# Smoothing rough concrete with sealer.



## Msradell (Sep 1, 2011)

The pictures of the surface that you have now would certainly help us provide you better answers but I can certainly give you some answers now. Applying sealer will have little to no effect on the surface texture. Sealer basically soaks into the concrete and fills the pores, it provides very little buildup on the surface.
　
I've never used a polishing pad to smooth concrete, I've always used a diamond grinding wheel. I'm kind of afraid that the roughness on the surface of the concrete would tear apart the polishing pad.
　
Floors can be ground after they are stained and sealed but it will certainly affect the color of the surface. You also have to remove all of the sealer so the new coat of stain can penetrate. You're much better off getting the surface finish you want at the beginning instead of trying to do it later.


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## MKMaster (Jun 30, 2016)

Ok excellent. Thank you so much for the tips.

I've searched the Home Depot website for the proper polishing tools. I guess I just feel hesitant about renting their full size machines for around $80 a day. So, I've been trying to find the right pad that can be used with an angle grinder so that I can just smooth concrete with that.

Home Depot has stuff like this:

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Archer-U...olishing-Pad-for-Stone-WPP04-B-3000/204584893

It's a polishing pad, but the details say it's optimized for marble and granite. Can it also work for concrete???

Thanks!


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## Canarywood1 (May 5, 2012)

You really don't want to use that pad as it's for polishing not grinding, big difference in what it will achieve, also the surface your attempting to grind will show coarse aggregate, which is what you don't want, floors that are going to be ground and polished, are a far different mix that regular structural concrete, save yourself the time and effort


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## MKMaster (Jun 30, 2016)

Ok cool. Good to know. Is there any kind of surface smoothing I can do that you know of? I can of course rent a Home Depot grinder. It's only about 300 square feet, could probably be done in a few hours (just guessing).

But, it is of course the structural concrete that contains the aggregate rock. In this case, is it possible to do several layers of epoxy or some kind 'shining' substance that will just add a layer of material actually above the concrete?

Thanks so much for all the replies guys!


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