Hello everyone.
I hope I’m in the right category here.
I have a question or maybe two....
I’m currently building an outdoor kitchen. For this, I poured a concrete slab, then laid masonry blocks, and finally made a countertop. For the countertop, I first built the formwork, lined it with a plastic sheet, placed reinforcement bars inside, and poured ready-mixed concrete. I tamped the concrete as best as I could, with varying success. After one week, I removed the formwork and covered the surface with plastic due to rain. You can see the result in the picture. That was almost two weeks ago now.
My questions are:
1. I would like to somehow finish the slab by covering or painting it to make the surface look nice. I see a problem with tiles because they might flake off in winter. Would it be possible, for example, to seal the slab with concrete filler or something similar and then paint over it with concrete paint? Or will cracks appear sooner or later anyway? If this is possible, how long do I have to wait before applying the filler? Do I have to apply filler and paint to the underside as well? What about primer or similar products? Which concrete filler should I use? After applying filler, what kind of paint should I apply, and when?
2. In some areas (mainly on the surface), the concrete seems porous. Probably it was not tamped properly. If I use concrete filler, can I just apply it over those spots and will it hold? Or do I need to do something in between, like adding a bonding agent or anything else?
3. In the picture, you can hopefully see on the front edge next to the sink on the right where some concrete chipped off during formwork removal. Is there something I can use to restore that?
I have already been to several hardware stores, and everyone tells me something different, so I don’t know whom to believe. Ideally, I want to finish the kitchen once and then have peace of mind for years. Repainting once in a while is fine, but not constantly dealing with cracks or other repairs. Also, the costs should be reasonable; otherwise, I would have just bought a marble slab.
With that in mind, I thought I’d ask experts who know what they’re talking about.
I really hope you can help me with this project.
Thanks a lot in advance.
Best regards
I hope I’m in the right category here.
I have a question or maybe two....
I’m currently building an outdoor kitchen. For this, I poured a concrete slab, then laid masonry blocks, and finally made a countertop. For the countertop, I first built the formwork, lined it with a plastic sheet, placed reinforcement bars inside, and poured ready-mixed concrete. I tamped the concrete as best as I could, with varying success. After one week, I removed the formwork and covered the surface with plastic due to rain. You can see the result in the picture. That was almost two weeks ago now.
My questions are:
1. I would like to somehow finish the slab by covering or painting it to make the surface look nice. I see a problem with tiles because they might flake off in winter. Would it be possible, for example, to seal the slab with concrete filler or something similar and then paint over it with concrete paint? Or will cracks appear sooner or later anyway? If this is possible, how long do I have to wait before applying the filler? Do I have to apply filler and paint to the underside as well? What about primer or similar products? Which concrete filler should I use? After applying filler, what kind of paint should I apply, and when?
2. In some areas (mainly on the surface), the concrete seems porous. Probably it was not tamped properly. If I use concrete filler, can I just apply it over those spots and will it hold? Or do I need to do something in between, like adding a bonding agent or anything else?
3. In the picture, you can hopefully see on the front edge next to the sink on the right where some concrete chipped off during formwork removal. Is there something I can use to restore that?
I have already been to several hardware stores, and everyone tells me something different, so I don’t know whom to believe. Ideally, I want to finish the kitchen once and then have peace of mind for years. Repainting once in a while is fine, but not constantly dealing with cracks or other repairs. Also, the costs should be reasonable; otherwise, I would have just bought a marble slab.
With that in mind, I thought I’d ask experts who know what they’re talking about.
I really hope you can help me with this project.
Thanks a lot in advance.
Best regards
