If you also have old concrete surfaces at home or want to create new ones, we’ll give you some tips to make home concrete repair easier and more durable.
Concrete work is typically a task that we may legitimately consider whether we could do it ourselves at home from time to time.
The answer: Yes!
In most cases, we can undertake home concrete repair ourselves, but before doing so, it’s advisable to be prepared so that we don’t realize in the process that we weren’t ready for it after all.
Home-repaired concrete
A typical issue is that we create concrete structures with the intention of not leaving them exposed, yet in the end, they remain uncovered.
Concrete surfaces need to be specifically designed to remain uncovered, especially outdoors.
Even concrete surfaces cannot withstand long-term exposure to outdoor conditions. Rain, snow, freeze-thaw cycles, salt from melted snow, and many other factors can damage their surfaces.
Home Concrete Repair:
To ensure that the end result of home concrete work is both aesthetically pleasing and durable, the following process should be followed:
- Do not concrete in temperatures below 5°C, above 30°C, in direct sunlight, or before rain!
- Read the usage instructions of the materials being used!
- Thoroughly clean and remove all movable parts!
- Clean rusty concrete steel surfaces thoroughly with a wire brush!
- Apply primer or bonding bridge. For example, for smaller surfaces: LB-Knauf Kontakt CT 5 kg, or if you’re working on a larger area: LB-Knauf Kontakt CT 20 kg.
- After one day, use this for larger indentations or thicker repairs: LB-Knauf CT-MAX up to 1-3 cm thickness or LB-Knauf CT-MAX T up to 1-6 cm thickness. Drying time is 7-10 days per centimeter. This material can be beautifully smoothed with a trowel.
- Correct minor irregularities with LB-Knauf CT-MIX concrete filler at a thickness of 1-5 mm.
- After 7 days, the surface can bear weight, so you can even drive a car on it.
- You can cover, paint, or leave the surface exposed as desired.
If you decide to paint, you can find suitable materials here: Outdoor Floor Painting
Additional tips for home concrete work:
For larger concrete projects, it’s advisable to order ready-mix concrete from a concrete plant, or you can use dry concrete mix if you don’t want to deal with cement and aggregate.
Simply add the dry concrete to the concrete mixer, then add the required amount of water, and your concrete is ready.
LB-Knauf Mischnix is excellent for setting columns, and it doesn’t require mixing. Layer the material in the column hole, pour water, add Mischnix again, and pour water. Your solid concrete is ready in just a few minutes.
For many concrete jobs that would typically require concrete steel mesh, there is a lesser-known but much simpler and cheaper solution to create incredibly strong concrete. This is ArmoTec concrete macrofiber. Check it out here: ArmoTec
For concrete work and concrete repair, you can find numerous products here: Concrete Repair
I hope that with this article, I have helped you to concrete or repair your concrete surfaces at home more easily and efficiently, right from the first time.
Levente Siposs
Renovation Expert
Dedicated Advocate of Long-lasting Solutions
