How to Clean a Concrete Garage Floor. CC BY Olger Fallas Painting via flickr. Learning the best way to clean a garage floor properly is a skill that is high on most home improvement lists. It is a critical aspect for any project that involves prepping a floor for paint, an epoxy coating, or for just creating a nice clean garage floor free of spills, stains, and contaminants. Depending upon what type of garage floor project you have chosen and how dirty your floor is, there are different methods of cleaning a concrete floor that you may want to engage. We will discuss each of them as we go in order to assure a successful outcome. · Cleaning out bed bugs in carpet can be very effective, but you’ll need to do it the proper way to make sure that you’re actually removing bed bugs. East river high school graduation 2018;. How to Repair Hairline Cracks in a Ceramic Floor Tile thumbnail. This guide is about fixing cracks in ceramic floor tiles. Guidelines on Prevention of Breeding of Blood Worms in Swimming Pools. (especially cracks and holes in the dead. Undersides of damaged floor tiles near the pool. Why Are My Pool Tiles Falling Off? This joint is sealed with caulk, but that can develop cracks and needs to be retouched periodically. 3. Pool damage. If your goal is to eliminate pet urine odor and stains, then we have a separate article for that here. Scrubbing the garage floor clean. For the best success, the first thing you want to do is remove everything from the garage floor that is not anchored down and sweep out the heavy dirt and debris. As obvious as this seems, there are people who don’t want to do this and they are the ones who always end up ruining something due to water damage. If you have painted drywall in your garage or low electrical outlets, you may want to cover the lower 3ft. The easiest low budget method for cleaning the garage floor is to use a concentrated concrete degreaser, a deck brush, your garden hose with a high pressure nozzle, and some good old fashioned elbow grease. If you don’t have a degreaser, Tide laundry detergent or TSP (Trisodium Phosphate) are excellent substitutes for cleaning concrete. Mix the cleaning agent of choice into a large bucket of warm to hot water. For Tide we like to use a ratio of 1/3 cup of Tide to 1 gallon of water. Follow the recommended directions for the TSP or degreaser. It is easiest if you divide your floor into sections as you clean. Pelvic fracture is a disruption. but the most significant fractures involve high-energy forces. Falling is one of the most common causes of a pelvic fracture.Cleaning solution of Tide and hot water. Pour your warm soapy solution onto a section and start scrubbing with your deck brush. For particularly dirty floors it helps to let the solution set for a few minutes after your initial scrubbing in order for it to work on the dirt and grime. After it has set for 5 – 1. Follow that up with a good rinsing with your high pressure nozzle and then move on to the next section. What’s important here is to make sure that the solution you are scrubbing with does not start to dry up before you rinse it away. The reason for this is that the contaminants in the pores of the concrete are emulsified and lifted out in the solution while it is still wet. This makes it easy to rinse out with the high pressure nozzle. If it starts to dry out, these contaminants can be left behind with the rinsing. Tip: Push brooms make a poor scrub brush. The bristles are too long and the surface area is too large to apply good pressure. Purchase a cheap deck brush with the short stiff bristles. These work best. Once the floor dries you should have a nice clean surface and can inspect for any tough areas that need to be spot cleaned such as grease and oil stains. Equipment for cleaning a garage floor. Concrete is porous and can really become embedded with dirt and grime over the years if it hasn’t been cleaned very often or at all. If you are dealing with a floor such as this then you do have some equipment options that can make the job easier and work great at getting the dirtiest of garage floors clean. The first of these is a pressure washer. Pressure washers can save a lot of time in scrubbing and are excellent at cleaning concrete. Most will allow you to add a degreaser to the water for additional cleaning action. You can read more about pressure washers for garage floors here. They are not very expensive to rent and you can usually find them at your local home improvement or equipment rental centers. For effective cleaning, a minimum 3. PSI washer should be used with a water flow rate of 3 gallons per minute or more. Some of these possible causes might cause water seepage for a week or more after a rain or similar water source event, as it seeps down to the floor. If high. A high percentage of material passing the 600 µm. construction force cracks to occur in places where they are. Causes, Prevention. The key to using a pressure washer is to presoak the concrete with the cleaning solution first for 1. Work in sections as stated above. Once the area has soaked, add more water to the floor and use the pressure washer to start rinsing the grime away. The yellow 1. 5 degree fan tips work best for dirty concrete. For particularly stubborn areas such as stains, you can use the more powerful turbo tip. Just be careful not to linger too long in one area when using a good pressure washer and keep the tip moving. Because the water action is so abrasive, you can actually etch the surface of the concrete if you are not careful. The second equipment option you can use is a floor buffer (also known as floor maintainers) with a nylon scrubbing head for concrete. You can rent these inexpensively as well. Be sure to tell the rental company that you will need a head for cleaning concrete. Home Depot is a great resource for these. When using a floor buffer you will clean the concrete in the same manner as if using a deck brush. Just substitute the floor buffer for the deck brush. Take your time as you go and let the buffing machine do its work. You may have to add a little water as you scrub to keep the solution wet and foamy. These can do wonders to some concrete with the floors turning many shades lighter after scrubbing with a floor buffer. Cleaning oil stains and grease. With the heavy cleaning done, you can now tackle the oil and grease stains that were not completely removed by the scrubbing. Wet the stain and surrounding area first then apply your degreaser to the oil spot in full strength. The reason for wetting first is to prevent the contaminants in the stain from spreading to a dry area. Scrub the degreaser in and let it sit for a while. Apply more degreaser, scrub, and then rinse with the high pressure nozzle. Mixing a heavy concentration of Tide into something closely resembling a liquid paste works well also. Just make sure the concrete is wet before you apply it and scrub it in. Again, let it sit without drying out before you rinse it. These methods will take care of most standard oil and grease spots. If these methods don’t remove all the oil stain, there are advanced methods for removing oil stains below. Be advised that older stains that have been in the concrete for a long time will still have some discoloration. To make sure that you were successful in removing the oil, test it by sprinkling a few drops of water onto the surface. It should not bead up. If the water doesn’t soak in or beads up on the surface, then that is an indication that it was not all removed and you may have to clean it again. Removing rust stains in concrete. There are a few ways in which to rid your garage floor of rust stains. For small spots, the simplest is to use either lemons or white vinegar. The white vinegar is easier to use if the spots are larger. Squeeze the lemons or pour the white vinegar over the stain and let it sit for 5 minutes or more. Add some more lemon juice or vinegar and then scrub with a good stiff brush. Rinse well with water and repeat if necessary. A high concentration of TSP mixed with boiling water works wonders on rust as well. Be sure to let it sit on the stain for about 1. Repeat if necessary. Oxalic acid is another product that is even tougher on rust stains. You can generally purchase it from your local home improvement center or hardware store. Some concrete cleaners for rust stains have it as an ingredient. It may even come in a powder form which you mix with water to make a soupy paste. Apply the Oxalic acid to the stain and let it sit for 5 minutes before scrubbing. Be sure to rinse real well afterwards. Again, repeat if necessary. Another option is to use one of the concrete rust stain remover products that are available over the counter. You can see a whole list of some of these products here from Amazon. For the toughest of rust stains a mild solution of muriatic acid will work wonders, but you need to be careful when using it. We suggest a ratio of 1. Can Granite Countertops Cause Cancer. Can granite countertops really cause lung cancer? How would you know? How can you find out if you are safe? How Could Granite Countertops Cause Lung Cancer? The concern about granite countertops leading to lung cancer came about because we know some of these natural surfaces can emit radon. The normal decay of uranium present in granite produces radon gas, but the amount of this gas can vary tremendously. To best understand this let's back up and talk about the importance of radon in lung cancer so you can understand your risk, if any. Radon and Exposure and Lung Cancer Risk. Exposure to radon gas in our homes—possible anywhere in the world and in all 5. States—is thought to be the second leading cause of lung cancer overall, and the leading cause of lung cancer in non- smokers. Since lung cancer in never smokers is the 6th leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States, these are not small numbers. For a quick comparison, there are roughly 4. U. S. each year. There are 2. Yet, we certainly hear more about breast cancer. Hearing the word radon may put a picture of miners in your head, but in fact, the greatest risk is to those who spend the most time in the home: women and children. Radon gas results from the normal decay of uranium, which can be present in varying degrees in the rock beneath our homes. When released into the air outside, it is not a problem as it diffuses widely. When trapped in our homes, however, the levels can build up abnormally high, and eventually, lead to cancer. Most radon exposure occurs due to radon that seeps into our homes through the foundation by way of cracks, sump pumps, and drains. The age of your home isn't important, and newer homes may actually grant a higher risk due to being more tightly sealed. Back to Countertops and Radon Exposure. Studies have shown that granite countertops can emit radon and radiation, but this is usually at very low levels that are well below the level occurring in most homes, and well below the limit recommended by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It's important as well, before looking specifically at granite, to realize that many "natural" products will, by their very nature, carry radon to some degree. Products ranging from the clay in bricks, to marble, to natural gas, may contain radon, and since granite is less porous than some of these other products, should be of even less concern. That said, in rare cases, the radon emitted from granite countertops has been significant. What can you do to make sure you are safe? First Step - Test Your Home. If you haven't tested your home for radon, the first step would be to forget about your countertops and do radon testing for your home. Your chance of being exposed to radon in your home is much greater than your chance of exposure from your countertops. Kits are available at most hardware stores for around $1. If your level is abnormal (levels are mentioned in the article link above on radon testing,) check out this information on doing radon mitigation. Second Step - Consider the Possibility of Radon in Your Countertops. If you wish to get an idea on your own if your granite countertops are of concern, you might consider doing one radon test in the lowest level of your home, and another in the room where you have a granite countertop. And perhaps a 3rd test in a room at a distance but on the same floor as your granite countertop.) If you try this, it is recommended that you place both kits at least 2. If the levels are abnormal, retest both areas to get a second reading. Even if your granite countertops are emitting a significant amount of radon, this does not necessarily mean they need to be removed. Ventilation techniques to improve indoor air might lower the radon level to acceptable levels. If you are still concerned that your granite countertops may be raising the radon level in your home after mitigation, there are a few options. The EPA suggests that you may hire a certified radon professional to test for other sources of radon in your home such as granite countertops. The American Association of Radon Scientists and Technologists has a list of qualified professionals. It's important to note that, according to the EPA, some of the measurements currently being used (Geiger counter measurements) are not very accurate. Currently, no regulations require manufacturers to test for the presence of radon in building materials. But this may change in the future as we learn more. Bottom Line on Granite Countertops and Radon Induced Cancer Risk. While there is a potential risk of radon exposure due to granite countertops, this risk pales in comparison to the risk posed by elevated radon levels in the home related to radon in the soil beneath homes or even in ground water. For the most part, those who are anxious to lessen their exposure to carcinogens might get much more reduction for their efforts by looking at some of the other ways in which you can reduce your risk of lung cancer, perhaps even adding some of these superfoods to lower lung cancer risk to your daily meals. Sources: Allen, J. Assessing exposure to granite countertops- -Part 2: Radon. Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology. Environmental Protection Agency. Granite Countertops and Radon. Updated 1. 0/2. 6/1.
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