Maintaining your garage floor is a crucial part of homeownership. However, grinding and repairing a garage floor isn’t always easy. That’s why the flooring experts at SLG Concrete Coatings developed a brief guide to teach homeowners how to grind and repair garage floors safely and efficiently.
SLG Concrete Coatings is one of California’s leading floor coating companies. Our team specializes in installing, maintaining, and repairing concrete floor coatings that enhance your floor’s durability, lifespan, and more. We’ve helped countless California residents improve their garage floors, and we can do the same for you at a rate that fits your budget.
How To Grind and Repair a Garage Floor
Grinding and repairing garage floors is often taxing and requires immense time and dedication to complete correctly. Although most homeowners find it difficult at first, it becomes easier and less stressful once they understand the process.
Before you learn how to grind and repair concrete garage floors, you must purchase the correct equipment. Although professional flooring companies use numerous tools during the process, the most important are:
- A 4 ½-inch grinder
- 4-inch diamond cup wheel
- An angle grinder dust shroud (optional but exceedingly helpful)
- Floor maintainer
- A concrete prep tool
- An N95 mask
- Concrete repair product
- Hammer
- Cold chisel
Some home improvement stores rent these tools to homeowners for a modest fee. However, if you plan on using them regularly, it’s best to purchase them if possible.
Repairing a Garage Floor
The first step in the grinding and repairing process is to remove sharp or loose concrete within cracks. This step is often called crack chasing.
Use a cold chisel and hammer to remove the damaged material along the crack. Once everything becomes even, use a shop vac to remove concrete dust and thoroughly scrub the fissure with a robust wire brush. After that, vacuum the remnants and fill the crack with a floor repair product.
You must follow the floor repair product’s directions precisely to ensure optimal results. Once the substance dries, you can start grinding the floor.
Grinding a Garage Floor
Once you fix all the floor cracks, sweep your garage and remove any grease or oil tainting the surface. Next, wet the floor and put on a mask to prevent dust from entering your lungs. Use the floor maintainer and gently glide the machine over the floor.
It’s best to push the floor maintainer side to side to lightly grind the concrete before guiding it in a circular motion. You also must continually remove wet slurry from the area during the grinding process. Failing to remove the slurry often leads to coating failures and other adverse circumstances.
Work in sections and use a shop vac to remove the slurry while the region is still wet before moving on to another area.
Grinding a Garage Floor’s Perimeter
Sometimes floor maintainers have trouble grinding around a garage’s perimeter. When using the floor maintainer, leave a two to three-inch strip around the floor’s perimeter and use the 4 1/2 -inch grinder featuring a diamond cup wheel to grind the corners and leftover concrete. Keep the cup wheel parallel to the floor to prevent divots that will hinder the garage’s appearance.
It’s important to note that the concrete floor needs to dry out before using the grinder. Wet surfaces increase the chances of electrocution, so you must give the floor some time to dry before moving to this step.
Once you finish grinding the garage floor, clean the area with a broom and shop vac the remaining debris. Test the floor’s cleanliness by running your fingers over the surface to check for leftover residue.
If your fingers remain untainted, you can move on to the floor coating process. However, if you notice a powdery substance on your fingers, continue cleaning the floor until it’s in pristine condition.
Contact SLG Concrete Coatings for Professional Floor Grinding and Coating Services in California
SLG Concrete Coatings is California’s number one choice for professional floor coatings and repair services. Our team will teach you how to grind and repair a garage floor and provide efficient maintenance tips to ensure it looks its best year-round. Whether you need help repairing cracks in your garage floor or want professional grinding services, SLG Concrete Coatings is always here for you.
Don’t trust an inexperienced floor coating company with your garage floor. Give us a call at (805) 934-3881 or (559) 724-3884 and see what the SLG Concrete Coatings team can do for you today!
