Regardless of their size, concrete cracks must be repaired as soon as you notice them. LAX concrete contractors often tell this to their customers – concrete cracks don’t repair themselves but they can shorten the lifespan of your concrete floors and walls.
Small cracks can be treated without hiring concrete services Los Angeles. It can be a simple DIY project for you. You only need a liquid filler or caulk. This remedy is for cracks that are less than ¼-inch wide.
For wider cracks or bigger holes, a concrete patch compound is needed. You might also ask a professional concrete contractor to do it, especially if you have stamped concrete.
A building’s structural integrity rests on its foundation. If you ignore the repairs thinking it can wait, in the long run – a minor issue can turn into a big problem that can end up costing more money to fix it. Foundation repair costs depend on a variety of variables, including the types of damage.
This is to ensure that the design is not compromised during the treatment. But what if your concrete contractor is a bit busy and you have to do the treatment yourself? Here are four easy steps that you can take to treat cracked concrete floors or walls.
Clean the Cracked Area
Prepare your liquid filler or caulk then prepare the area that needs treatment. Clean it and remove any oil or dirt around it. Clean the crack with a chisel. This will remove any loose concrete around the cracked area. Remove the uneven parts of the cracked surface. You have to make a bigger hole inside the crack as well. This will allow the patch to be durable once you put it in.
Some concrete contractors clean the cracked area with a spray hose. This will remove debris surrounding the crack. Leave it to dry then use a vacuum to thoroughly whisk the dust.
Prepare the Patching Compound
If you are using a liquid filler or caulk, you just have to open it and pour it where it is needed. If you are repairing a bigger crack, you can now start mixing your patching compound.
Follow the manufacturer’s instructions on how to prepare it. Don’t add unnecessary steps or compounds, believing that it will make it stronger.
Treating the Crack with a Patching Compound
Treating a crack is not as easy as just pouring the patching compound and waiting for it to dry. Use a trowel and slowly put a small amount of patching compound into the crack. Make sure there are no air pockets by stabbing the patch compound with a trowel from time to time. Slowly fill the crack until it reaches the surface, in line with the existing concrete floor or wall.
Use the trowel to smoothen the patched concrete floor.
Smoothening and Drying the Treated Area
Once air pockets are removed, you can use your trowel to smoothen the area and remove rough edges around the patched surface. You can also use a brush to do this. Just lightly brush the surface and leave it to dry. This will also give your treatment enough time to cure. If you are patching a stamped concrete, you have to apply the stamp before the drying and curing process. You can ask your trusted LAX concrete contractors for help to do it.
Once done with curing, you can proceed with sealing. Seal your new patched concrete floor or wall to prevent stains from seeping into your concrete floors and walls. Your previous concrete contractor had probably sealed your existing concrete floor before so don’t forget to do it on the new one as well.
Should You Seal Every Crack?
Your concrete floors and walls need to be monitored from time to time. Improper concrete treatment might make it difficult for your concrete contractor to make monitoring when needed. Improper sealing can also make diagnosis more difficult. Hence, even if it is easy to fill or treat concrete cracks as mentioned above, it is still best to contact LAX concrete contractors before doing so.
Among the things that need to be considered when sealing a concrete crack are its size, location, shape, and pattern. These things can indicate if something more serious is happening to your concrete slabs like a possible weakening foundation or soil movement under the concrete slabs.
Things to Remember
Treating a crack without a proper diagnosis of its cause will keep you from seeing serious underlying problems that your concrete floor or wall might have. What if structural movement caused the crack?
Sealing it won’t fix such a problem and might cause a bigger problem in the future. Leaking water pipes can also weaken your concrete’s foundation but if you will seal those little cracks without knowing it, it can just damage your concrete floors again.
Final Thoughts
Repairing concrete cracks is easy and can be a DIY project. However, doing it without a proper diagnosis of the cause might lead to bigger problems.
This is what your LAX concrete contractors want to avoid hence they would suggest contacting them in case you need one. A professional contractor can help you with the diagnosis and can even provide you with the best sealing method to use.
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