![]() ![]() This is called “puddle chasing” and a lot of time and expense can be expended without achieving a properly drained deck. What may occur is that the water finds another low spot and goes there instead. However, filling a low spot is not guaranteed to achieve the goal of draining the water off the deck because of the lack of slope. Resurfacing contractors can fill the low spots prior to the decorative topping if they are identified by the customer beforehand and incorporated into the contract. Since the deck was likely constructed without the proper slope, some ponding can be expected in the low spots. It is unlikely that there is 5” of vertical space below the door thresholds, and even if there was, it would be cost-prohibitive to re-slope the entire deck. For example, a deck that extends 20’ away from a house would require 5” of sloping material be placed at the house. It is generally impossible or uneconomical to try and obtain the proper slope on an existing deck. As long as the standing water evaporates in a relatively short time this is usually not a problem. As a result, almost all of them have standing water. Most lanais, driveways and pool decks in Florida do not have anywhere near that amount of slope. The Tile Council of North America recommends ¼” per foot of slope to achieve proper drainage. Even if such a material existed, the concrete has demonstrated that it needs to move and it would then crack in a different, but nearby location. Concrete slabs which want to move apart exert tons of force and will break any bond. Unfortunately, that material does not exist. Ideally, our industry would have a glue that would permanently adhere moving concrete slabs back together. A common joke in the industry is that there are two types of concrete – concrete that has cracked and concrete that will crack.Ĭoncrete cracks for a number of reasons including improper compaction of the base, a lack of saw cuts, erosion under the slab, a lack of reinforcing, thermal expansion and contraction, and heavy loads. Since concrete is weak at resisting being pulled apart, it is prone to cracking. In an attempt to minimize its weakness in tension, engineers add steel, fiber mesh or other type of reinforcing which is good at resisting being pulled apart. In engineering terms, concrete is very strong in compression (forces that push material together) but relatively weak in tension (forces that pull material apart). The bond is oftentimes stronger than the original concrete and you will receive many, many years of service. When done properly, the material bonds strongly to the concrete. Either way, it is likely that the surface will fail sometime in the future. Some will claim that they can install a new surface over the top of the existing surface without any grinding, or they will fail to remove parts of the existing surface during the install. ![]() For these reasons, smaller installers like to skip or short-cut the surface preparation process. Surface preparation is also the most labor-intensive part of the installation. Large floor grinders, diamond tooling, vacuums, and the truck or trailer to transport them are expensive pieces of equipment, which many smaller installers can’t afford. Best practice is to attach the grinders to industrial-sized HEPA vacuums to capture as much dust as possible however, the process cannot be made completely dust-free. A CSP-2 is commonly achieved by diamond grinding the surface. The scale ranges from the lowest profile of CSP-1 (acid etched) to CSP-9 (extreme shotblast). The industry has created the Concrete Surface Profile (CSP) scale to standardize the amount of profile required. The specifications for every overlay manufacturer state that the material must be applied to bare concrete that has a surface profile similar to that of 100 grit sandpaper. When applied on properly prepared concrete, the material has amazing bonding capability and will provide years of service.Ĭoncrete overlay gives the surface its texture. The material forms a nearly inseparable bond with the concrete and can be textured, patterned, stained or painted in many attractive ways. It is designed to be applied at the thickness of a credit card. While hugely beneficial, concrete is not perfect and achieving success requires an understanding the material, its limitations, and thought into its design.ĭecorative concrete overlay is a thin material the consistency of a milkshake. Millions of cubic yards have been poured and our lives would be quite different without it. Invented by the Greeks and perfected by the Romans thousands of years ago, concrete is the most popular and useful building material on the planet. ![]()
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