Safety Speed Cut Thermwood Corporation ECabinet Systems

Cabinetmaking

You are not logged in. [ Login ] Why log in
(NOTE: Login is not required to post)

Shop/workspace flooring solutions over rough concrete

1/22/19       
matt

Good day folks,

Got a shop floor question for you. We have around 12K square feet of shop with concrete flooring that varies in it's quality. It was also painted before we acquired the building, it was painted with oil based enamel (not our choice, obviously not the best solution).

We'd prefer it to be more level and smooth. Some areas were floated well, and are sufficiently smooth, but a good 4,000 sf is much more coarse, not floated.

What are our best options here? We don't mind the oil based paint on the floor, it's easy to touch up and a lot cheaper than epoxy, but we really need to smooth out this rough stuff.

Would it be better to rent a concrete grinder and get good with it, or should we look into a flooring that would install over the top of the concrete---- something that will stand up to having an 8,000lb forklift on it.

1/22/19       #2: Shop/workspace flooring solutions o ...
Leo G Member

Grind it smooth or lay a topcoat of skimcoat or resurfacer.

1/22/19       #3: Shop/workspace flooring solutions o ...
Scott

This is a tough question to come up with a great answer. I guess it all comes down to cost of the work, downtime on equipment and labour if you have to move or protect equipment in areas where the work takes place.
I would get some prices from others on both grinding, shot blasting/sand blasting and skim/top coating. I think in the end the cheapest option is to rent the equipment and do it your self. Concrete is not the type of material where you have to worry about making big gouges with grinding, unless you have some monster equipment. It is fairly
forgiving when it comes to grinding. If you are happy with paint, just go that route, it will be the cheapest by far.

1/22/19       #4: Shop/workspace flooring solutions o ...
matt

Thanks for the input guys, this is an area that I am just not familiar with.

We have a fairly significant shop rearrangement in the near future so your input here is helping me find the best solution.

We'll definitely need to skimcoat some areas, I just hope we don't have it flaking off later on if we drive the forklift over it.

1/22/19       #5: Shop/workspace flooring solutions o ...
Jim Herron

I would use a bonder in the skim coat like Laticrete, very similar to wood glue.

1/23/19       #6: Shop/workspace flooring solutions o ...
Stewart Member

If you do decide to grind, I would be super careful to cover any tooling in the area with plastic (or remove it altogether) as concrete dust and bearings don't mix well.

1/23/19       #7: Shop/workspace flooring solutions o ...
Chris Member

Check out the flooring forum on garage journal. There are like 130k posts there and a bunch of pro floor finishers and vendors. They should be able to give you some additional ideas

1/23/19       #9: Shop/workspace flooring solutions o ...
Bill

I have some experience in this area and the tools available locally to me to rent are toys. Grinding 4,000 feet would be too much.

My strategy would be to grind the paint off and scratch up the concrete, then put a bonding agent as suggested then use a leveler to put down a thin smooth coat.

There are companies that specialize in this. I would at least get a couple quotes. The worst thing that happens is you learn the proper technique then do it yourself. In my experience grinding 4,000 square feet would take days with rental machines. My instinct would be to hire it out. They have ride on machines that make quick work of it.

1/23/19       #10: Shop/workspace flooring solutions o ...
matt

That's helpful to know, Bill, thanks for sharing your experience here. I'll investigate and see who does that around here.

And you guys are absolutely right about the dust, we will cover the machinery with plastic--- that dust would wreak havoc on our machinery.

1/23/19       #11: Shop/workspace flooring solutions o ...
Alan F.

There was a new OSHA silica standard that came up a year ago. Be aware of it and maybe consider outsourcing grinding.

Our stone vendors used to ship tops 1/4" oversize based on our production shop drawings and grind in the field, they now template everything so there is no field grinding to avoid this issue.

A-

OSHA Regulations On Concrete Silica Dust

1/23/19       #12: Shop/workspace flooring solutions o ...
MarkB Member

I'd be another vote for sourcing this to a professional. The grinding is the simple part regardless of how long it takes. The hard part is know which thin surface coat is going to last (if any) given your specific conditions. Moisture, vapor barrier below or not, thickness of your existing slab, and then the elephant in the room will be the forklift.

I would want to have someone that can give me a fairly reasonable assessment of what I can expect from my investment in 2-5-10 years.

Making things stick to concrete is not easy and making thin things stick to concrete is an even harder task. Then you add in traffic, wear, deflection from the fork truck, and you may well wind up in a no guaranty situation but at least you'll know what your in for and you'll hopefully know youve got someone who has a pretty good idea of what your in for.

1/30/19       #13: Shop/workspace flooring solutions o ...
Derrek

If it has paint on it pretty much anything you donrequires it to be removed. There are commercial grinder and polisher that will bring it down smooth as can be. Lowe’s stores are ground and polished. If you are going to repaint with epoxy you can have it shot blasted, it’s a machine that has a bunch of small steal beads in it and takes paint off and a very small amount of surface concrete, leaves the surface a little tougher than grind and polish.

9/9/20       #14: Shop/workspace flooring solutions o ...
Dominic S Member

Website: https://concretepumpingsandiego.com/

Being a concrete pumper, I would suggest you go for commercial grinder and polisher. These will remove very little of the concrete.

https://concretepumpingsandiego.com/


Post a Response
  • Notify me of responses to this thread
  • Subscribe to email updates on this Forum
  • To receive email notification of additions to this forum thread,
    enter your name and email address, and then click the
    "Keep Me Posted" button below.

    Please Note: If you have posted a message or response,
    do not submit this request ... you are already signed up
    to receive notification!

    Your Name:
    E-Mail Address:
    Enter the correct numbers into the field below:
     

    Date of your Birth:



    Return to top of page

    Buy & Sell Exchanges | Forums | Galleries | Site Map

    FORUM GUIDELINES: Please review the guidelines below before posting at WOODWEB's Interactive Message Boards (return to top)

  • WOODWEB is a professional industrial woodworking site. Hobbyist and homeowner woodworking questions are inappropriate.
  • Messages should be kept reasonably short and on topic, relating to the focus of the forum. Responses should relate to the original question.
  • A valid email return address must be included with each message.
  • Advertising is inappropriate. The only exceptions are the Classified Ads Exchange, Machinery Exchange, Lumber Exchange, and Job Opportunities and Services Exchange. When posting listings in these areas, review the posting instructions carefully.
  • Subject lines may be edited for length and clarity.
  • "Cross posting" is not permitted. Choose the best forum for your question, and post your question at one forum only.
  • Messages requesting private responses will be removed - Forums are designed to provide information and assistance for all of our visitors. Private response requests are appropriate at WOODWEB's Exchanges and Job Opportunities and Services.
  • Messages that accuse businesses or individuals of alleged negative actions or behavior are inappropriate since WOODWEB is unable to verify or substantiate the claims.
  • Posts with the intent of soliciting answers to surveys are not appropriate. Contact WOODWEB for more information on initiating a survey.
  • Excessive forum participation by an individual upsets the balance of a healthy forum atmosphere. Individuals who excessively post responses containing marginal content will be considered repeat forum abusers.
  • Responses that initiate or support inappropriate and off-topic discussion of general politics detract from the professional woodworking focus of WOODWEB, and will be removed.
  • Participants are encouraged to use their real name when posting. Intentionally using another persons name is prohibited, and posts of this nature will be removed at WOODWEB's discretion.
  • Comments, questions, or criticisms regarding Forum policies should be directed to WOODWEB's Systems Administrator
    (return to top).

    Carefully review your message before clicking on the "Send Message" button - you will not be able to revise the message once it has been sent.

    You will be notified of responses to the message(s) you posted via email. Be sure to enter your email address correctly.

    WOODWEB's forums are a highly regarded resource for professional woodworkers. Messages and responses that are crafted in a professional and civil manner strengthen this resource. Messages that do not reflect a professional tone reduce the value of our forums.

    Messages are inappropriate when their content: is deemed libelous in nature or is based on rumor, fails to meet basic standards of decorum, contains blatant advertising or inappropriate emphasis on self promotion (return to top).

    Libel:   Posts which defame an individual or organization, or employ a tone which can be viewed as malicious in nature. Words, pictures, or cartoons which expose a person or organization to public hatred, shame, disgrace, or ridicule, or induce an ill opinion of a person or organization, are libelous.

    Improper Decorum:   Posts which are profane, inciting, disrespectful or uncivil in tone, or maliciously worded. This also includes the venting of unsubstantiated opinions. Such messages do little to illuminate a given topic, and often have the opposite effect. Constructive criticism is acceptable (return to top).

    Advertising:   The purpose of WOODWEB Forums is to provide answers, not an advertising venue. Companies participating in a Forum discussion should provide specific answers to posted questions. WOODWEB suggests that businesses include an appropriately crafted signature in order to identify their company. A well meaning post that seems to be on-topic but contains a product reference may do your business more harm than good in the Forum environment. Forum users may perceive your references to specific products as unsolicited advertising (spam) and consciously avoid your web site or services. A well-crafted signature is an appropriate way to advertise your services that will not offend potential customers. Signatures should be limited to 4-6 lines, and may contain information that identifies the type of business you're in, your URL and email address (return to top).

    Repeated Forum Abuse: Forum participants who repeatedly fail to follow WOODWEB's Forum Guidelines may encounter difficulty when attempting to post messages.

    There are often situations when the original message asks for opinions: "What is the best widget for my type of shop?". To a certain extent, the person posting the message is responsible for including specific questions within the message. An open ended question (like the one above) invites responses that may read as sales pitches. WOODWEB suggests that companies responding to such a question provide detailed and substantive replies rather than responses that read as a one-sided product promotion. It has been WOODWEB's experience that substantive responses are held in higher regard by our readers (return to top).

    The staff of WOODWEB assume no responsibility for the accuracy, content, or outcome of any posting transmitted at WOODWEB's Message Boards. Participants should undertake the use of machinery, materials and methods discussed at WOODWEB's Message Boards after considerate evaluation, and at their own risk. WOODWEB reserves the right to delete any messages it deems inappropriate. (return to top)


  • Forum Posting Help
    Your Name The name you enter in this field will be the name that appears with your post or response (return to form).
    Your Website Personal or business website links must point to the author's website. Inappropriate links will be removed without notice, and at WOODWEB's sole discretion. WOODWEB reserves the right to delete any messages with links it deems inappropriate. (return to form)
    E-Mail Address Your e-mail address will not be publicly viewable. Forum participants will be able to contact you using a contact link (included with your post) that is substituted for your actual address. You must include a valid email address in this field. (return to form)
    Subject Subject may be edited for length and clarity. Subject lines should provide an indication of the content of your post. (return to form)
    Thread Related Link and Image Guidelines Thread Related Links posted at WOODWEB's Forums and Exchanges should point to locations that provide supporting information for the topic being discussed in the current message thread. The purpose of WOODWEB Forums is to provide answers, not to serve as an advertising venue. A Thread Related Link that directs visitors to an area with inappropriate content will be removed. WOODWEB reserves the right to delete any messages with links or images it deems inappropriate. (return to form)
    Thread Related File Uploads Thread Related Files posted at WOODWEB's Forums and Exchanges should provide supporting information for the topic being discussed in the current message thread. Video Files: acceptable video formats are: .MOV .AVI .WMV .MPEG .MPG .MP4 (Image Upload Tips)   If you encounter any difficulty when uploading video files, E-mail WOODWEB for assistance. The purpose of WOODWEB Forums is to provide answers, not to serve as an advertising venue. A Thread Related File that contains inappropriate content will be removed, and uploaded files that are not directly related to the message thread will be removed. WOODWEB reserves the right to delete any messages with links, files, or images it deems inappropriate. (return to form)
    Limtech Industries, Inc. Lamello
    Today's Sponsors
    • GreCon
      Spark Detection and Extinguishment Systems and Quality Assurance Measuring Equipment
    • Excel Dowel and Wood Products Inc.
      Plain and Pre-glued Dowel Pins, and Wood Parts - Servicing Small Hobby Shops to Large OEM's
    • CP Adhesives
      Supplying Quality Adhesives to the Woodworking Industry
    • Rose Machinery
      Horizontal Band Re-rips, Standard & Custom Designed Machinery
    • Cabinet Pro
      Design and Manufacturing Software for the Cabinet and Door Industries Since 1986
    • Cab Parts
      Pre-manufactured Components for Easy-to-Assemble Cabinet Boxes
    • Colonial Saw
      North American Supplier of Striebig Panel Saws, Lamello Specialty Tools and a Wide Range of Saw and Tool Grinding Machinery
    • Palmetto Cabinet Doors
      Supplier of Quality MDF Cabinet Doors
    • Cabinetshop Maestro
      Web-Based Project Management Software for Custom Cabinet Shops - Manage Jobs from Prospect to Punchlist Through Scheduling, Task Management, Time Tracking and Communication
    • Vacuum Pressing Systems, Inc.
      Vacuum Pressing Equipment - Including Bag and Frame Systems
    • Professional Machinery Group
      New and Used Machinery Serving the Needs of the Professional Woodworker
    • Felder USA
      High Quality Woodworking Machines and Tools
    • Anver Corporation
      Vacuum System Components - Suction Cups, Vacuum Pumps, Vacuum Lifters & Lifting Systems, and More

    Become a Sponsor today!