How to Make Concrete Smooth and shiny

There's something very appealing with a shiny, smooth surface, and it's no surprise that many people would like their concrete to show the same qualities. If you've made the effort to pour the concrete, it's proper to achieve the look you desire.

To get a smooth and shiny finish, it is necessary to ensure that the concrete undergoes troweling, floating, and leveling before the concrete cures. After you've achieved a smooth concrete surface and after the concrete has dried, you can use either chemical or mechanical polishing techniques to get the desired glossy, smooth finish.

There are both right and wrong methods to create the ideal finish for your concrete. It's crucial to understand the various techniques and tools that are readily available. The process is divided into the steps to take prior to curing and what you should do following curing.

Preparing for Curing: to Create The Most Smooth Concrete



When you finish the concrete surface, you must be aware of a few aspects you need to complete to ensure you get the desired outcomes, no matter the type of finish that you're looking for.

If you're looking for the smoothest, most polished finish possible, then adhere to a set of steps.

Step 1: Make sure you level the concrete.

After you've laid your concrete, you must make sure it is level. Two tools commonly used for leveling freshly laid concrete are the screed board as well as the darby.

The screed could be a piece of aluminum or a flat piece of wood that you use to draw it over wet concrete. Darby is basically an enormous trowel that has an extended, narrow strip and two or more handles to take up a large space.

First, you must make sure that your concrete is level by using your screed board and then pushing it across the concrete's surface. The screed helps fill any holes in the concrete and remove any concrete that is not needed. After that, you can use the darby in order to smooth the concrete even more.

It's recommended that you rotate the darby in an arc and make sure it's in a straight line so that there aren't any snags to the surfaces.

This should be done before the water free of cement mix, also known by the name of "bleed water," rises over the concrete.

Step 2: Wait for the water to bleed.

It is now time to allow the water to reach above the surface of the concrete before moving on to the next stage of smoothing the concrete. The water that bleeds will evaporate by itself; however, the duration depends on the characteristics of the concrete and the conditions in the environment.

It's crucial to wait for the bleed water to dry completely, or else you're at risk of causing problems like scaling, dusting and delamination in the near future.

Step 3: Float the concrete.

Floating concrete is an important process to create an even surface. When using a screed or darby, it will provide you with a level surface. Floating will help to smooth any imperfections, firm the concrete and make it ready for further final steps. Concrete can be floated with your hands or use the aid of a machine.

If you want to float concrete using your hands, it is possible to use small hand floats or larger floating floats. While a basic magnesium hand float is great for smaller concrete surfaces, it is possible to consider using an oversized bull float for bigger surfaces so that the aggregates are able to settle.

Step 4: Trowel the concrete.

Troweling is essential when it comes to indoor concrete. In this instance, you're using a floating trowel or trowel for flooring.

The way to achieve the smoothest surfaces is to trowel that is made of steel and increase tension as you progress.

Step 5: Allow the concrete to heal.

After you've completed the steps necessary to finish and are ready to allow for the cement to set, when it is fully cured then, you can proceed to polishing.