Excess alkalinity will eat epoxy coating causing it to bubble and split.
Epoxy floor moisture test.
You need to do an mvt or moisture vapor transmission test on your floor s surface prior to applying either epoxy or paint on it.
Include a plastic sheet test which really is as simple as it sounds in your timeline so that you know the slab is truly cured and ready for the.
Clean and dry the concrete floor.
Follow the steps outlined below to perform a moisture test prior to an epoxy floor installation.
Plastic sheet moisture test.
Concrete is thick solid and hard.
The calcium chloride test is the only quantifiable test method which identifies the rate of moisture transmission within the concrete.
Planning ahead and installing a 10 mil reinforced moisture vapor barrier film before the slab is poured is a great first step toward avoiding eventual moisture issues in your epoxy flooring.
A third option a simple diy test can indicate the presence of excess moisture either on the slab surface or in the room s air but it cannot measure.
Only then can you test properly for moisture using the following test methods.
Are placed on various areas of your floor as a single test on a large area cannot accurately determine moisture levels.
Ft then additional kits for every 2 000 3 000 sq.
This is a low cost low tech moisture test that can be useful for determining if you have moisture in a garage or basement floor.
If there are any mortars grouts or adhesives they must be removed and ground down to expose a clean section of concrete.
One test kit is normally used for the 1st 1 000 sq.
Testing moisture in concrete.
Flooring manufacturers rate their products based on the moisture levels they can tolerate and testing your slab can tell you if a particular flooring material is likely to perform adequately.
One way to eliminate epoxy floor coating failure is to test it before you coat it.
It is necessary to test your concrete for moisture before applying any coat of paint or epoxy on it.
There are two tests that are typically used one is a calcium chloride test astm f1860 11 standard and the other is an in situ relative humidity test astm f2170 11.
Sweep vacuum and dry the concrete floor with a shop vacuum to ensure it is emitting as little moisture as possible.
Avoid the problem by doing a simple moisture test to determine if the floor is right for an epoxy coating.
It is not however the best test if you are planning to put an epoxy coating on the floor.
The floor covering must be removed.