How To Reduce Dust On Concrete Floor

Concrete coatings are a great option for the homeowner contractor or other concrete owner faced with concrete dusting.

How to reduce dust on concrete floor.

While you can find vacuum systems designed to collect the dust material the systems aren t fully effective. Concrete dusting can be caused from a variety of factors including poorly mixed concrete surface abrasion age water or moisture and a variety of other factors. Every time a person walks on the floor or a child drags a toy truck it grinds away millions of tiny particles of the concrete surface. Fortunately there is still an easy and cost effective way to help reduce and remove concrete dusting without repouring and recuring the concrete which can be incredibly expensive and tiresome.

When a dilute solution of sodium metasilicate soaks into a floor surface the silicate reacts with calcium compounds to form a hard glassy substance within the pores of the concrete. Dusting can be remedied by applying a floor sealing product based on sodium metasilicate water glass or silicofluorides. How to control exposure to concrete dust 1. Two methods control the dust as it is created.

Concrete that isn t properly sealed will eventually begin to break down slightly when moisture and substances such as oil or grease seep into it. Regardless of the cause the solutions are fairly similar. This causes the concrete to eat itself producing a fine sheen of rock and portland cement dust. The most common way to reduce concrete dusting is with the use of a sealer.

Find out more about silica dust exposure limits regulations and the law. Seal the concrete slab. To reduce dust exposure consider damping down ventilation and extraction. Other than wearing protective clothing or equipment there should be control measures in place to reduce the amount of dust.

One source of dust in a garage might surprise you. If there is a bare concrete floor in your home or basement your family s health is at risk from silica exposure. A wet saw will reduce the amount of airborne concrete dust but you ll still need to wear a respirator mask and protective eyewear. There are workplace regulations in place to prevent exposure to any dust during construction.

Apart from silica content cement and concrete dust can be harmful by inhalation in other ways. Seal your concrete against concrete dust. Keep a small sledgehammer and a narrow blade shovel handy.