Glueing concrete - who knew?
A few months ago a corner of the concrete front porch fell off because water had been draining in a depression where a supporting post of the steel railing was embedded. Naturally with freeze/thaw cycles it froze off and when I touched it, it fell to the ground, missing my foot by about an inch.
Last month (March) I started making phone calls about getting it fixed, but as I suspected no one was interested in a small job like that. I know how to do it, but with back and shoulder issues I was and am perfectly willing to pay someone to build the form and pour a little bit of concrete. But along the way, a few people suggested the below solution, using a concrete epoxy to reattach the broken off piece. I'd never heard of this and was more than a bit skeptical. Finally a neighbor across the street who works in construction suggested it too. This guy has been playing with the full size Tonka Toys (his words) since high school so he has some credibility.
So I got some masonry epoxy from Home Depot, mixed it up and we applied it yesterday. The directions say three to four hour cure time but because of the temperatures being at the low end of the acceptable range (40° to 50°F) I'm going to leave the bungee cords on for a couple of days. It might help, can't hurt.
But if this works, I'm happy with it. I never would have guessed that there was a way to glue chunks of concrete back on. If it doesn't work, I'm only out some time and about $50.
And yes, I know I have some tuck pointing to do there too, but we're forecast to have rain every day for the next week or so, so that project will have to wait on decent weather. Also pressure washing, the porch is on the north side of the house and never sees direct sunlight.
A few months ago a corner of the concrete front porch fell off because water had been draining in a depression where a supporting post of the steel railing was embedded. Naturally with freeze/thaw cycles it froze off and when I touched it, it fell to the ground, missing my foot by about an inch.
Last month (March) I started making phone calls about getting it fixed, but as I suspected no one was interested in a small job like that. I know how to do it, but with back and shoulder issues I was and am perfectly willing to pay someone to build the form and pour a little bit of concrete. But along the way, a few people suggested the below solution, using a concrete epoxy to reattach the broken off piece. I'd never heard of this and was more than a bit skeptical. Finally a neighbor across the street who works in construction suggested it too. This guy has been playing with the full size Tonka Toys (his words) since high school so he has some credibility.
So I got some masonry epoxy from Home Depot, mixed it up and we applied it yesterday. The directions say three to four hour cure time but because of the temperatures being at the low end of the acceptable range (40° to 50°F) I'm going to leave the bungee cords on for a couple of days. It might help, can't hurt.
But if this works, I'm happy with it. I never would have guessed that there was a way to glue chunks of concrete back on. If it doesn't work, I'm only out some time and about $50.
And yes, I know I have some tuck pointing to do there too, but we're forecast to have rain every day for the next week or so, so that project will have to wait on decent weather. Also pressure washing, the porch is on the north side of the house and never sees direct sunlight.