There’s nothing worse than the crack in a shiny concrete floor, imagine you’re walking into a room with a clean polished floor and then suddenly your eyes drop on a crack, which catches all your attention and makes the floor flawed.
But it’s not mean that your floor is now imperfect, you can easily fix the crack on your own.
You can fix your cracks with the right techniques, materials and attention to detail so repair blends seamlessly with the polished surface. But if you find any larger crack which reflects a deeper issue, you should call a professional to analyze the cause of the larger crack and fix it. If you do not repair them they might be expanded over the years and make cleaning difficult or cause further damage.
In this guide we’ll go through the step-by-step guide for how to repair cracks in polished concrete floors, causes of cracks in concrete and useful tips for a successful DIY project.
Common Causes of Cracks on Concrete Floors:
Cracks in concrete floors is a widespread issue, which affects both homes and commercial spaces. Yeah concrete is great under pressure but not as much, it means your concrete floor can be cracked over time, here’s why:
Temperature Fluctuations:
Concrete has the ability to expand on heat and contract on cool, so this cycle is indirectly the cause of cracks in concrete floors. Even in indoor spaces your water and gas pipelines, sunlight make internal temperature and pressure fluctuate, due to which cracks appear on your concrete floor.
Soil Movement And Settlement:
Sometimes when you shift in a new house and your foundation soil takes time to settle by movement which leads to cracks as the concrete tries to adjust with these settings. This happens especially when the soil is not properly compacted before pouring.
Water And Moisture Changes:
As a result of excessive rainfall and poor drainage system beneath the ground erode the soil, undermining the slab and causing a crack into your concrete. Moisture creation in concrete is also the main reason for cracking due to expansion and contraction cycle.
Shrinking During Curing:
As concrete dries and cures, it naturally shrinks up to 3% or more. If this shrinkage is too rapid or uneven, it results in a fine hairline which is pretty noticeable. This occurs as there’s water mixing during concrete production that eventually evaporates.
Step-By-Step Guide To Repair Cracks In Polished Concrete Floor
Assess The Damage:
- First examine your crack and determine which type of crack is this like a fine hairline, wide crack or more larger crack.
- Then inspect if it is still moving (expanding,contracting).
- If you notice any structural damage, reinforcing steel corrosion or your crack is larger, then consult a professional.
Prepare The Area:
- Widen your crack slightly for the convenience in repairance by an angle grinder fitted with a crack chaser blade to make a backward-angle cut.
- Clean any loose debris, dust from the cracked area by vacuum, wire brush, or pressure washer.
Fill The Crack:
Apply the first layer of epoxy adhesive or any other suitable adhesive material on the sides and bottom of your crack. This helps to prevent your crack from further deterioration.
Make sure that your cracks filler must match with the existing color of your concrete floor for the prominent results.
For narrow cracks (1/8 inch): Use epoxy sealant or gravity-fed crack filler. Epoxy gel helps to seep into the crack and become hardened which creates a strong bond within concrete.
For wider cracks (1/2 inch): Apply concrete
patching compound, or polyurea/polyurethane filler. Fill the compound into the crack and pack with a putty knife or old towel, and slowly overfilling the crack.
For very fine cracks: Liquified filler is poured into very fine cracks in concrete and allowed the filler to settle by gravity.
Level And Cure The Crack:
- Now level your crack with a putty knife so it is flush with the floor level.
- Let the adhesive cure according to the manufacturer’s instructions, typically for at least a few hours to overnight.
Grind And Seal:
- Once your crack is cured fully, now use a concrete grinder with finer diamond pads (start with 32-grit, then 60-grit, then 120-grit) to smooth and blend the upper surface of your crack with the surroundings.
- To restore the original shining surface of your concrete repaired area, buff the surface with a diamond polishing pad.
- After all this has to be done, then apply two to three layers of a concrete sealer or epoxy on the repaired area which helps to restore its glossy and shiny surface as once before.
Tips to Overcome Any Trouble:
- Always wear safety gloves, goggles and mask to protect yourself from any injury when grinding or handling chemicals.
- Frequent repairing of crack after knowing that crack is appear, prevent your floor, driveways and stairs from further damage or increase the size of crack.
- For wider cracks like ½ inch or more, any structural problem reveals, we’ll recommend you to consult professionals as they know how to inspect and repair any big problem.
Hope this guide will help you to understand each and every step regarding how to repair cracks in polished concrete floors? By ensuring all steps are done rightly and attentively you will achieve a shiny, premium and smooth surface of your concrete floor as it was once before. If your cracks are larger and you want to call a professional, then our team is always ready to help and restore your concrete floor as a new one. Just contact us and get a free quote, we’ll serve you with our best expertise in home renovation processes.