Removing plaster from concrete floor

[SteBrown91]

Just had plasterers plaster the ceiling in our new garage, however plasterers being plasterers they have left an almighty mess on my Floor.

I plan on dealing with the splodges of plaster with a wire brush but there is lots of pink staining all over the floor which is a mess and makes the garage dusty.

What’s the best way of getting this off? I have tried brushing and hoovering but it doesn’t seem to shift it.

The concrete is sealed with Bostik concrete sealer so in theory stuff shouldn’t embed in so easily but this pinky mess doesn’t want to shift!

Cheers

[Zarco]

Getting it wet is the trick. Scrubs or scrapes off much easier with a bit of water.

[SteBrown91]

I was thinking of this but didn’t want to “bake it in” if that makes sense. I was thinking then if sacrificing a a steamer mop pad then? Sure the other half will be happy with that haha

[Carbon Sasquatch]

I used one of these to clean up after the plasterers had finished decorating my floor -

https://www.screwfix.com/p/magnusson-floor-scraper...

[Dsdans]

Depending on the area a brisk once over with a mop and then a wall paper scraper should make light work of it. If a large area it might be worth getting the tool above.

As long as you don't leave it there for too long (ie weeks) it shouldn't bond and will crumble off quite easily.

[SteBrown91]

Cheers the plasterers to be fair did go over the floor with a scraper but they have basically left a load of flattened bits (like when there is tractor mud on the road and it’s been squashed by traffic) but it was more the pinkish dusty staining that bothers me. I’ll try with the hosepipe and a brush to wet the floor a bit then perhaps buy a cheap old fashioned mop if needed. Cheers

[Dog Star]

Carbon Sasquatch said:

I used one of these to clean up after the plasterers had finished decorating my floor -

https://www.screwfix.com/p/magnusson-floor-scraper...

I came here to post this. One of those is what you need, OP.

I have one for doing my garage roof; I've a big garage but it's under trees and after a few years it gets a very thick coating of moss. I wait til a nice hot few days (a rare thing indeed round here) then go up with the scraper and scrape it all off. Comes off in huge sheets and being dry weighs nothing,

[Carbon Sasquatch]

If you've got rid of the blobs, then maybe a pressure washer for the marks that are left ?

Otherwise, tile the floor

[SteBrown91]

Cheers all, bought a scraper and it did a good job of the screeded sunroom but the garage was just too uneven and potted to really make a difference. I managed to flatten off most and remove the odd piece then blasted the floor with the jetwash and it looks better. I think that’s the best I’ll do without spending days faffing around.

Luckily my plan is to rubber tile it anyway which will hide the mess!

[Carbon Sasquatch]

Rubber tiles as in gym type thick ones, or something to drive on ?

If game, I have these and am happy with them - https://www.bigdug.co.uk/mats-flooring-c402/leisur...

There's a long thread here on all things garage flooring -
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

[Wagonwheel555]

If its flat to the floor, you might struggle with anything angled like a crowbar etc. Those tend to work better for stuff that's got a ridge you can bash against.

Did they not cover the floor?

I realise plastering is a wet trade but if they had covered the floor properly, you wouldn't have it all over the place. We just had the landing done and there is not a bit of plaster on the carpets anywhere.