
EXPANTION JOINT REPAIRS
Concrete floors are built with expansion joints so that as temperature change and heavy loads exert pressure on the slab, the floor sections can flex rather than crack. Expansion joints are repaired or replace after painting concrete or epoxy flooring. While these joints are created to protect the integrity of the floor, they are also the first place where the floor begins to deteriorate. Concrete expansion control joints are prone to failure in two ways. The more serious form is when the slabs become uneven or the concrete begins to chip and crack along the joint lines. As the problem worsens, the failing joint becomes a health and safety hazard. When a forklift runs across a failing floor joint, the uneven surface jolts the driver and the load, putting employees and merchandise at risk. As the joint grows, it also becomes a trap for debris and dirt, breeding bacterial growth especially after power washing services.
A secondary problem caused by failing expansion joints is cracking and chipping of epoxy floor coatings. Many floor coating companies and painting contractors neglect to properly treat the expansion joints when installing an epoxy flooring system. Instead, they just paint right across the joint. Since the control joint is designed to flex, it quickly snaps the rigid epoxy, creating a fault line that quickly grows with foot and forklift traffic on commercial or industrial properties. For more information on Expansion Joints, download our Expansion Joint PDF here.




Expansion Joint Replacement
Superior Painting Company is a licensed commercial and industrial painting contractor that can rebuild and repair problematic expansion joints for any type of concrete. We start by grinding out the joint to remove all faulty concrete and paint, as well as debris. We then rebuild the concrete control joint with an epoxy mortar and recreate a level, smooth surface with a clean joint. Next, we apply the floor epoxy to the entire surface, and cut a clean line in the surface once it is dry. This cut line is then filled with flexible polyurethane joint filler, which creates a flexible joint in the epoxy surface that will flex with the slab beneath. This creates a seal that will move to avoid cracking from sudden movement of concrete over time. Expansion-joints are also often replaced after sand-blasting flooring surfaces to remove epoxy flooring or other paints.