A polished concrete floor looks clean and fresh but we know it can get slippery. There are lots of ways to reduce slip on floors, so how do I make my concrete floor less slippery?
A concrete floor can be made less slippery by using a form of polymer grit additive. This substance has small plastic particles that add friction to the concrete surface which decreases the slipperiness. Any textured coating is a great option to add friction after the concrete floors have been laid.
There are quite a few different solutions to making your floor less slippery. Some require more labour than others. Let’s look more into making your concrete floors less slippery.
How do you seal concrete without it being slippery?
One way to make your concrete floor less slippery is to use a concrete coating with polymer grit additives. This kind of additive is mixed in with the final coat of paint or sealing over the concrete. Polymer grit additives are pieces of plastic that are microscopic so won’t be noticeable when you walk on the concrete. The texture from the plastic creates more friction between your feet and the concrete surface. More friction means less slipping!
Other substances that can be used to make concrete floors less slippery are abrasive aggregates, epoxy resin materials, and non-slip strips. Without these additives, concrete floors can become very slippery.
The other option you have is to paint the concrete with a liquid that is four parts paint and one part sand. Make sure the mixture is stirred well and applied evenly over the concrete. The sand will act in the same way that polymer grit does by adding texture and friction to it and making your concrete floor less slippery.
You can put a rug down as a quick solution to cover the slippery surface. But you’re better off not taking any chances and doing a traction increasing finishing coat.
How do you make concrete traction?
There are a ton of ways to add traction to concrete, but the most common is troweling. This is the simple process of moving a trowel back and forth across the surface of the wet concrete, to add a rougher surface and increase traction. Once you get the hang of it, using a trowel on concrete floors to make them less slippery is a great option. Troweling is a method that is used before the concrete has completely set and dried. You can choose between ride on troweling machines and hand-pushed trowels like the Bartell Mega T 46 Inch Concrete Helicopter Trowel.
But what about a concrete floor that has already been laid? Then grip tape is a great option! You lay down grip tape and pads on the floor in sections that are used the most. These items typically have self-adhesive on one side which is how they are attached to the concrete. The top side of the tape and mats is like sandpaper, adding traction when you walk and helping you stay upright on slippery concrete floors. This is the tape you see on stairs and around outdoor pools.
You can also grind slippery concrete floors with diamond or acid etch. This is a more labour-intensive method, but a permanent one. It has a similar effect on concrete as troweling. It’s as close to a similar result that you can get. This method removes irregularities from the concrete surface, increasing the friction.
Finally, you can use any of the wide variety of non-slip additives, like grit, sand, or any granular, non-slip formula sold by hardware stores. These are generally easier to apply than grinding down the surface, but you may need to reapply the coating sooner down the line. Just like most paint and coating, it can wear away with time, but they do a great job at making concrete floor less slippery.
Why is my concrete slippery?
Concrete has quite a smooth finish a lot of the time, especially when designed for buildings as the floor. This is because the smooth finish achieved with power floats and other tools makes it look more appealing. But smooth surfaces have lower friction. Lower friction is what makes the concrete floor slippery.
Concrete becomes even more slippery when it is wet because the water further smooths the surface. This is why people tell you not to run in the rain because most of the time you will be on surfaces like concrete. Anyone running combined with an extra slippery surface is almost a recipe for disaster. Thankfully, because of how popular concrete is, we have developed plenty of resolutions to make concrete floors less slippery. Hopefully one of the tips above is able to help you figure out the best solution to make your concrete floors less slippery.
How do I stop moisture coming through concrete floor?
Concrete is the most slippery when it is wet, and it does like to retain water for a while. This means that after rain has stopped or it seems like your floors have dried, it’s possible there’s still enough moisture to make slippery floors. This moisture-retaining can result in moisture problems in concrete floors.
The best solutions here are to try and make a moisture-proof concrete floor. There are several ways to achieve this. The most effective need to be done as the floor is installed. But don’t stress if you’re trying to protect a floor that’s already laid.
When installing the floor, you can use a low permeance vapour barrier, or a moisture retarder, like layers of sand. This prevents the moisture from getting into the concrete in the first place. Keeping any excavations free of water is, of course, also an important step.
Once the floor is laid, there are still numerous ways you can keep them from becoming too wet. The best is some kind of damping agent, like liquid epoxy. These damping agents create water-resistant layers, keeping moisture in and out of the concrete as needed. You might need to apply multiple layers of damping agents. Make sure you allow each layer to sets before applying another.
If you’ve got problems with moisture in an existing concrete floor, you’re not going to do better than a damping agent to fix the problem. You will still want to add some kind of traction on top of your damping agents and other moisture proofing methods. This is just to make sure that you really do make your concrete floors less slippery.
While you’re working with concrete, do you know if you can use an angle grinder to level concrete? Do you know how to use a concrete core drill? We have a helpful guide to concrete core drills to help you out! For quality cutting and grinding tools, check out Paragon Tools Australia!