The key to successfully applying a new floor covering, whether it’s epoxy, mastic, or even carpet, is properly preparing the surface. In fact, poor surface preparation is the leading cause of failed floor coverings, and often, the culprit is old adhesive from a previous floor covering. Bits of glue from old wood floors, strips of residue from carpet adhesive, spots of epoxy, and other adhesives prevent the new floor covering from gripping or binding to the concrete, so over time, the covering will come up, buckle, bubble, or cause other problems. Fortunately, with the proper steps and a bit of time, you can effectively remove all traces of adhesive from a concrete slab. Check out the video below or read on to learn what you need to do.

Using a Prep/Master Floor Grinder to Remove Adhesive

While solvents and other chemicals may claim to break down glue and adhesive, they’re not ideal for concrete as they may still leave traces behind, leave another residue, or even negatively react with the concrete. Instead, you’ll get a much more successful result with mechanical removal using a floor grinder and diamond tooling.

In the video above, we are using the Prep/Master Jr. Floor Grinding Machine as it provides the power necessary to grind away old adhesive and smooth the slab, but it’s compact enough for residential and small spaces, like garages or basements. With the pocket weights, it increases head pressure to effectively grind away the tape, glue, and other residues while ensuring a smooth, even result.

To save time on clean-up, and more importantly, to improve the safety of the job site, we connected the floor grinder with the Prep/Master 3003AR Dust Collector. This connects directly into the machine, removing fine concrete dust before it has the chance to settle into the floor or drift into the air. Using a dust collector provides the added bonus of extending the life of your diamond tooling as it’s not trying to grind through a layer of dust that has settled over the slab.

We recommend grinding the entire slab rather than just spots where you may see leftover adhesive. Not only will you get a more even, reliable result, this will also prevent you from missing spots.

Order Your Floor Grinder Today

If you have a concrete surface preparation project planned, make sure you get the long-lasting, professional results you want. Shop our selection of Prep/Master floor grinders, dust collectors, and tooling today. To learn more about the equipment that will work best for you or to learn more about properly removing adhesives, call us at  +1 (815) 941-4800 or fill out the contact form to get started.