Maintenance
Alatini Saulala will teach you the basics of Concrete maintenance.
Why Maintain?
In most cases concrete is a durable, long lasting product without maintenance. So it often raises eyebrows when the subject of maintaining concrete is brought up.
Properly maintaining concrete, however, can greatly extend the life of the concrete and the beauty of the concrete: plain concrete can look clean and bright-instead of oil stained and grimy. Decorative Concrete can look the same after years of enjoyment as it did when it was brand new-instead of faded, oil stained, and dirty.
Properly maintaining the concrete protects your investment in concrete, particularly if you've taken the initiative and incurred the expense of pouring decorative concrete.
Cleaning
To remove normal dirt and grime build up
To remove rust or other stains
Repairing Cracks
Chisel out the crack to create a backward-angled cut, using a cold chisel and a hammer.
Clean loose material from the crack using a wire brush, or a portable drill with a wire wheel attachment.
Apply at thin layer of bonding adhesive to the entire repair area using a paint brush. The bonding adhesive helps keep the repair material from loosening or popping out of the crack.
Mix vinyl reinforced patching compound, and trowel it into the crack. "Feather" the repair with a trowel, so it is even with the surrounding surface.
Large Crack: Chisel out the crack and clean loose material from the crack as listed above. Then pour sand into the crack to within " of the surface. Prepare sand- mix concrete, adding a concrete fortifier, then trowel the mixture into the crack. Feather until even with the surrounding surface using a trowel.
Sealing Joints
To minimize water intrusion through the joints
To eliminate dirt collecting in the joints (weeds)
Sealing Surface
Repels water.
Dust proofs the surface
high resistance to abrasion
resistance to UV sunlight
resistance to dirt and grime, oil, grease, rust, acid, chlorine, fertilizer stains, sprinkler water residue and mildew, as well as stains from most other organic matter
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