Epoxy Floor And Bubbles – What To Do?
It is not so rare to see bubbles appear on epoxy coating. Bubbles are usually observed to be the size of a pinhead or more than an inch in diameter. You can find them in groups or scaterred around the floor. A phenomenon calle “out gassin” is what causes this. When the epoxy paint starts to dry, then this happens. The rise in temperature is the reason for the heating of the air in the concrete making it expand and form bubbles.
Application primer should be used to reduce the chance of bubble appearance. You should use a slower drill to mix the epoxy coating, and when you start to apply it, be sure there is no sunlight hitting directly on the surface you are working with.
Use medium roller if you already decided to use one. Use gentle and slow motions when you are applying your epoxy paint. This will be helpful in preventing bubbles from being formed in epoxy coatings.
You can use rotary scrubber ans some sandpaper to remove all those bubbles on your epoxy floor. First roughen the bubbled area with the sandpaper. And then get to dust cleaning. Use a rag dipped in solvent to clean the area you worked on. After this another coating can be applied. Another type of bubble observed is fisheyes. The silicone that remained on the surface is one of the reasons.
This can be cleaned by scrubbing the surface area with sandpaper of a medium grit. After this, scrupulously clean the area with a rag dipped in solvent. After this a fresh coating may be applied.
If there are bubbles in the entire epoxy flooring area then shot blasting or sand blasting may be considered. You will need to sand blast the entire area of epoxy coating first. Use acid to clean the entire area where problem appeared. In case you are working on a very small area, you can isolate it. You will need to repair the area first and the you will have to make a new coating.
Our epoxy floors can have bubbles due to another reason: moisture. To verify this break one of the blisters thus formed and see if there is any moisture inside.
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