Category Archives: concrete mender

concrete mender

Use Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ to repair concrete statuary.

Can a large decorative concrete piece that has broken completely in two be structurally repaired? That question became very real at the Concrete Decor Show in Fort Worth when a leaf-shaped concrete chair cracked at a critical stress point during removal from its mold. Using Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™, we bonded the broken sections back together, creating a repair strong enough for the finished piece to remain intact through the show and move-out.

In October 2014, Roadware was exhibiting at the Concrete Decor Show in Fort Worth, Texas, when an unexpected concrete repair challenge came our way. After the first day of the show, I received a call from an exhibitor participating in the Decorative Concrete Competition. A large decorative concrete piece, designed as a giant leaf-shaped chair, had cracked completely in two while being removed from its mold. With the competition underway, the question was simple: Could the piece be saved, and could Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ make the repair?

I headed across the Fort Worth Convention Center to take a look. This is what I found.

The “Chair” was broken into two parts right at the critical stress point in the middle.

We carefully pushed the two pieces together, taking care to mate the surfaces as closely as possible, and supported the chair with 2x4s and some shims. I then placed duct tape on the bottom of the break to hold the Concrete Mender™ in place while it cured.

I used two 50 ml cartridges of Concrete Mender and 4030 silica sand for a full-depth repair.

This is how the repair looked when I finished.

The next morning, we returned and removed the wooden supports and duct tape. The repair held perfectly. The Concrete Mender structurally repaired the high-strength concrete back together.

William Reynolds, with element7concrete, continued the project by scoring veins into the leaf with a diamond blade.

A high-gloss glaze was applied to the surface.

You could barely see the break when the glaze cured.

The repair was strong enough to hold together while moving the chair into the exhibit.

The finished work held up throughout the show and the move-out process afterward. Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ with its Microdoweling™ structural bonding really saved the day.

Thank you to William Reynolds with element7concrete in Granite Shoals, Texas, for their masterful artistic skills and all their hard work.

Once word got out that I had repaired the chair, I was called on to fix other projects at the convention, like this longhorn steer.

I use 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ to repair the horn tip.

You’d never know it was broken.

concrete mender

When the busses have to keep rolling, Concrete Mender gets going.

When a city bus garage in the Pacific Northwest needed a fast concrete repair solution, crews turned to Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™.
Repairing concrete cracks with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™

Mission critical concrete repairs is what we do here at Roadware. Facilities like city bus garages have areas that are required to be open and operational 24/7 365 days per year. Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ is your best choice for fast repairs that have to last.

January 18, 2014
Dear Roadware,
“I am writing this letter in regards to Roadware Incorporated, in particular their 10 minute mender concrete repair product. I have been involved in the concrete industry for 28 years. I am a former Certified American Concrete Institute field testing technician and have been an ACI Concrete Flatwork Finisher and Technician for more than 10 years. For the past 15 years, I have been working to perfect the art of concrete rehabilitation on structural concrete and Architectural concrete. Other repair textures include masonry, slate. granite, clay artworks and architectural stone works.At the 2011 World of Concrete Convention, I met with The Roadware sales staff. I was quite intrigued and impressed with their 10 minute concrete mender product line. I was given some test samples which ultimately persuaded me into using Roadware product.
Our first project using Roadware products was a complicated repair contract with a bus transit authority and I had to include a two-year warranty. There would be limited time access during the repair and I needed a product that would withstand heavy bus traffic within hours of application. I submitted my bid using the specifications and MSDS for the 10 minute mender product line and believe this may have been the reason I was awarded the job. End result 10 minute mender works! Fractured concrete, spalled concrete, cracked concrete. Concrete deficiencies e.g. all surface and deep restoration repairs. Microdoweling works period! 

While I was confident in the product, it is always reassuring to experience it first hand. I am quite familiar with what it takes to provide world class service to demanding customers. Roadware Employees deliver excellent customer service and unmatched product support.”

Sincerely,

William F. Neal
Bothell, WA

Repairing concrete cracks with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™
The process starts with removing dirt and debris from the cracks and preparing them for repair.
Repairing concrete cracks with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™
Sometimes, remove and replace is not an option. Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ can have this back in service in minutes, not hours or days.
Repairing concrete cracks with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™
Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ mixed at a one to one ratio and blended with two parts sand. Each gallon of Concrete Mender makes about 2.2 gallons of repair material.

 

Repairing concrete cracks with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™
Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ can be mixed in bulk with simple tools and equipment.
Repairing concrete cracks with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™
Manufactured sand or quartz is added to the Concrete Mender to make a trowel-able mortar.
Repairing concrete cracks with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™
Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ is available in 10 gallon kits or convenient 2 gallon jug kits.
The Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ blended with silica sand is poured into the cracks and troweled flat.
Repairing concrete cracks with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™
Repairs can be made in all seasons with an ambient temperature range of -20F to 100F.
Repairing concrete cracks with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™
Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ repairs are ready for bus traffic in about 10 minutes at 70 degrees F.
Repairing concrete cracks with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™
Customer letter to Roadware

 

 

concrete mender, Concrete Repair

World of Concrete 2014 is next week.

The World of Concrete in Las Vegas is next week! Come see us in booth S11249.
I’m adding lots of new video to the booth this year.
Here is the Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ Top 5!

 

concrete mender, Concrete Repair

Mission Critical Concrete Repair

Mission Briefing: Cartridge Assembly and Use
Your mission briefing for Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ Cartridge Assembly and Crack Repair Application is below.
concrete mender, MatchCrete

Repair polished concrete with Concrete Mender™

1 Comment
Stop repairing polished concrete with polyurea joint fillers. They look like plastic, do not bond well, and do not hold-up over time. Concrete polishing lets the natural beauty of stones, sand, and rock shine through.  Your repair product should as well.

cbec1b48d1534cf9a2862736e4d80d23

We took the proven Microdoweling™ properties of Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ and combined it with natural sands, aggregates and pigments to make repairs that not only look great, but perform better than epoxies and polyureas.

polished-repair450

The repair pictured above shows  Roadware Concrete Mender™ Off-white blended with plain concrete sand and a small amount of portland cement. This water-thin polyurethane is almost translucent. When we add nearly any type of dry sand or aggregate, we get a fast-curing polishable repair that blends beautifully with the surrounding concrete. Since this material is almost translucent, it resists shadowing effects due to over-banding when applied.

concrete mender

Uncontrolled Epoxy Injection

Question: How do you epoxy inject cracks in floor slabs on grade when you do not have access to the bottom of the slab? What keeps the product from running out the bottom and all over the place?Answer: We make these type of repairs all the time. The first thing to do is dump the epoxy.  It is too thick, too brittle, and takes too long to set.  Fast setting materials like 10 Minute Concrete Mender allow you to control set points deep in the crack and prevent material seepage.Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ has an ultra low viscosity of 8cps and will gravity inject into the smallest of cracks. We make the repair in stages adding fine silica sand into the crack as necessary to prevent the material from running out the bottom. The product can be injected with needle tip mixers as small as 18 gauge. With careful technique and experience you can make structural repair that will restore aggregate interlock and restore the slab.

Start out by adding a small amount Concrete Mender to the prepared crack and noting where material in running beyond the slab.  Add a light dusting of silica sand or fine quartz to the crack and some more Concrete Mender. The Concrete Mender will combined with the particles of sand to form a quick setting, “mud” at the bottom of the crack. Repeat as necessary and repair the full depth of the slab.

This will be a structural repair with no ports, no pumps, and almost no down time.

Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ needle tip application.

 

concrete mender, Concrete Repair

Extreme Concrete Repair and Polish

Great polished concrete starts with great concrete repair. When an existing floor is damaged by deep cracks, spalling, and surface deterioration, simply grinding deeper isn’t always the best answer. Repairing those defects with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ before polishing allows contractors to address damaged areas first, then grind, refine, and polish the restored concrete into the finished floor.

How do polish a floor when your concrete is like this?

Deep cracks and surface spalling can make polishing jobs costly and difficult.  A lot of the top surface has to be removed to get to a smooth finish.

Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ is a great choice for filling out all the cracks, spalls and holes before polishing.

 
This floor was repaired by troweling down a thin layer of Concrete Mender and sand, then ground smooth. A liquid hardener completed the restoration and the floor was polished.

 

The floor shows zero failure shown here 3 years later in 2007.  The floor continues to perform today.

 

concrete mender, Concrete Repair

Vertical Wall Repair at Club Warehouse Store

Use Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ and sand to repair damaged concrete block walls in an hour or less. Sent in by Dave Wilson at Myspec Integrated Concrete Repair Group in Georgia.  770-335-9123 Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ is great for repairing cracks and spalls in floors. This ultra-low 8cps viscosity material gravity flows deep into concrete and makes repairs from the bottom up.  To repair a holes in a block wall, mix the Concrete Mender™ with fine silica sand to make a trowel-able mortar.

 
 Step 1: Prepare the area and remove any loose block, paint or dirt.

Step 2: Mask off the area like shown. In a clean bucket, mix one part AB blended Concrete Mender with 3 parts sand to make a stiff mortar and trowel into the repair area. You may want to tape a plastic sheet over the repair area to hold the Concrete Mender mixture in place while it cures for 10 minutes. See bulk mixing instructions here.

Step 3: After approximately 10 minutes depending on the ambient temperature, pull the masking and blend in the repair with a rubbing brick.

Step 4: Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ can be painted as soon as it cures.  Paint the repair area to match the surrounding wall.

With Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ you can do a job in less than an hour that used to take two days. No more waiting for hours or days while traditional cement based materials to set and cure.

concrete mender

Roadware Contraction Joint Repair

Why are my contraction joints spalling and what can I do to stop it?

Contraction joints (or control
joints) are joints cut into a slab shortly after pouring. The purpose of these joints is to control the cracking of the slab as it cures. Most concrete slabs shrink and sometimes curl for the first 12 months after pouring. Contraction joints allow the
slab to crack at pre-determined intervals instead of natural random cracking. Joint filler is used to protect the joints from spalling and chipping caused by traffic on the slab.
 control-joint-filler-original

As the slab cures for the first
12 months, it shrinks in size and may even curl up at the joints. The contraction joints will expand as the slab shrinks. This causes the joint filler to split apart or dis-bond from the sides of the joint leaving them exposed to traffic.

control-joint-filler-curled
When loads are rolled over the
joint. The force of the load has to transfer from the wheel, to the concrete, and to the base. If the slab is even slightly curled and the joint is expanded, the force of the load will impact on the joint causing cracking and spalling. You may even get stress cracking parallel to the joint. You can sometimes feel the uneven load transfer across the joint if you stand with one foot on either side of the joint and have someone else roll a heavy load across the joint.
control-joint-filler-curled-dynamic-load
Eventually, you get a spalled contraction joint. The joint filler has completely failed or is missing. Wheels go “thunk, thunk” every time they go over the joint. Productivity suffers, and the joint fills with dust and debris.
 control-joint-filler-curled-spalled
A popular and effective way to repair spalled contraction joints is to lock them back up with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™. Once the slab is 12 months old, the shrinkage and curling has finished. There is no longer a need for contraction joints. Now you can use Concrete Mender™ and silica sand to bond the slab back together from the base all the way up to
the top. This will stabilize the slab, restore aggregate interlock,
and allow for complete and even load transfer from the wheels all the way down to the base. Your contraction joint problems are solved.
control-joint-filler-curled-spalled-repaired
NOTES: Locking up contraction joints
is recommended for interior controlled environment applications with sound concrete and base. Exterior applications may have different results. Always test a small section
of large repair for compatibility.
 See how this repair was made by clicking here.
Diagram of a spalled contraction joint repair using 10 Minute Concrete Mender headers.