Clean Concrete Floor Before Painting

Cleaning concrete is a vital first step because the porous surface tends to trap dirt grease and oil.

Clean concrete floor before painting.

The acid can t penetrate oily patches and will leave an uneven subpar flooring. Prepare to mop the concrete with a trisodium phosphate solution tsp. Combine an ounce of trisodium phosphate tsp in a gallon of hot water. Laitance is a weak milky accumulation of fine particles of cement dust lime and sand fines on the surface of fresh concrete usually caused by an excess of water bleeding to the surface.

Remove dirt and grease with trisodium phosphate 6 30 per quart concentrate or choose a more earth friendly cleaner like krud kutter s pre paint cleaner 10 for 32 ounces. The best adhesion requires a clean floor free of laitance and contaminants. To make your concrete floors resistant to future stains apply a concrete sealant. Some good cleaners include castile soap liquid dish detergent stone cleaners and mild floor cleaners.

You want the surface to be as clean and bare as possible for the best coating of paint later on. Use a paint roller to apply it to clean primed concrete. Yank off any vines moss or other plant life covering the concrete. What is etching concrete.

Things needed tape plastic bag flat shovel or scraper stiff bristled broom 5 gallon bucket degreaser or all purpose cleaner stiff bristled brush cotton rags hose electric floor scrubber with brush attachment or coarse scrubbing pad wet dry vacuum sprinkler can muriatic acid. Wet the concrete and use a. Mop the tsp solution onto the entire concrete floor using a sponge mop. Acid etching with vinegar is easy and less labor intensive than using a machine to pretreat the concrete floor before sealing or painting.

If you are working on an outdoor piece of concrete flooring clean it of any grease. Clean the floor of all oil or grease stains using degreaser. Mop the floor using dish detergent and water. Before you power wash or paint seal your garage floor you ll want to attack any oil.

Allow the floor to dry completely. Prime and paint priming before you paint concrete floors helps ensure that your new look will stick.