One thing that the experts agree on when it comes to concrete surface preparation is that everybody has his own approach.
"It's very subjective," says Dennis Von Ruden, president of General Equipment Co. "There are no hard-core rules on how to approach surface prep."
Surface prep, in its simplest form, is preparing the floor for decorative concrete, and how that is approached is dependent on the type of installation planned.
Polishing and stain projects will get the least aggressive preparation or profile. Floors intended for epoxies, polyurethanes and overlays will be given a heavier profile. The thicker the material you are putting down, the heavier the profile of the surface prep must be, says Brad Padgett, CEO of Concrete Polishing Solutions. "Epoxies go down heavier than the urethanes, and overlays are typically thicker than the epoxies."
