Repairing Cracks in Polished ConcreteUse Roadware MatchCrete™ Clear to repair and match polished concrete floors.
Category Archives: Concrete Repair
Safety Yellow Line Marking with Concrete Mender™ Yellow
Roadware Concrete Mender™ is available in safety yellow.
Use for creating permanent yellow safety lines in concrete floors.
• Integral color will not peel or chip-off.
• Apply in temperatures as low as -20°F.
• Cures forklift traffic ready in 15 minutes at 70°F.
• Easy to clean and maintain.
• High chemical resistance.
• Based on Roadware’s proven Microdoweling™ technology.
Yellow safety marking can be permanently installed in concrete floors with this material. The photo above shows Concrete Mender™ Safety Marking after a year of commercial service.
Bill Smith, US Food Service, Wixom, Michigan.
After years of frustration trying to keep safety line marking in place in a cold storage warehouse, Bill Smith of US Food Service in Michigan started looking for a better way. Installing safety line marking in a 38°F cold storage warehouse is especially challenging. With the 24/7 operations and the heavy fork lift traffic, there was never enough time to let traditional marking paint to cure without the forklift tires marking up the paint. At cool temperatures, the cure times were even slower. Marking tape fared no better. The cold concrete was hard to adhere to and the heavy traffic would quickly damage the marking tapes.
Bill was using Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ to repair cracks, joints, and spalls in the warehouse floor. He liked the fast cure times at low temperatures and he noted the repairs hold up very well to forklift traffic. Bill thought, “What if we could fix our safety line issue with Concrete Mender?” After experimenting with different types of Yellow sand and a request into Roadware for MatchCrete™ Concrete Mender factory colored in Safety Yellow, the line marking MatchCrete™ system was born.
After much experimentation, here is the system that works the best.
1. Scarify a shallow recess in to the concrete the length of the line marking. This can be done any number of ways. Stacking several diamond blades together and placing a temporary saw guide works best. Cut the recess about 1/4 inch deep and 1 inch wide.
2. Vacuum all dust and debris from the saw cut area. Mask off the recess with duct tape.
3. Carefully flood the recess area with Safety Yellow MatchCrete™ Concrete Mender. A small amount of safety yellow quartz sand may be used to choke-off any material that flows too far into any cracks or joints. The top of the material should be slightly recessed and smooth.
The lines will be ready for full traffic in about 15 minutes at room temperature. Give them a few hours to cure if working in a cold room or freezer. No special maintenance is required.
Ordering:
Call Roadware at 800-522-7623
Item 70020-y (2 gallon kit) Concrete Mender™ in Safety Yellow
New Concrete Mender™ Mini Cartridge for precise application.
For the first time, Roadware 10 Minute C
oncrete Mender™, the industry’s only Microdoweling™ concrete repair polyurethane, is available in 50ml mini cartridges. The mini cartridge offers precise application control that is perfect for repairing hairline cracks. Each mini cartridge comes with a needle tip mixer and is simple to use. Use the 50 ml cartridge with the Roadware 5150 application tool. Each cartridge will repair about 10 feet of hairline cracks or 3 feet of 1/4 x 1/4 inch cracks.
| Roadware 80105 50ml 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ mini cartridge with mixer and needle tip. |
Use Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender to repair and re-bond delaminated concrete slabs.
Use Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender to repair and re-bond delaminated concrete slabs.
Roadware delimanition repairs are featured in the July 2008 issue of Concrete International. This is the official publication of the American Concrete Institute. The article was written by Nelson Tonet, President of Express Polymers and a Roadware distributor.
ABSTRACT
“Delaminations in concrete floor slabs can be difficult to repair in a cost-effective and timely manner. A newly developed product (Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™) that uses a two-part hybrid polyurethane with a viscosity similar to water can significantly reduce the difficulty of performing delamination repairs by easily flowing up to 10 ft (3 m) from an injection point and penetrating deep into concrete surfaces. The product also speeds up repair by setting in only 10 minutes, allowing the repair to be checked by sounding only 30 minutes after product placement.”
View full article in PDF format Delamination Repairs PDF
Here is a Roadware synopsis.
Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ is an excellent choice for repairing concrete slab delaminations. The very low viscosity of less then 8 cps and the exclusive Microdoweling™ penetration properties of the material allow it to flow deep into delaminated concrete voids. The Concrete Mender will restore aggregate interlock and will allow dynamic load transfer under heavy traffic. The expense and mess of pressure injection with epoxy can be avoided.
Two methods of repair have been successful. The first involved dry diamond drilling a 2 or 3 inch (5-8 cm) diameter hole into the concrete slab down to the delamination. Dust is removed with a shop vacuum. Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender is poured or pumped into the void. Only one or two inches (3-5 cm) of head pressure is required to push the material as far as 10 ft (3 m) into the delamination. When the material backs up to the top of the hole and the void is filled, silica sand is added and the hole is filled flush with the surface. Soundings are made with a hammer to verify the delamination is repaired in about 30 minutes after application.
Click here to see how Nelson Tonet repairs delaminated concrete slabs.
Another method is to drill multiple 3/8 inch (1 cm) holes into the concrete down to the delamination. Remove dust with a shop vacuum and inject pre-mixed Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ with a syringe tipped with a rubber gasket. With this method, you can actually see the material exit the adjacent hole and verify the material is filling the delaminated area. After filling, the holes are blended into the surrounding concrete with silica sand and Concrete Mender or re-drill 1/4″ (5 mm) deep and fill with a color matching concrete mortar.
See the movie:
Both methods will yield good results and are more cost effective than epoxy injection.
Repairing vertical cracks in concrete structures with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™.
The same Microdoweling™ properties of Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ that make the material excellent for repairing horizontal surfaces also make a good choice for vertical repairs.
UPDATE: New method recommended for vertical crack repair. See the Gebbie System.
Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ is a very low viscosity polyurethane that uses a surface tension one-third of water to penetrate quickly and deeply into concrete cracks. The typical process relies on self-gravity injection to fill cracks completely. What is not seen by the naked eye is the capillary action of the Concrete Mender polymer chains flowing horizontally into the sidewalls of the crack. We call this chaining of polymers into the concrete Microdoweling™. This chaining of the concrete together works on vertical surfaces too.
So, your saying, “How do we get this super thin material to stay in place long enough for the Microdoweling™ to take place and the repair to cure?” Over the years, Roadware contractors have come up with creative and ingenious ways to use Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ on vertical surfaces. Here are some techniques that have evolved.
UPDATE: New method recommended for vertical crack repair. See the Gebbie System.
1. Vertical Crack Injection
This technique involves covering the vertical crack with transparent duct tape and injecting Concrete Mender through the tape with a needle tip meter/mix cartridge. This method will work well if the concrete surface is smooth and the tape can make a good bond with the surface. The crack should be 1/4 inch (5mm) or less in width. The tape will make the, “form” while the Concrete Mender sets. Concrete Mender will not stick to duct tape, so once the material cures, you can cleanly pull off the tape. It is best to warm the cartridges up to 80° F (26°C) before use for a faster gel time. Start filling the crack at the lowest point and work you way up.
See the video here.
2. Bulk Mix and Trowel Applied Repair
Mix bulk Concrete Mender and 60-80 grit manufactured sand into a thick mortar. Working in small batches, use a margin trowel to make the repair. The fine sand will hold the Concrete Mender in place long enough for the Microdoweling™ effect to take place and for the material to set.
3. Bag Mix and Apply
This method uses a heavy duty, clear plastic bag to quickly mix one part of blended Concrete Mender to two parts of 60-80 grit manufactured sand. Once mixed by kneading the bag for several seconds, the bag is opened and the whole batch is applied and held in place with the bag. This technique is used around building mechanical entry points such as refrigeration and HVAC units.
Whatever method you choose, Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ stands at the ready to perform. Finished repairs can be ground smooth and painted to match the wall if necessary.
Kelton Glewwe
VP Operations
See actual bridge deck repairs in PA on Google Maps.
See actual bridge deck repairs on Google Maps.
Google has spent the last few years mapping and photographing roads all over the world. If you know where to look, you can see actual concrete repairs with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™
The Google Map photo below shows actual bridge deck repairs with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ on Interstate 279 in Pittsburgh, PA. See all the lighter colored spots? Each one is a hole or spall filled with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™. The repairs here are over three years old. Thank you Roadware distributor, Express Polymers, Inc., in the Pittsburgh area for sending this project in.
Roadware Commercial for World of Concrete 2011
The World of Concrete 2011 in Las Vegas is next month, January 17-21. Roadware will be in Booth S11847. If your coming to the show, I hope to see you there. You can register for the World of Concrete 2011 here. Use source code A20 for free registration courtesy of the American Society of Concrete Contractors.
Here is a 15 second commercial we will be running at the WOC on the shuttle busses and on screens at the show.
Polishing un-polishable Concrete
Polishing and honing concrete to smooth shiny surface is a great way to give an old warehouse floor new life. Sometimes, warehouse floors are too damaged and worn to make polishing practical. Floors that are full of cracks and spalls will require a large amount of grinding and polishing to achieve an acceptable surface. Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ may be used to restore the concrete surface and reduce the time and expense of heavy grinding. The Microdweling™ action of Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ can penetrate the surface of the cracks and spalls, fill in all the low spots, and make the floor ready for polishing.
Click on photos for a larger image.
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| Pitted, spalled and cracked surfaces may be unpractical to polish. |
The first step is a light surface grinding to open up the cracks and remove any loose materials.
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| An initial grinding with metal resin pads reveals cracks and spalls. |
Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ and fine silica sand mixed in bulk is troweled into the surface over the entire area and allowed to set.
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| Workers trowel Concrete Mender into place. |
In about 10 – 30 minutes, the surface is polished using standard techniques. Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ will not gum-up polishing pads or smear into the surrounding concrete.
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| Surface polish using standard techniques. |
After grinding, all pitting, cracks and spalls are filled and a smooth surface is quickly restored.
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| Concrete Mender repairs hold up perfectly during the polishing process. |
After polishing, hardening and sealing, a beautiful polished floor is revealed.
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| Concrete Mender restored floor after polishing, hardening, and sealing. |
Click here to learn more about polishing with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™
Special thank you to International Roadware Distributor Join K&C in Seoul, Korea for submitting this project.
Repairing Railings and Posts with 10 Minute Concrete Mender™.
How often have you run into this problem? Industrial railings that have been split apart due to age, abuse, or weather damage. With a few special techniques, you can repair these problems with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™.
Clean the repair area with a wire brush or by sandblasting. Remove as much of the rust as possible. It is also a good idea to spray the the steel railing with a rust neutralizer.
Make a simple form out of blue foam board, and duct tape or most anything plastic. Do not use wood, Concrete Mender will permanently bond the wood to your railing base.I made that mistake years ago and had to chip, grind and sand the wood off the face of the concrete.
Make your repair by pouring 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ bulk mixed with sand in from the top. Allow to cure and finish the surface with a stone or grinder.
Add a quick coating of a latex cement coating and your finished. You may also make repairs around railings with Roadware Flexible Cement II™ if the railing is made aluminum and requires more thermal contraction and expansion properties.
Airport terminal deck repair after 5 years.
Here is a crack repair project at the CVG Airport in Cincinnati, Ohio. The upper terminal deck developed cracks parallel to the construction joints. Roadware Flexible Cement II™ was used to repair the cracks in 2005. Here are some pictures of the project over the years.
Here is a photo of the CVG terminal deck as of June 2010.
Roadware Flexible Cement II™ was used the repair the crack on the right in 2005. The crack on the left was repaired with Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ for comparison.
Finished repairs in 2005. Roadware Flexible Cement II™ on the left. Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ on the right.
Repairs as they appeared in 2006 after one year on service. Both are holding well. The Roadware 10 Minute Concrete Mender™ on the right shows yellowing, but is still performing well. The Flexible Cement II™ is slightly lighter on color, but looks perfect.
Here is the same repair in June 2010. After 5 years on service, everything looks good.
This is a close-up shot of the Flexible Cement II™ after 5 years of service. The repair is still holding like the day it was installed. Roadware Flexible Cement II™ is a good choice for outdoor repairs in structural concrete. The semi-flexible properties strike a good balance between road toughness and just the right amount movement absorption.