If an epoxy floor starts peeling or lifting a few months after it was installed, the coating itself isn’t always the problem. Often, the issue is what was left underneath it.
Concrete can look clean and solid while still having old paint, oil, adhesive, dust or weak material sitting on the surface. There can also be moisture in the slab or areas where the concrete surface isn’t strong enough to support a new coating. Epoxy needs something solid and properly prepared to bond to. If that part of the job is rushed, the finished floor can look great at first but start failing soon after.
Cleaning the floor isn’t enough.
It’s easy to look at a concrete floor and think it just needs a good clean before the epoxy goes down. In reality, it’s rarely that simple.
A concrete floor can have years of grime built up on it. Oil around machinery, old paint, adhesive from previous flooring and sealers don’t disappear with a mop and some detergent.
Even when the floor looks clean, the concrete surface itself may not be ready for epoxy. The surface needs to be mechanically prepared so the coating can properly grip the concrete. Melbourne concrete grinding experts, like Structural Services Australia, can help.
What happens during concrete grinding?
Floor grinding services use specialised equipment to remove unwanted material from the surface of the slab. Depending on what’s there, it could mean taking off old coatings, paint, glue or a weak top layer of concrete.
The other important job grinding does is create the right surface profile, giving the epoxy something to hold onto. A very smooth concrete surface doesn’t provide the same bond as properly prepared concrete. Grinding opens up the surface and gives the coating a much better base.
The amount of grinding required depends on the floor – A relatively new, clean slab is obviously different from an old industrial floor with several layers of paint and years of accumulated grime.
Grinding also gives you a better look at what’s actually happening with the slab.
Once the surface is prepared, you may find cracks, damaged sections or areas of weak concrete that weren’t obvious beforehand. Those problems need to be dealt with before the epoxy is applied.
There’s also something called laitance, which is a weak layer of fine material that can form on the surface of concrete. You don’t want to put a high-performance coating over a weak layer and assume everything underneath it is sound. If that layer fails, the coating can come away with it.
Moisture is another issue that can cause trouble with epoxy flooring.
Concrete slabs can hold moisture, and moisture can sometimes move up through the slab from underneath. If a coating is applied without considering the moisture condition of the concrete, you can end up with bubbling or blistering after the floor has been finished.
This is one of those things that can be frustrating because the floor may look completely fine when the job is finished but the problem shows up later.
Professional preparation makes sense.
Professional equipment used for Melbourne concrete grinding is designed to remove material efficiently while giving the operator control over the surface being prepared. Professional dust extraction also makes a significant difference, particularly inside warehouses and commercial buildings.
Just as important is knowing how much preparation the floor actually needs. You don’t want to grind away more concrete than necessary, but you also don’t want to leave behind a weak or contaminated surface because the job was rushed.
Structural Services Australia provides concrete grinding and surface preparation services throughout Melbourne, helping prepare floors for epoxy coatings and other finishes.
Get the preparation right and you’ll give epoxy a much better chance of doing its job for years to come. Get a free quote online now or call 0413 755 256.
