chicane
Well-known member
I have a brand new Fiber concrete slab. There are residual fibers sticking up from the floor. What is the best, quickest way to deal with this and get rid of the excess fiber?
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Fiber concrete slab; how to get rid of extra fibers?
- Thread starter chicane
- Start date
First thing I would try is if you have access to a floor scrubber is try that with a mild abbrasive pad. Option two is take a small propane torch, get down on your knees and crawl around. Just passing the torch over the floor will melt them down. Option two would be the most time consuming. Don't walk around or allow anyone to walk around bare foot until you take care of them, those things are like little needles.
We just had a thread on this, bud.
1. Prime coat the floor with epoxy.
2. Sand down the fibers that are now sticking up thanks to the epoxy.
3. Coat the floor with the final coat of epoxy.
Back up a little.....Nothing was said about coating the floor with epoxy. Lets not have the guy spend $100's of dollars. Try the propane torch first. Unless coating the floor is in the picture go the cheap route.
Back up a little.....Nothing was said about coating the floor with epoxy. Lets not have the guy spend $100's of dollars. Try the propane torch first. Unless coating the floor is in the picture go the cheap route.
Oops. Good point!
I, personally, didn't have any luck getting 100% rid of my fibers using a gas torch (MAPP). Then I went for the big torch - the kind you hook up to the propane tank - that's didn't work well either. I still could feel the fibers. Sanding it didn't work either since the fibers don't stand straight up.
The only thing that worked for me was to coat the floor first and then orbital sand.
ron in sc
Well-known member
The only thing that worked for me was to coat the floor first and then orbital sand.
I've still not decided what I'm going to do as far as floor other than cement. I was planning on having a smooth finish. However to leave my options open should I decide on epoxy, tile or whatever would a smooth fininsh cement be ok.
Also my slab will be 4000 psi, 6" thick and will have fiberglass in it too. Also will have that flat welded wire. I think I'll pass on rebar in the slab. I concerned with cracks; I think slab will be strong enough.
Steve in Mi
Well-known member
Personally I like option 1 if it will work.
I have a floor scrubber and the very abrasive black pads but no extra fibers to try it on. I do plan to use this setup to clean / do a once over before applying concrete sealer hopefully in the near future.
Does anyone know for sure if it does? Rental places have buffers available of course some have the grinding stones for a trowel machine too. I wonder if the rental place would be a good source of info on what folks say works assuming that info isn't available right here on this forum.First thing I would try is if you have access to a floor scrubber is try that with a mild abbrasive pad.
I have a floor scrubber and the very abrasive black pads but no extra fibers to try it on. I do plan to use this setup to clean / do a once over before applying concrete sealer hopefully in the near future.
Peter_Frantz
Member
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2007
- Messages
- 5
I just found this Q & A on the Rust-Oleum website:
Q: Can Epoxy Shield be applied over fiberglass reinforced concrete?
A: Yes. Fibers should be burned with caution! Do not sand as fibers can create wicking for moisture.
--Peter
Q: Can Epoxy Shield be applied over fiberglass reinforced concrete?
A: Yes. Fibers should be burned with caution! Do not sand as fibers can create wicking for moisture.
--Peter
We just had a thread on this, bud.
1. Prime coat the floor with epoxy.
2. Sand down the fibers that are now sticking up thanks to the epoxy.
3. Coat the floor with the final coat of epoxy.
I don't want to use epoxy. So it looks like I have one real option propane torch.
Last edited:
kxmotox247
Well-known member
Are these fiberglass fibers always a problem when a floor is poured? I'm getting ready to have my slab poured and am curious. Perhaps different finishers have different techniques when it comes to smoothing the floor?
Are these fiberglass fibers always a problem when a floor is poured? I'm getting ready to have my slab poured and am curious. Perhaps different finishers have different techniques when it comes to smoothing the floor?
No matter how smooth you make the floor, you're still going to have fibers pop up.
kxmotox247
Well-known member
One of the concrete dude called tonight and said he's never had that happen to him... I know my luck. My shop floor will be the first for them. He wrote that off as incorrect mixing of the fibers or floor finishing. This ought to be interesting.
kxmotox247
Well-known member
Well... the slab was poured on Friday. I'm not sure what everyone else is seeing as far as the fibers sticking up but I don't see anything like that. And it's a 2000 sq.ft. pad. There are some spots that aren't perfectly smooth... little bumps like maybe dirt or sand here and there but I haven't seen anything that resembles fiberglass hairs sticking up. The owner told me that he hasn't ever had that problem. His opinion is that perhaps when the concrete mixture was thinned out too much that the fibers could float to the top and cause a problem like that.
Just my limited experience here...
Just my limited experience here...
Well... the slab was poured on Friday. I'm not sure what everyone else is seeing as far as the fibers sticking up but I don't see anything like that. And it's a 2000 sq.ft. pad. There are some spots that aren't perfectly smooth... little bumps like maybe dirt or sand here and there but I haven't seen anything that resembles fiberglass hairs sticking up. The owner told me that he hasn't ever had that problem. His opinion is that perhaps when the concrete mixture was thinned out too much that the fibers could float to the top and cause a problem like that.
Just my limited experience here...
Just wait until you start to walk around on it...the fibers will start to appear.
Steve in Mi
Well-known member
Well good for you, relax now, the nerve racking part is done. If you don't see any fibers on the surface, then 1.) they didn't put them in the mix, or 2.) they didn't get a good mix or there would be some everywhere including on top. I've not been on a job where a power float was used, maybe that would make a difference - don't know but I've not seen a single case in 25 where they didn't show up on the surface. Had a bad mix once that ended up with us digging gobs or wads of glass threads out while troweling. I hope that what you are describing as
aren't chunks of fiberglass. The jobs I've attended are just friends helping friends build their shops. Pouring cement and raising trusses are a couple areas where some extra help is appreciated. I'm getting too old for this but I still have two more slabs (~5 yds. each) to pour at my place so I'm staying in the loop as long as possible.little bumps like maybe dirt or sand here and there