from the cuts is removed with a chisel, as was done before for small defects. All that remains is to fill the prepared cement mortar, which must dry out within a specified period.

It is worth highlighting in a separate category cracks in the concrete floor, which appeared as a result of shrinkage of the poured solution. Initially, you should "embroider" them to a depth of 5 mm. Then everything is very simple - clean it from dust and add a solution. In this case, it is recommended to use mineral-polymer complexes as additives to the mixture. Concrete shrinkage in this case no longer occurs.

The "gossamer" requires no less attention. It occurs when the solution dries significantly quickly. Many people have a question about how to seal up a concrete floor. To seal cracks, an elastic sealant is most often used over a primer layer. But it is not always possible to find such places of damage. Their detection is carried out by wetting the surface.

Removing uneven areas

New buildings are famous for irregularities on the surface of the concrete floor. Specialists do not always do everything efficiently and in compliance with technology. All this not only spoils the attractive appearance, but also contributes to poor-quality installation of any type of floor covering. Leveling the floor in this case is carried out when using a milling machine in operation.

Here it is important to make a recess under the floor level by 10 mm, and then sand the surface. Then it is treated with a diluted primer with a solvent in a ratio of 1 to 10. It remains only to fill in the solution, which is leveled by the rule flush with the floor level.

Large amount of dust

Dusting cannot be avoided during operation of the concrete surface. This affects not only the comfort while being in the room, but also the health of the people in it. Wet cleaning will do nothing, you will have to repair the floor screed with your own hands.

The most popular option is painting the floor. It uses a special paint, a protective coating (impregnation Ashford Formula, Maxdur C). This mixture is very easily absorbed into the existing screed and does not allow dust to "get out" outside. The pores are filled to a depth of about 5-6 mm. These repair components create a beautiful surface appearance. The floors can withstand even negative temperatures, become wear-resistant, and can be treated with chemical agents for washing and surface cleaning.

In this case, repairing concrete floors does not take much time, it is a simple and effective means of combating dust formation. Various materials can be selected as surface coating agents. The main thing will be determined with what the final result is needed. If the room does not have significant loads on the base of the floor, then it is not even necessary to arrange a thick protective layer, saving money on repairs.

Correction of deformation seams

Attention should be paid during operation and the existing expansion joints.

If their edges began to deform, collapse, the integrity is violated, the following steps should be taken:

1. Get rid of uneven edges by trimming, expanding the seams, remove all debris from the inside.
2. Prime with epoxies.
3. Prepare a mortar based on polymers and cement, and then seal them up.
4. The seams are marked with markers (steel bar), which are fixed along its entire length.
5. After the mortar has set, the markers are removed, and a new expansion joint is made. The resulting seam after the marker is filled with "Vilotherm-cord".

6. The surface is sealed with a silicone based sealant.

   

If you perform all the stages sequentially, observing the technology, then at the end we can say that the repair of concrete floors has been made at the proper level.

Overhaul

All of the above methods of restoring the subfloor are classified as partial repairs. We must not forget that there is also a major overhaul in case of extensive damage to the surface, installation of a "warm floor" system, when renewing a concrete screed.

Do-it-yourself repair of a concrete floor screed has various technologies, which, moreover, will differ from each other in a set of tools and materials. The choice of the mixture should be taken with all responsibility, since it will depend on the quality and strength of the surface.

The number of defects identified during operation will also depend on the quality of work on the installation of a concrete floor screed. They force additional measures to be taken in order to repair the floor screed at the proper level.

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