Thinset Grinding Method - Diamabrush Coating Removal Help

[wmx124]

Goal of this project is to get my garage floor back to a smooth, bare concrete surface. We purchased the house a few months ago. It had a room in the garage at one point. The room had a ceramic tile floor. The last owners removed the wall so the floor was tiled up to about the last 3 feet of garage floor then bare concrete. The previous owner then painted over everything with epoxy paint.

We rented a demo hammer with a standard chisel and a thinset removal blade. The tiles and most of the thinset have been removed. we are left with random patches of tough thinset that we couldn't get with the blade.

I'm planning to rent a Diamabrush coating removal disk from my local big box store and mount on a maintainer or polisher. Diamabrush says to use wet, many on this site say go dry. Does anyone have experience removing thinset from concrete slab with this tool? Should I plan to do it wet or dry? My only concern with running it dry would be overheating the blades and glazing the surface rather than removing the thinset. Any experience and tips are appreciated.

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

It can go dry, this will be a long, dusty project.
Better to go get a real diamond grinder, if you can.

 

[wmx124]

Found a local epoxy coating installer that is willing to grind the floor with his EDCO diamond grinder for a fair price. Says it will take up the remaining thinset and generally smooth out the high spots (within reason).

Could the floor be left in this "as ground" condition or is a sealer required? The garage is primarily used as motorcycle parking and workspace. Will I regret not applying a sealer after the grind?

 

[Radix2]

Found a local epoxy coating installer that is willing to grind the floor with his EDCO diamond grinder for a fair price. Says it will take up the remaining thinset and generally smooth out the high spots (within reason).

Could the floor be left in this "as ground" condition or is a sealer required? The garage is primarily used as motorcycle parking and workspace. Will I regret not applying a sealer after the grind?

I would say yes, you will regret not sealing. ground concrete will stain super easy and is rough enough that it will be dusty and hard to keep clean.

I did Legacy SEC sealer (epoxy) in a shop and it was cheap and easy - you are doing all the prep, why not finish it off?

 

[wmx124]

I would say yes, you will regret not sealing. ground concrete will stain super easy and is rough enough that it will be dusty and hard to keep clean.

I did Legacy SEC sealer (epoxy) in a shop and it was cheap and easy - you are doing all the prep, why not finish it off?

Agreed. Although I was thinking of going with a basic penetrating sealer like PS101. This would reduce dust and staining, correct?

 

[theoldwizard1]

My son wanted a larger tile entrance. He busted up the old tile, but of course it left the thinset. It took him more than 8 hours using a CP air hammer and wide blade chisel, but he got it smooth enough to lay new thinset and tile.

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

I would say yes, you will regret not sealing. ground concrete will stain super easy and is rough enough that it will be dusty and hard to keep clean.

I did Legacy SEC sealer (epoxy) in a shop and it was cheap and easy - you are doing all the prep, why not finish it off?

Perfect solution.

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

Agreed. Although I was thinking of going with a basic penetrating sealer like PS101. This would reduce dust and staining, correct?

WRONG. Your floor, ground with 30 grit diamonds, will be a DIRT TRAP. A penetrating sealer will do little to help.

You need to either polish the floor, which an EDCO cannot do, or you need to apply a good topical sealer like our SEC Sealer.

 

[wmx124]

WRONG. Your floor, ground with 30 grit diamonds, will be a DIRT TRAP. A penetrating sealer will do little to help.

You need to either polish the floor, which an EDCO cannot do, or you need to apply a good topical sealer like our SEC Sealer.

When I said dust I meant the slab dusting, not accumulation of dust and dirt. It's my understanding that a penetrating sealer will reduce dusting of the slab and chemical stains. Correct?

Would HD39 be a good product to use here?

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

I understand what you meant. You need a topical sealer. Your floor will be very rough and will attract dirt and debris it will be a mess. A penetrating sealer is not going to solve that problem


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