How to get the most out of your new floor
Preparation is usually the part that gets overlooked, but it is essential to get it right. A coating will only perform to it's full potential if it's bonded to a well prepared and correctly primed surface.
Watco coatings are generally designed to be used without a primer to save time, money and downtime, but there are some situations where a primer is essential.
Very hard, smooth or power floated concrete surfaces generally reject paint. They are non-porous, so paints cannot penetrate and key into the surface. They look great when first painted, but the paint will come off as the floor goes back into use. The traditional way of preparing these surfaces is mechanical grinding or shot blasting to provide the key. The trouble is that this permanently removes the hard, smooth surface which power floating is designed to achieve.
Powerfloat Primer is a unique formulation. Just one coat, direct onto the concrete, means it can be confidently painted with most Watco coatings without the cost and inconvenience of shot blasting or grinding – and the smart, smooth appearance is maintained.
New concrete must be left, generally, for at least 6 weeks for the relative humidity to drop to a level where it is safe to paint. If an area needs to be put into use quickly, New Concrete Primer means you don’t have to wait. once the concrete is hard enough to walk on, you can get on with the job.
Over-coating existing paint needs a product which does not contain anything which will soften or disturb what’s already on the floor. Loose paint should be scraped off, then and we recommend Epoxicote™ High Build as the best option. it is virtually solvent free, will not soften existing paint – and because it is not water-based, it won’t shrink as it dries, so does not ‘pull’ and loosen the paint underneath.
If painting an existing painted floor, it is well worth using Concrex® Fine Filler. it so quickly and easily fills minor surface blemishes which could otherwise show through or be highlighted by the new paint coating.
Bio-D is a water-based biodegradable cleaner which removes general dirt, oil and grease. Concroff® removes heavily impacted oil and grease. Oil Block Primer seals in oil if you can’t get it out of the concrete, leaving a sealed, sound surface ready to paint.
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Bare concrete should be cleaned and ‘etched’ to provide a key. Etching removes loose cement deposits (laitance) from the surface. If they are not removed, the paint will not bond to solid material and will break away as the floor is put back into use. Etching also removes ingrained dirt and makes concrete look ready to be painted.
Etching thoroughly and evenly is important. Etch & Clean includes a colour indicator so you can see where it has been applied – it starts off pink and turns clear when the etching process is complete. It’s then safe to flush away as its acidity has been neutralised by the alkalinity of the concrete. Reducing alkalinity in new concrete is especially important if applying single pack paints such as Concrete Floor Paint.
Allows smooth concrete to be painted without mechanical preparation
From £116.75 (Ex VAT)
A xylene based solvent to help with cleaning and preparation
From £30.75 (Ex VAT)
