The world's foremost magazine on decorative concrete
Understanding how moisture moves through concrete is critical to successful flooring. It helps you reduce the risk for future moisture-related flooring failure during installation. It also helps you identify and assess the cause of moisture-related issues that have already occurred.
The 28-day curing time is standard in the concrete industry and comes into play on almost every project, including the application of most decorative sealers, coatings, stains and toppings. Is that because the concrete needs to have a certain strength, or is there something else going on?
Technology continues to do its part to turn working with concrete from an art into a science. Take the matter of moisture in concrete slabs.
When you’re relaxing with a woodworking project in your garage, an important adage is “Measure twice, cut once.”
When you’re called in to decorate a concrete floor, measuring twice isn’t necessary, but do measure the moisture in that slab before proceeding.
In an effort to help contractors resolve moisture-related problems in concrete, Wagner Meters and Tramex are introducing new monitoring devices to track and document relative humidity and temperatures at a job site.
Moisture problems in concrete slabs old and new can play havoc with decorative concrete projects and other flooring strata in several ways, including bubbling, blistering and blushing of color. It’s commonly an interior problem because breathable products that reduce the threat are more commonly used in exterior applications.
Specialists in building protection consulting, including concrete restoration work were called to help with The Faucett Brothers Activity Center was a newly opened 60,000-square-foot multi-purpose facility. The center includes two indoor pools, a 6,500-square-foot pool deck and the fast-spreading stain of pool deck mold.
How valuable is 48 hours to you and your business? Can you put a price on it?
And does the price go up if you run into a moisture-related problem with a concrete slab in the later phases of a project?
Excess moisture doesn’t just evaporate … it sometimes takes your design with it.
All things in polished concrete relate to physics and chemistry. With that in mind, let’s look at how moisture interacts with concrete and polishing chemicals, with an additional focus on efflorescence.
