Filling expansion joints

[larryo1944]

This is my first post. I know this is not a new topic but I could not find the answer. I want to fill in joints so I can roll small wheels, like mechanics stool, a cherry picker, etc. I don't want to coat floor. This garage was finished 1 year ago if that makes a differences. The floor is 25' x 30'. Can anyone tell me what to use? Thanks for any help.

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,... Are they saw-cut joints, or troweled joints,.??

How wide,..??

 

[DonPowers]

My expansion joints were saw cut and were filled with Sikaflex.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Sikaflex-29-fl-oz-Grey-Self-Leveling-Sealant-106711/202523824

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

Tape off the cut. Fill with a gel crack filler. Once it has tacked off but not fully cured, you can razor cut the joint flush with the floor.

http://www.legacyindustrial.net/products/crack-joint-products/legacys-gel-crack-filler.html


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Garage Flooring]

This is my first post. I know this is not a new topic but I could not find the answer. I want to fill in joints so I can roll small wheels, like mechanics stool, a cherry picker, etc. I don't want to coat floor. This garage was finished 1 year ago if that makes a differences. The floor is 25' x 30'. Can anyone tell me what to use? Thanks for any help.

The easiest thing to do is to use a gel joint filler. Just make sure you trim it flush before it is fully cured. Please make sure you use a joint filler to maintain the flexibility.

 

[Chris705]

I am using the grey Sikaflex self leveling sealant for my saw cuts. I bought 3 of the big size tubes at HD thinking it would be enough....yesterday before calling it quits for the day I vacuumed out all my cuts after dragging a screwdriver thru them to loosen things up and got them really clean. My cuts are 3/4" deep and maybe 3/16 to 1/4" wide. It took a couple passes to get them filled up or so I thought, this morning when I went out for work I was surprised that the joint material had recessed thru the night....now I will have to go back and top them off. I have a total of 212 lf of cut and used one tube not quite filling up 35 lf. I think I'll need 5 or 6 more tubes..... I plan on taking a razor blade to cut flush once I have them all done.

 

[packpride85]

I am using the grey Sikaflex self leveling sealant for my saw cuts. I bought 3 of the big size tubes at HD thinking it would be enough....yesterday before calling it quits for the day I vacuumed out all my cuts after dragging a screwdriver thru them to loosen things up and got them really clean. My cuts are 3/4" deep and maybe 3/16 to 1/4" wide. It took a couple passes to get them filled up or so I thought, this morning when I went out for work I was surprised that the joint material had recessed thru the night....now I will have to go back and top them off. I have a total of 212 lf of cut and used one tube not quite filling up 35 lf. I think I'll need 5 or 6 more tubes..... I plan on taking a razor blade to cut flush once I have them all done.

I used caulk backer rod and was barely able to get 42 lf from one tube.

 

[benwah]

I agree with the epoxy filler. The compressive strength of epoxy compared to products like Sikaflex is ridiculous. You're talking somewhere around 8,000-10,000 PSI compared to a product that you can press in with your fingertip or a screwdriver.

For example.. One of my customers owns a powder coating facility. He rolls carts around all day in and out of powder booths, walk-in ovens, and across his concrete yard. His carts kept getting hung up on control joints. Some of the carts can weigh up to a few thousand pounds. I gave him 4 gallons of a 100% solids epoxy surfacing epoxy and a 10 LB bag of Aerosil 200 fumed silica to mix in to thicken it. He was originally going to go with some sort of polyurethane caulking. After installing the epoxy into hundreds upon hundreds of feet of control joints everything is holding up great 2 years later. BTW this is exterior exposed in the Arizona sun all day, everyday.

 

[Chris705]

Backer rod! Great idea!

 

[DHCrocks]

it's an expansion joint which it intended to allow for the concrete to move and not buckle on itself. If you use a epoxy with 8-10k psi this will not allow for any compression. sikaflex is compressible for this very reason.

 

[DC73]

it's an expansion joint . . .

Is it? The OP never really clarified. It may be a control joint and not an expansion joint. Around here, the only expansion joint for a slab that small would be between the garage slab and the driveway. For control joints, does it really matter if the filler is flexible or not?

DC

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

it's an expansion joint which it intended to allow for the concrete to move and not buckle on itself. If you use a epoxy with 8-10k psi this will not allow for any compression. sikaflex is compressible for this very reason.

These purpose built products have good elongation properties vs. standard epoxies.

 

[larryo1944]

I'm sorry that I did not give enough information in my original post. The joints are trowel joints. They are about 1" wide at the top and 1" deep. I live in Lake Havasu City, AZ. Temps in 100's during summer. No insulation. Thank you for all your info so far.

 

[NUTTSGT]

I filled my saw cuts with Sikaflex.


Here's an in process picture.


Having troweled joints will be wider. There's a couple of flooring guys that gave you decent advice. If I had a wider joint, I'd try to use Sikaflex in a couple of passes, that is what I would try.

 

[larryo1944]

Thank everyone for the feedback. It was very helpful.
Larry