If you want to improve the durability and strength of damaged concrete, you’ll have to repair any small, medium, and large cracks within it.
Here are some tips to help you repair concrete like a pro!
Repairing narrow concrete cracks
Use a caulking gun to apply the masonry crack elastomeric filter to fill these cracks. Just to let you know, a lot of products are packaged in bottles. Use vinyl concrete patching compound to repair the minutest of cracks, for example, hairline cracks.
How? By applying this compound on the crack and subsequently smoothing it with a trowel or a knife. If you’re dealing with a hairline crack, don’t apply the crack filter or repair caulk on the cracks because it’s not going to be effective. Why? Because, with time, the caulk peels off.
Note that narrow cracks can be far in—they often extend through the concrete slab’s whole thickness. Therefore, creating a base for holding the repair material is always a decent idea. Do this by filling the crack with foam backer rod. The backer rod comes in many sizes; measure the crack’s width and consider a rod diameter that’s a little larger. Use a screwdriver to fill the backer rod within the crack to a 0.25-inch depth. Follow the directions of the manufacturer to load up the crack using repair material.
Repairing wider concrete cracks
There’s a small trick to fix wide concrete tracks: undercut the cracks’ sides in a way that you give it looks like an inverted ‘V’. This doesn’t just create a mechanical bond between the concrete and the patch material but also allows the repair material to slide comfortably within the crack. Here’s how to do it:
1. Use a masonry chisel and a hammer to chisel the crack. This wouldn’t just remove all the loose materials from the concrete but will also widen the crack’s base.
2. Use a brush or dry/wet shop vacuum to remove all debris and water from within the crack. Ensure that no grit and dust remain in the crack. While it’s alright for the surfaces to be wet, make sure no puddles of water exist.
3. Follow the directions of the manufacturer to blend the concrete patching compound.
4. Now, remove air pockets by stabbing the trowel in the compound and place the patching material as far down the crack as you can. Use the surrounding surface of the concrete to fill up the crack.
5. Use the trowel to smooth the patch’s surface and feather the compound in the nearby concrete.
6. If you want to texture the surface, use a waterless paintbrush to brush the patch compound’s surface.
7. Allow the compound to cure.
8. If you want, you can also seal/paint the patch’s surface and the surrounding area.
AMN Masonry’s concrete repair service in Greater Boston helps you boost the longevity of your concrete
With time, concrete moves and becomes pitted, worn, and susceptible to deterioration. At AMN Masonry, our concrete repair and restore service in Boston helps reverse or slow this down.