Hi Lee, Actually there are different additives, I think they use acrylic and other things.
I just had a look on the Web, I found an interesting article where they suggest you cut a groove into the existing cement with a circular saw and masonry blade, tilted over about 5 degrees and go all around the area to be recovered, about three inches in from the edge. They recommend and so would I that you take a mallet and cold chisel and knock away anything that is loose, if corners are failing or breaking up, cut back to good concrete and make a bit of a ledge to support the patch. In the case that the edges will be involved take care to form up the edges well to retain the new concrete. Clean it all up really well with a broom or even a vacuum cleaner. Dampen the surface well but no standing water, the patch will hold better on damp concrete. They recommend using sand mix concrete for patches under around three inches thick otherwise you want more stone in the mix. You mix it up to be stiff. Too wet and cement isn't so strong. Now here is where they recommend adding what they are calling acrylic fortifier. It should take the place of about 50 to 80 percent of the water apparently. You then force the mix into your grooves which, being angled will help to stick it down and you pour or apply your mix in more or less the usual way, over filling slightly, then tamping and floating it all even, trawling it and making sure it is all evenly covering. Best cement is made between 50 and 80 degrees F. The warmer the quicker it sets up but also the more likely it is to crack. I like to trowel the surface and tamp it for quite a long time to bring up more of the cream, I find this offers the opportunity of a smoother surface. You can then treat it with a sponge float for a rougher textures surface or a stiff bristle brush or broom to texture it with lines, particularly if there are concerns about the surface being slippery. When it is beginning to get pretty firm it is a good time to treat the edges with a finishing trawl, the tool which puts a slightly beveled and rounded corner on the top surface. You should cover with plastic to keep the moisture in so it cures more slowly. I like to lightly spray it over from time-to-time, depending on the heat and so on, probably after about four hours and then a couple of times a day for the first couple of days. Just a light sprinkle until it is wet then cover again. Generally the slower concrete cures, the stronger it will be. Anyway, the agent is acrylic concrete fortifier. Be sure you buy more of it and the sand mixed than you need, I ran short today and I will have a mess next week when I can buy more cement. I think what happened is this is different, comes in plastic bags and turns out to be smaller bags than the stuff I had left over from last year. Your project isn't all that big and the bags I bought today were 4 bucks each so a couple of extras won't kill and if in good condition you can likely bring them back. I hope this was helpful. Dale Leavens, Cochrane Ontario Canada [EMAIL PROTECTED] Skype DaleLeavens Come and meet Aurora, Nakita and Nanook at our polar bear habitat. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Lee A. Stone" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Saturday, September 02, 2006 9:55 PM Subject: Re: [BlindHandyMan] a concrete question > > Dale, you refer to a latex additive . what should I ask for, just that? > a latex additive. However maybe I'll be smart and wait until after you > do your repair job. at the rate we are moving here it will be the middle > of September. Oh I forgot. yes this slab is quite flat , however the new > layer we put on we will pitch, say from 2 inches to 1 3/4 inches so > making any water drain off quickly...thanks.Lee > > > > -- > There's no future in time travel. > > > To listen to the show archives go to link > http://acbradio.org/handyman.html > or > ftp://ftp.acbradio.org/acbradio-archives/handyman/ > > The Pod Cast address for the Blind Handy Man Show is. > http://www.acbradio.org/news/xml/podcast.php?pgm=saturday > > The Pod Cast address for the Cooking In The Dark Show is. > http://www.gcast.com/u/cookingindark/main.xml > > Visit The New Blind Handy Man Files Page To Review Contributions From > Various List Members At The Following Address: > http://www.jaws-users.com/handyman/ > Visit the new archives page at the following address > http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ > For a complete list of email commands pertaining to the Blind Handy Man > list just send a blank message to: > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Yahoo! 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