Home and property owners often find themselves renovating their living space. This can include replacing an old roof, adding some new kitchen cabinets or even changing the paint colour. Small changes can make your home feel more comfortable and they can also drastically increase the value of your property as well. Sometimes the job is so small it is not worth hiring a demolition company.
If you have ever removed a carpet from a concrete floor, then you will know how frustrating it is to see that there is glue underneath. You will also know that sometimes, accidents happen and that even glue on concrete slabs can completely ruin the look.
At the end of the day, glue and carpet adhesive can be stubborn. If you leave the glue there, then it can easily attract grime, and this is the last thing that you need. The good news is that removing glue from a concrete floor or slab is very easy to do, if you have the right tools. Take a look below to find out more.
Scrape the Glue
When you are dealing with glue, you need to try and scrape off as much of it as possible. Ideally, you would have a scraper with a very sharp razor edge. This will of course, require a bit of elbow grease. Most of the time, it’s possible for you to remove all of the glue by just doing this. If you are not able to remove all of the glue or if you don’t feel as though the scraper is doing a good job because there’s simply too much of it, then sweep the glue chunks that you could loosen and then move onto the second step.
Apply some Boiling Water
Depending on the glue that has been used and the age of it, it may be possible for you to pour some boiling water on the glue and then leave it. This will loosen it up. If you have a large amount of glue on the concrete then you may want to use a big pot so that you can make sure that you have enough water. Allow the water to sit with the glue for around 2 minutes if possible. It’s highly recommended to use boiling water because it doesn’t contain any toxins and it is free. Just be careful not to splash any on yourself, as it can cause severe burns. Lower the container down to the floor, and pour it out slowly, ensuring maximum contact with the glue as it is tipped out.
Scrub the Glue
Now would be the time for you to try and scrape off the loosened glue. You can do this with a concrete scrubber, or you can carry on with the scraper. Apply more water and repeat as necessary.
Apply some Glue Remover
If you are just not able to remove the glue with some hot water, then it’s time to break out the big guns. Now it’s time for you to use a heavy-duty glue remover or even some mastic remover. Of course, adhesive remover will soften the glue on a chemical basis, but they do tend to be very chemical. You have to make sure that you have a lot of ventilation and you also need to make sure that you remove as much glue as possible beforehand. Reading the back of the product is also crucial, as there you will find warnings, cautions, directions and any hazardous information you might need to know.
Sanding the Floor
When you have removed the glue from the surface, it’s then very important for you to make sure that you remove it from the pores that are present in the concrete. If you know that the glue is trapped in the pores, then the acid stain won’t be able to penetrate it properly. For this reason, you may well need to sand the floor just in case. A floor sander or even a buffing machine should get the job done. Just make sure that you use a very aggressive and tough grit so that you can get most of the glue off and then swap over to a finer grit to finish the job.
A fine grit sandpaper with a 300-grit rating would be fine here. Just make sure that you don’t end up going overboard because you may end up sanding way more than you need and the last thing you want is to expose any of the aggregate. In addition to this, if you sand the concrete then this will make it way more porous, so it may end up soaking up more of the acid stain or the sealer.
Troubleshoot
If you are having a very hard time removing the glue from the concrete slab or if you have tried all of the methods mentioned above and you are still having a hard time, then it’s time to start troubleshooting the issue. You can use a heat gun to try and soften the glue if you want. If you do not have a heat gun then using an iron may be helpful. Be careful when you are using the iron and make sure that you cover the glue with a thin towel beforehand. This will stop the glue from transferring onto the iron. If you still have glue marks at this point, then it may be possible for you to apply a highlighter coat. You can use watercolour paints between the coats of sealer to try and help you to mask the colour.
Some Advice for Carpet Tack Strips
A lot of carpets are secured along the edge of a concrete floor with tack strips. These are usually nailed right into the concrete. When you remove the strip, it may leave a small hole behind. Using a patching kit here will fill the hole but at the end of the day, it will also stain the concrete a different colour, leaving you with a different issue to solve. Don’t patch the holes in this instance. Carry on with neutralising and rinsing the floor and then apply the sealer. You can then fill the tack holes with some clear epoxy. The great thing about doing this is that it gives the stain colour the chance to show through and it also means that it’s levelled out nicely, meaning the hole isn’t there. Just make sure that you smooth out the top of the epoxy because if you don’t, then you will inadvertently create a small lump.
