If you're tired of looking at your cracked and ugly garage floor, you might be thinking of putting an overlay or coating on it to make the floor more attractive. However, you'll want to bring in a residential concrete repair contractor to fill in the cracks first or the cracks will show through the overlay or coating. Here's how a residential concrete repair contractor may go about fixing cracks in your garage floor. 

Clean The Areas Around The Cracks First

The contractor may start out by power washing and sweeping your garage floor if you have several cracks. The cracks need to be clean, free of debris, and completely dry before work begins. In addition to washing and sweeping, the contractor may use a vacuum to pull debris from the cracks so the filler will adhere well.

Widen Tiny Cracks

For the crack filler to get deep inside the cracks, it may be necessary for the contractor to make tiny cracks wider. That way, the filler can sink to the bottom of the cracks. The concrete contractor might use a saw to widen the cracks so the work goes fast. When finished, they need to vacuum the cracks to get all the concrete dust and small chips out.

Fill The Cracks To Seal Them

There are different types of concrete filler on the market. Your contractor may use one that is applied with a caulk gun. They might only use filler or use filler and sand to make the repairs stronger. Filler usually cures pretty fast, so the contractor needs to work fast, but carefully, when filling in all the cracks on the floor. Some fillers seep in the crack, while others may need to be pushed in and leveled off so the surface of the floor is smooth.

Let The Filler Cure

Your concrete contractor will let you know how long you should let the concrete cure before you apply the overlay or coating. They may also offer advice on how to prep the floor before you apply the coating since some coatings may require floor sanding before the coating goes down.

You could hire a residential concrete contractor to apply the concrete coating too, but if you want to do it yourself, be sure to find out if you need to treat the cracks differently from the rest of the floor when you prep the concrete and apply the coating. With the coating applied properly, the repaired area will be covered and out of sight.

Contact a local residential concrete repair service to learn more.