Pros and Cons: Diamond-Grind Your Garage Concrete Floor
January 31, 2021 | By Quick Response Garage Floor Coatings
There are several options for performing upgrades on a concrete garage floor. For instance, a homeowner can smooth out rough areas and finish the concrete with urethane or epoxy, removing old coatings beforehand if necessary. Whatever the case may be, diamond grinding will come in handy.
Pre-Clean-up Tips
Diamond-grinding is an environmentally-friendly method of finishing floors, including, of course, the garage floor. The grinders work in unison with shot-blasting to perform edging along the equipment and the wall. A terrazzo grinder is used to prepare the concrete for new coating and remove old sealers and coatings.
Depending on the size of the diamond, it can create a smooth and uniform surface. Some can even produce a terrazzo or marble-like look through the use of finer abrasives on the concrete.
The purpose of this is to expose the pores of the concrete so that new epoxy or urethane coating can penetrate and bond to the surface as it’s designed to do. It also creates a rough surface that offers excellent adherence for a garage floor coating.
Should You Diamond-Grind a Concrete Garage Floor?
Diamond-grinding is popular for several reasons, including:
Correctly done, it doesn’t create any valleys, pits, or low or high spots on the surface.
Diamond-grinding is relatively mild on the floor and doesn’t have any adverse effects in opening up pores in the concrete.
Capable of producing a uniform surface and a more attractive finish.
Relatively easy and friendly to DIY.
Removes industrial contaminants, grease, and dirt.
Highlights the concrete’s natural beauty for a fresh new look.
Acid-Etching or Diamond-Grinding?
In comparison, diamond-grinding can be preferable to acid-etching a concrete floor. The profile is more controllable and thus more amenable to an ideal outcome. It also ensures a rougher surface in a good way. Also, diamond-grinding removes excess laitance, which isn’t always possible with acid-etching.
Another potential drawback with acid-etching has to do with the uniformity. Namely, you can’t control the profile to the same extent as with diamond-grinding. The effectiveness of acid-etching is more questionable depending on the concrete’s finish and density, which can have a wide range from one garage floor to another. For this reason, it’s crucial to test several areas for texture and porosity after etching.
However, etching is faster and cheaper to order, which may understandably make it good enough for some.
Bottom Line
Diamond-grinding is an advantageous floor finishing method that can enhance the garage. If the budget allows it, any homeowner would be smart to choose this method over acid-etching. It will deliver better results.
Quick Response Garage Floor Coatings offers epoxy, flake, solid, stain, and specialty flooring options to Phoenix Valley residential and commercial clients. Call us today for a free estimate at (602) 351-5543.
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