Spent 6 months troweling my garage slab wrong before a neighbor called me out

I was out there every weekend for half a year doing my own garage floor, thinking I had the finish down perfect. My neighbor Tom, who did concrete for 30 years in Houston, walked over and asked why I was dragging my trowel like a broom. Turns out I was using way too much pressure and not letting the cream come up natural-like. Has anyone else had that moment where a simple tip from an old-timer made you feel like a complete rookie?

2 comments

2 Comments

ramirez.caleb2d agoMost Upvoted

Wait wait wait, hold up. Six months?? Lol. I would have lost my mind if I spent that long doing something wrong. The cream coming up natural like is so real though, you gotta let the concrete do its thing not fight it. I watched a video once where a guy was like "dont overwork it, you're just rubbing air bubbles in" and it totally changed how I look at finishing. Bet your slab still turned out okay though, concrete's pretty forgiving for garage floors from what I hear.

jordan4641d ago

My buddy Mike spent almost four months on a paver patio in his backyard. Laid all the stone, got it looking perfect, then realized he'd forgot to account for drainage. Water was pooling right where his grill was gonna go. He was so pissed he just left it for a week and drank beer in the garage instead. Eventually he pulled up like half the damn thing and started over. When he finally finished it looked solid though, you couldn't even tell where he messed up. Concrete and pavers both got that "just walk away for a bit" rule that nobody wants to admit.