re-surfacing concrete

[Salty]

Does anyone have any suggestions on refinishing an outside porch floor. It is what some would call a porch slab, about 6' square and 5" thick. It is poured over a block foundation but there is no basement under it. About 2' out from the door it shows a lot of age as the cement between the stones has worn away. We would like to refinish this along with the 2 steps leading down to the sidewalk. I'm concerned that just painting it will look ugly since the surface if very rough. Would thinset or something similar hold up under the winter freeze-thaw conditions.

Thanks in advance for the replies.

Dale

[Cheeky]

Does anyone have any suggestions on refinishing an outside porch floor. It is what some would call a porch slab, about 6' square and 5" thick. It is poured over a block foundation but there is no basement under it. About 2' out from the door it shows a lot of age as the cement between the stones has worn away. We would like to refinish this along with the 2 steps leading down to the sidewalk. I'm concerned that just painting it will look ugly since the surface if very rough. Would thinset or something similar hold up under the winter freeze-thaw conditions.

Thanks in advance for the replies.

Dale

they make specific products for resurfacing concrete. hd and lowes carries them...i believe quikrete makes one.

here's a diy link

here's a more thorough route

patio/decking tiles are pretty neat to. they just snap together.

[Pappy]

I was just looking at the concrete resurfacer at Lowe's. Wanted to find out if it could be colored before application. Acording to the DIY link, it can be.

[ndj]

Hopefully this link works.
http://www.quikrete.com/PDFs/Project...ngConcrete.pdf
At the end of the PDF it addresses coloring the resurfacer.

In addition, after resurfacing, instead of coloring the resurfacing agent here is another option: http://www.spreadrock.com/ Cost can be prohibitive here, but as I understand it, this will stand up to salt and almost anything. But the aged or damaged concrete must be resurfaced before using this.

[newood2]

You may want to check out Ardex CD here:
http://www.concretedressing.com/

I used it on twelve 22yr-old outside prefab concrete steps that acquired some hairline cracks over the years. I applied it 6 years ago, the Ardex CD plus Ardex Concrete Guard, and it still looking like new.

Howie

[Salty]

Thanks all. I hadn't even considered the Quickrete brand.
I did find Sakrete brand Top-N-Bond that I used to sell years ago. I guess I just didn't remember it. Either one would work but I like the idea of the thinner application of the Quickrete brand. Not sure about the Ardex stuff.

[crokett]

Contact a company called Mapei. www.mapei.com and look for their resurfacers. Cheaper than Ardex. I used one of their products for a recent project. Their tech support is very good and extremely helpful.