Such a hand tool as a trowel cannot be described in a nutshell. In everyday life, this term is called tools for work in various directions. And our article will consider a tool that is designed for construction work with mortars and concretes.
The name itself speaks for itself: in order to smooth the surface, this building device is intended. Of course, there are a fairly large number of tools that qualify by this term, but, as a rule, they perform completely different tasks and even not construction ones at all. But let's get back to our device and see what tasks and how it copes. Anyone who has ever encountered the installation of a floor screed knows that laying mortar or concrete ultimately implies a perfectly flat surface.
But after setting the solution, we can observe some irregularities, and they are caused by a large amount of water that was contained in the solution. In order to avoid such incidents, there is a trowel, with its help we not only additionally smooth fresh concrete or mortar, but also force excess moisture to come to the surface of the screed. Further, with the help of our tool, we can remove this moisture. Of course, this is entirely the merit of the device itself, thought out to the smallest detail.
In fact, the device of this tool is quite simple, usually it is a pen, in all respects similar to a pen. It can also be solid, according to the principle of a trowel device. In both cases, the convenience of one or another option depends on the skill of the builder himself. The handle is fixed to a metal plate by means of spot welding, which plays the role of a working smoothing surface.
This is how a hand trowel for concrete is usually arranged. , it is advisable to use it when working on small square meters of surface. But there is also a tool for use on large areas, the so-called production model. Its device is significantly different from the device of a manual model; such a tool is based on the design of a conventional mop. First of all, this is a work surface that reaches a width of one meter, and a telescopic handle that can reach ten meters.
When pouring concrete over a large square, using a tool of this configuration is a must, and here are some of the performance features that help the master perform the tasks.
- A wide working surface, due to which, while working with concretes and mortars, it is possible to process a significant surface area at once. As a result, we get better alignment and a minimum of irregularities.
- Handle length: the telescopic design of the working handle can in some cases reach 12 meters, which makes it possible to process large volumes of laid concrete in large areas. In production, this significantly speeds up the process of pouring concrete on the floor surface.
- Scraper function: such a tool is usually equipped with an additional element, a blade, which is installed on the work surface. The use of such an element helps to remove protruding water from the surface in those places that you can no longer get into after pouring the concrete. But with the help of this device, this task becomes completely solvable.
- The material from which the trowel is made: as a rule, it is stainless steel, which does not lend itself to corrosion, respectively, its service life is quite long. Also, very often, the working surface can be made of aluminum, which greatly lightens the weight of the tool and also extends the service life.
When choosing a tool for your own needs, be sure to consider these characteristics. In some cases, it can be made independently from improvised materials, most often, wood is used for these purposes.
It is impossible not to mention one more very promising model of this tool: a metal trowel has firmly occupied a niche in finishing work. Today, most professional painters use such a hand tool to apply putty to walls and then level them. Of course, there are spatulas for these purposes, but due to the fact that the working area of the trowel is metal and, as a rule, smooth, such a tool is almost no different from a spatula during work.
In some cases, it shows itself even better than a spatula, for example, when working with putty on the ceiling, such a similarity of a spatula greatly facilitates the process and reduces material consumption. The principle of applying putty with our ironing tool is quite simple: apply the mixture along the entire length of the work surface and then evenly stretch it over the surface of the ceiling, while smoothing the material.
Usually, after carrying out such work, it remains to apply a thin finishing layer of the finishing material, and the ceiling is ready for commissioning. Of course, in order to perform such work, a certain qualification is required, which comes with experience. Very often, painters joke about beginners: “In order for the surface to turn out to be even, you need a spherical float!” If you ever have to hear such an expression, you should know that there is no such tool in construction, it is used in medicine, this is just a harmless joke.
Continuing the theme of finishing, it is worth noting a tool that painters in professional slang call a spatula-trowel. The structure of such a spatula is usually a handle made according to the principle of a trowel, and a working surface, 20 centimeters wide and 30-50 centimeters long. In appearance, this is perhaps the same one, only with a metal work surface. It has received wide application in the finishing of drywall, namely during the sealing of the joints of the plasterboard. Let's take a step-by-step look at the whole process and the rules for working with such a grater.
Concrete is a building material that is indispensable in modern construction.
Fill scheme.
It is a mixture made from cement (a binder) and water (used as a solvent). Sand and various plasticizers are also added to it, which are additional additives. Marking, cost, type, durability, as well as other indicators depend on them. Concrete, like any other material, will not make itself. There are special styling tools for this.
Before proceeding with the selection, it is necessary to carry out all the necessary calculations. First, calculate the parameters of the structure under construction. If this is the foundation of a house, then a drawing of the entire building is required. Secondly, it is necessary to calculate the volume of the required building material. For example, and its components for pouring the foundation. Only after that you can say with certainty which one is useful to you. This will help you avoid unnecessary expenses.
So, for laying the mixture you will need special equipment, we will divide it into two types.
- manual;
- electromechanical.
Let's consider each variety separately.
Manual
Mortar filling scheme: 1 - Rule, 2 - Rake, 3 - Vibrating screed, I-V - Filling sequence.
The choice depends on the purpose of the work. If you decide to do the styling, various equipment will come in handy. Hand tools are designed and used for jobs that require a certain evenness. This may be laying floors or pouring products of complex shape. Manual includes:
- Leveling (rule).
- Carts.
- Stackers.
Consider a leveling tool for styling. These are rules of different sizes. Their cost is different, from 1000 rubles (1200 mm, weight - 3 kg) to 10,000 rubles. Manual ones include a block separator, the average price of which is 7,500 rubles.
Carts are designed for uniform distribution of the mixture over the object of work. For example, in order to distribute the dry mix over a newly poured large floor. In this case, the cart is needed to evenly apply mixtures and prevent mixing with the top coat. The cost depends on the capacity and manufacturer of the model. The average price is 50,000 rubles. But on the market you can find a “used” cart that is no different from a new one, except for the price.
Installers use rubber cords to fit the seams in the floor. But this can be done manually, but the process will take longer. It is necessary to lay the seams with rubber cords! This will save you from the problems that shrinkage, temperature changes and stress on the plate bring with them. You will not have cracks in the floor.
Electromechanical
Diagram of a pneumatic mixture blower.
This construction equipment helps to reduce energy costs and time during construction. There are many tools that run on mains or fuel.
Vibrorail is a beam with a length of 2 meters, which is equipped with a vibrator. It is aluminum, sliding, metal. The design is simple: two pipes fastened together and a vibrator (three-phase asynchronous electric motor) attached to them. When smoothing the surface after pouring, a vibrating screed is placed to level the mixture. This tool allows you to quickly cope with a large amount of work. The cost is approximately 40,000 rubles. The price depends on the manufacturer, the length of the beams and the vibration power.
A vibrating platform is also often used. Its cost is slightly higher, since it can be used to level roads and large objects.
For filling use a distributor (tractor). This machine allows you not to manually carry buckets with the mixture, but simply load it from the mixer into the basket of the machine or distribute the solution around the perimeter of the surface using a concrete chute. The machine moves on any surfaces (reinforcement, floors) on which the mixture can be laid. Average load capacity 400 kg.
A concrete mixer is an option that you cannot do without. In order to hammer a solution of cement and water, you must purchase this equipment. The solution must be homogeneous and well mixed. Otherwise, lumps will form, which will not allow the mixture to be evenly distributed over the surface.
The smoothing machine is made for stripping and giving evenness to the surface. It is applied after use of vibrolaths on the big areas. The tool works from a network 380V. It is a drive that is started from electrical equipment and controlled by a handle. Refers to trowel grinders. The approximate cost is 100,000 rubles.
For large rooms, heat generators are often used. They dry the wet surface. Thus, they help to quickly move on to grouting the mixture.
If you have ready-made blocks or a flooded dried concrete floor, then for further steps you will need grinders, grinders and drills. For this, it will be necessary to buy special nozzles: diamond discs and drills. The disc is designed for cutting and its choice depends on the model of the grinder. For a perforator, choose a drill, it is useful for drilling holes (reinforced concrete). For example, you need to make wiring in a panel house. For a recess in the wall, it is required to cut off a layer of the mixture with a grinder.
There are not many complexities in the tool for work. Anyone interested in it can deal with this equipment.
The technical characteristics of concrete floors must meet the requirements of SNiP 2.03.13-88 and the recommendations of the manual in the development of existing rules and regulations. Unfortunately, not all builders perform their work with high quality; during the laying of the finish coating, you have to deal with the correction of the admitted marriage.
Concrete floors can be leveled with self-levelling mortars, cement mortar screeds or ceramic tile adhesives. Under linoleum and carpet, the leveling of concrete floors is considered a mandatory operation; under ceramic or stone tiles, the decision is made based on the actual state of the supporting base. All floors installed on logs can be laid without prior leveling of concrete bases.
In the article we will consider several examples of leveling using various materials, taking into account the actual condition of the floors.
The composition of modern materials for leveling concrete floors includes several components, along with high mechanical strength, the mixtures have good spreadability, ease of use, low shrinkage, resistance to various chemical compounds, manufacturability and relatively low cost.
Most of the existing brands meet the requirements of consumers, during the selection, the main attention should be paid to the following factors:
- which floor should be leveled. There are options for in-situ concrete, industrial reinforced concrete slab, base cement screed, self-leveling floor, underfloor heating system, etc.;
- fill thickness. Depends on the maximum roughness values and the type of alignment. Alignment can be preliminary or final. There are no strict requirements for the horizontal surface to the preliminary, it is used for finishing floor coverings along the logs. During installation, the position of the lag is controlled, if necessary, with the help of wedges or other linings, they are aligned;
- floor finish type. The softer the flooring, the more accurate and stronger the alignment should be, the better the material should be purchased.
After all the questions have been answered, you can begin work on leveling the concrete floor. To perform the work, you will need a suitable self-leveling floor, a primer, a construction mixer for preparing the mixture, a container for mortar, a powerful (preferably industrial) vacuum cleaner, needle and paint rollers, a wide stainless steel spatula, a laser or water level, dowels for lighthouses, damper tape, tape measure, ordinary bubble level or rule.
Step 1. Count the amount of materials. To do this, first find out the maximum difference in height of the concrete floor. When checking its status, you need to use a long level or rule. Apply tools around the perimeter of the room, in the center and diagonally, keep the level in a horizontal position. The clearance is determined by eye or with a tape measure. The more lines that are tested, the more accurate the final results.
The minimum thickness of the leveling layer should be within 2-3 mm, add the maximum height of the irregularities to this value. The thickness of the liquid screed should be 2–3 mm greater than the height of the maximum irregularities.
Practical advice. In order to save expensive material, it is recommended to cut down the highest ledges. Preliminary mechanical alignment saves 25-30% of the material.
Step 2 Foundation preparation. The branded strength of the material for the leveling layer should not exceed the strength of the concrete base by more than 50 kg/m2. You can check the strength of the base with an ordinary coin. Draw two perpendicular lines on the concrete with the edge of a coin at an angle of about 30 ° to the surface, if the lines are even and without chips, then the base has sufficient strength for leveling work. The presence of a deep furrow, the appearance of chips at the intersection of the lines indicates that the strength of the base does not meet current standards. In this case, it is impossible to simply level the concrete floor, it is necessary to fill in one more layer according to SNiP. If the floor height does not allow this, then the old layer will have to be completely removed. It is very long and expensive.
Why is foundation strength so important? If the leveling layer is much stronger, then during shrinkage it will tear the weak base, the filling will peel off. There is a way out - to do the alignment with a weak solution. But it can only be used under hard topcoats, this option cannot be used for soft ones.
Removing the old screed is the best solution
Step 3 Clean the concrete floor. You need to remove dust, dirt, all loose elements of the concrete floor. Remember that the cleaner the base, the higher the adhesion of the leveling layer.
Step 4 Seal large gaps a day before leveling. Clean them from the remnants of old material, remove dust and moisten a little. Cracks can be sealed with the same mortar that is used to level the concrete. Clog them tightly, do not leave air pockets. You can level with a trowel or a small spatula.
Step 5 Prime the surface. The primer should be for concrete surfaces only. Due to it, not only the adhesion of the two materials improves, but also the indicators of hydroprotection improve, which is very important for floors in residential premises. It is necessary to prime with a roller, in hard-to-reach places use a paint brush. If the primer is absorbed very quickly, then the operation will have to be repeated. The second layer of primer is applied only after the first has completely dried, the time depends on the brand of material, temperature and humidity in the room.
Step 6 Glue foam polyethylene damper tape around the perimeter of walls, columns, interior partitions. It compensates for thermal expansion, prevents swelling and cracking of the leveling layer.
Important. If the room has a large area, then shrinkage seams should be made. They are located at a distance of about three meters, the lines should be parallel, at the intersections the angle is only straight. Damper joints can be made in advance using metal profiles or cut through the next day after pouring the solution. Remember that the second option is accompanied by a lot of noise and dust.
Step 7 Find the horizon level on the wall. It is much easier and faster to do this with a laser level, if you don’t have one, then use a water level. Set the laser level in the center of the room, bring a horizontal beam to the walls. Using a tape measure, mark at the desired height from the concrete floor surface.
Step 8 Screw self-tapping screws into the concrete floor to control the height of the leveling layer. Beacons should be in the corners and along the lines of the room, the step between the rows is approximately one meter. First, fix the dowels against the walls, the height is set according to the marks. Then, between the extreme opposites, pull the rope and install all the other dowels along it. If you do not have strict requirements for the horizontal fill, then you can not install beacons.
Step 9 Prepare a solution. The proportions are indicated by the manufacturer on the packaging, follow his recommendations. Water is always poured into the container first, and then the dry mixture is added. It is advisable to pour the mixture with the mixer on, this will help minimize the number of lumps and allow you to constantly control the consistency of the solution. Mix the material thoroughly and leave it for 5-10 minutes. for insistence. During this time, all the smallest lumps of cement are completely saturated with water. At the same time, chemical curing reactions are started. After infusion, stir the mixture again a little.
Important. Do not allow an overdose of water, this significantly reduces the strength indicators. One more thing. Accurately calculate the volume of the solution with your performance, consider the recommended use time. Keep in mind that once the solidification process has begun, it is impossible to stop it, and adding water to the thickened mass only exacerbates the situation. On average, a freshly prepared mixture should be used within half an hour.
Step 10 Start pouring the solution. Start pouring from the far wall of the room and move towards the exit. Pour the solution from a height of 20-30 cm, avoid large splashes. Move the bucket in a zigzag manner, do not leave large gaps. The width of the strip is approximately 40 cm, you should easily level it with a spatula. Each subsequent portion of the material should overlap the previous one by about five centimeters. Constantly monitor the marks on the wall and the markers from the dowels, if necessary, increase the thickness of the mass or disperse the excess over the free area.
Step 11 As the flooded area expands, roll it with a spiked roller. It removes air bubbles and improves the adhesion of the mass to the concrete base. The length of the needles of the roller should be several millimeters greater than the maximum thickness of the application of the solution. Keep this in mind when purchasing the instrument.
Practical advice. To increase the strength of the leveling layer, it is necessary to prevent direct sunlight from entering the room, close windows and doors to prevent drafts. If this is not done, then some areas will lose moisture much faster than is necessary for optimal conditions for chemical reactions to occur. In these places, the strength of the layer becomes significantly lower than expected.
After complete hardening, the floor surface can be covered with any soft coatings or pasted over with ceramic tiles. But it should be borne in mind that leveling with bulk materials according to the technology described above will always have deviations from horizontal within ± 1.5–2 mm. Is it possible to level concrete floors with perfect precision? It is possible, but for this you should use a different technology for the production of work.
Prices for self-leveling floor compounds
self-levelling floor compounds
Alignment of the concrete floor on the lighthouses
This method takes a little longer, but guarantees a perfectly horizontal surface. The most difficult thing is the creation of lighthouses. For this process, we will give detailed instructions. For work, only a laser level is needed, ordinary water levels cannot achieve such a result.
From the tools you will need a large rule, wide and narrow spatulas, a trowel and a folding wooden meter. Roulette is not good, it is too soft.
Lighthouses can be made from any cement or gypsum mixtures, but we recommend using Fugenfüller putty. It has high physical strength, excellent adhesion to all mixtures made on the basis of cement with or without the addition of innovative fillers. In addition, the hardening time of the putty is approximately 30 minutes, which is quite enough for the manufacture of lighthouses at an average pace. After the preparation of the last lighthouse is completed, it is already possible to work on the first ones.
Another plus of the leveling beacons offered by us is that they make it possible to save building materials. The height of metal profiles is at least one centimeter, which means that the minimum thickness of the fill will be the same. The minimum height of our beacons is equal to the thickness of plastic crosses and is only a few millimeters. The difference in the volume of filling due to the height for large rooms is significant.
Step 1. Set the laser level, check the condition of the floor, determine the minimum thickness of the leveling layer. Remove construction debris from the surface, vacuum it.
Step 2 Prepare putty. Accurately observe the proportions indicated by the manufacturer, do not experiment, they will not lead to anything good.
Step 3. Start installing beacons against the wall, the rule will be used instead of a tape measure to measure the distances between the beacons. Lay out the first pile of putty at a distance of about 15-20 cm from the wall, trim it a little.
Install a plastic cross for ceramic tiles in the center.
Put a meter on it and, taking into account the location of the laser beam, drown it in the solution. Make sure that the cross is lying horizontally, check its position in several places.
Carefully remove excess putty. You can not clean up near the cross, it will then be cut off with a spatula. If you touch the unhardened putty, then you can violate the position of the cross, you will have to redo everything again.
Step 4 Lay a rule on the floor, the distance between the beacons should be 15–20 cm shorter than the length of the rule. In the same way, the width between the lines of beacons will be determined. Install all beacons in the room.
Step 5 After the point beacons have hardened, clean the surface of the crosses from putty, pay attention that it is even. Put the rule on two adjacent points on top, put the solution with a spatula into the gap formed between it and the concrete floor. From the first time it is difficult to guess the thickness, in the future practical experience will appear and the work will go much faster.
Step 6 Rule carefully align the surface of the shaft made. If there are unfilled places, then add a little putty to them and again level the surface with the rule. Remove excess mass immediately in a container, mix the mass periodically.
It is possible to level the floor only after the beacons have completely solidified. It is allowed to use a self-leveling floor mortar, a cement-sand mixture or an adhesive for ceramic tiles. Decide for yourself which one, but there are general recommendations.
- The cost is the cheapest cement-sand mortar. If you have large areas or a significant thickness of floor leveling, then it is better to use this material. Per cubic meter of solution, significant financial savings are obtained.
- In terms of physical strength, tile adhesive is in first place. But it is difficult to work with him, you need to have practical experience.
- Self-leveling floors serve as additional waterproofing, in some cases this property allows you to speed up construction work.
As for time, there is almost no difference. It is not necessary to believe that bulk materials can significantly reduce the time for leveling the floor. An experienced builder will make exactly the same footage with the help of beacons and rules.
Step 7 Pour the mass between the beacons, align it as a rule. The tool must be pulled towards you and at the same time perform small movements to the left and right in amplitude. There are gaps - add the solution and repeat the leveling.
Practical advice. For inexperienced builders, after leveling the rule, small waves may remain on the floor surface. This is not a problem, do not scrape off the frozen mass. It is much better, easier and faster to repeat the leveling of the floor in a direction perpendicular to the first one. No more beacons. Just pour a thin layer of the solution on the floor and, as a rule, pull off the excess, make the mass a little thinner. It will fill all the waves and perfectly level the floor.
Leveling a concrete floor with tile adhesive according to a simplified scheme
This method is great for ceramic tiles, the time of work is significantly reduced, and the quality completely satisfies the tilers. It is rather difficult to level the floor during tiling by changing the thickness of the adhesive; only highly professional tilers can do this. And even then, most of them prefer to level the concrete base on their own and lay tiles on the finished surface, especially if the height difference is 1 cm or more. The end result is time savings.
Step 1. Cut down large mounds, clean the surface from construction dust and debris. If the concrete is very dry, it is recommended to moisten it with plenty of water. Water should not be immediately drawn out of the adhesive, it is needed for the optimal flow of chemical reactions. The lack of the required amount of liquid critically reduces the strength of the adhesive leveling layer.
Step 2 Prepare the tile adhesive. There is a caveat here, the glue should be a little thinner than the manufacturer recommends. It will be difficult to work with thick, in addition, in places with a small thickness, water is quickly absorbed by concrete, which causes a decrease in physical strength indicators. We have already mentioned this. The consistency of the solution should resemble ordinary sour cream or heavy cream and spread a little over the surface.
Step 3 Pour the adhesive in portions onto the floor surface and, as a rule, pull off the excess. The towering sections of concrete serve as beacons, the glue fills only the depressions.
Important. Before starting work, you need to determine in which direction to pull the tool. This can be done after a careful inspection of the concrete floor. You should find the beacons by which it flooded. Then use a bubble level or rule to find out the location of the recesses.
Professional builders during this alignment after the first screed make a few more additional diagonal or circular movements as a rule. At the same time, the pressing force is minimal, the quality of alignment largely depends on practical experience.
If after the first pass the height differences are still large, then draw the rule in a perpendicular direction to the first pass. Once again we warn you, on the second pass, reduce the pressing force. You do not need to achieve ideal performance, differences in height within ± 5 mm for laying tiles are not a problem.
In order to improve the adhesion of the adhesive to concrete, after pouring, it is recommended to carefully rub it into the floor with a spatula or trowel. The recesses found after stretching the rule must be immediately covered with glue and re-leveled. The work does not take much time, the only drawback is that tiles can only be laid the next day. But a professional builder does not waste time, there is always a small amount of previously deferred or preparatory work at the facility.
Video - Leveling the concrete floor with bulk mixtures
Concreting the base is a rather laborious process. The quality of the final result is measured not only by the strength of the coating, but also by the evenness of the surface. Various tools are used to ensure this. At the initial stage, the mixture is leveled with a rule. But after it, ridges may remain. Therefore, at the final stage of leveling, a concrete trowel is used. This is a simple, but extremely necessary tool in the builder's work. It is quite possible to do it yourself. Before starting work, you need to delve into this issue.
General characteristics of the process
The process of pouring concrete bases is not the same for different rooms. If you need to create a floor in a large production hall, hand tools will be almost useless. In this case, equipment with various nozzles is used (rollers, discs, skis, etc.).
In a small room, it is easier to level with other tools. First, wooden beacons are laid on the surface of the base. They will serve as guides for the rule. Concrete is laid between the lighthouses. It is led by the rule, distributing the mixture in an even layer along the level of the guides. This is the initial stage of filling.
Further, a more precise smoothing of the mixture is carried out. Here you will need a concrete trowel. This is a special manual device that can be used both in the process of removing the mixture by the rule, and after arranging the entire base.
Varieties
The presented tool can be manual or have an electric or gasoline drive. For a small room, the first variety is ideal. When leveling large areas, it is better to use mechanized devices. The most commonly used aluminum or magnesium trowel for concrete. Its length is more than 1 meter. For ease of use, the profile is attached to a long handle. Because of this, the tool is somewhat reminiscent of a mop.
There is a division into channel and scraper trowels. The first variety is intended for leveling still plastic, not hardened concrete. At the same time, "cement milk" is formed on the surface. This is a mixture of cement, water and sand in a small amount. The scraper type of trowels is applicable for already hardening mortar. Such tools contribute to the removal of "cement milk" from concrete.
Blades also vary in size. For a small room, small-sized inventory with a width of 13 cm and a length of 28-68 cm is suitable. The step of increasing the size is 10 cm. The corners of the working plane should be rounded so as not to leave scratches.
Device and features
The hand trowel for concrete has a number of features in application. It is moved along the solidifying mixture back and forth, as well as from side to side. To maintain the original layer of concrete, it is necessary to move the tool in directions perpendicular to each other. Otherwise, depressions and bumps will appear. The trowel must not be immersed in concrete. It just skims over the surface.
During movement, the angle of inclination of its profile surface changes. If you push the iron away from you, the far edge will rise, and vice versa. The gearbox is responsible for this movement. The plasticity of the mixture also affects the angle of elevation. It can reach almost 60 degrees. The handle of the tool can be from 3 to 12 m long. Working planes must have deflection stabilizers. Capture width is from 1 to 5 meters. The reducer has the form of a cable. It connects the blade and the handle.
DIY tool
In the conditions of private construction or repair, a home-made tool is quite applicable. Ironing for is quite simple. If you are not going to use it more than 1-2 times, you should not spend money on buying new equipment.
If you have a little free time, and there is also the ability to handle wood, creating a do-it-yourself trowel and leveling concrete with it is not difficult. To do this, you will need to prepare boards, hand tools and fasteners. Usually, all the necessary tools for such work are in the arsenal of the home master. If they are not, the tool and material can always be obtained. For ease of use, it is better to give preference to soft woods. Most often, such a tool is made from such materials.
Work surface technique
When wondering how to make a concrete trowel with your own hands, you should consider the advice of experienced builders. When preparing softwood beams, attention must be paid to their processing.
The side of the trowel that will be in contact with the concrete must be perfectly smooth. It is pre-sanded. Then the working surface is treated with a special water-repellent solution. This will keep the tool until the end of the concrete base. The smoothness of sliding will be as easy as possible. The standard dimensions of the timber for the work surface are selected depending on the area of the room. The width of this product should be about 30 cm, and the length can be from 1 to 2 m.
Making a pen
The handle is an integral element of such a product as a concrete trowel. The telescopic handle is used in purchased tools. But for homemade varieties, you just have to make a long rail. For infrequent or one-time use, this will be enough. The handle should be selected according to the length of the room. Usually this element of the trowel is from 3 to 5 m. This option is even suitable for smoothing the mortar along the upper cut of the lighthouses or between the brickwork.
With the help of a triangular spacer made of wooden slats, the handle is rigidly attached to the working area. If the grip of the working surface is large, it is difficult to guide the tool with one handle. Therefore, for the convenience of carrying out work, it is better in such cases to make two holders at once.
scraper trowel
A homemade concrete trowel most often involves leveling concrete that has not yet hardened. On sale there are special nozzles that make a scraper from a channel tool. Although most often they are simply included in the set of purchased trowels.
Scraper working surfaces, most likely, cannot be made independently. But if necessary, you can buy them. This tool will remove excess from the surface of the concrete. The blade is made from durable aluminum alloys. This will eliminate bumps and irregularities, fill in the recesses on the surface of the base. This tool helps to finally level the surface.
The concrete surface does not always have to be even and smooth, but such a need arises quite often, especially if the concrete mortar is used to pour the floor or other horizontal surface. Leveling and smoothing liquid concrete with short spatulas and mats is a long and thankless task, since the seams (traces from the edges of the spatula) will remain on the entire work surface. Therefore, a do-it-yourself concrete trowel is useful here, which has a large width of the working surface and a long handle to control the movement.
How to make a concrete floor smooth - homemade fixtures
Working with such a tool gives the following effects: in addition to the uniform distribution of the concrete solution, the trowels expel the liquid cement that has separated from the mixture (the so-called cement milk) and push the high-quality solution into the voids. When working in the private sector, expensive industrial machines for smoothing concrete surfaces are not needed, so craftsmen make fixtures with their own hands, and a smooth floor is of the same quality as with mechanized processing.
The simplest fixture will be obtained from a wooden lath or a common building rule - it is fixed on a long handle, and the wide and smooth surface of the tool serves as a leveling device. The name of the instrument is an interpretation of the word "correctly", that is, evenly and smoothly. The general device of the rule: this is a narrow and even wooden or metal ruler, which is used to quickly level large areas of mortar. 
Also, the rule for concrete is used for plastering and leveling tiles and ceilings. But it is most convenient to work with the rule when leveling the concrete floor surface - the rail can be taken so wide that it captures the entire work surface. Thus, it is enough to stretch the trowel over the concrete once so that the surface becomes even and smooth, without seams and air bubbles.
Industrial hand-held trowels are produced 1-3 meters long with a length gradation of 0.5 m, and a blade width of 8-10 cm. The thickness of the metal (usually duralumin - to facilitate construction) is 0.8-1.1 mm. A home-made trowel for concrete made of wood is an almost disposable tool, since after getting wet in a solution, the tree will definitely warp when it dries, and you will not be able to use such a trowel again. True, there is not an ideal, but quite reliable way to increase the service life of a wooden float - soak it with drying oil and paint it. But this is also not for long, although it will be possible to work with such a tool 10-15 times for sure.
But a responsible craftsman will always pay attention to a metal trowel, or make it with his own hands - from a rule or a suitable metal plate (slat). Duralumin is not only a light metal - it also does not rust, which is why duralumin rules are so popular with builders. Industrial hand-held concrete screeders can be provided with low stiffeners along the entire length of the inner working surface. To constantly control the horizontal level of the liquid concrete leveling process, a building level is often attached to the trowel. 
For a novice builder: To get a smooth concrete surface when working with a trowel alone, it is necessary that its width be no more than 1.5 meters. Smoothing concrete with a wider tool requires two workers, and this operation requires a certain amount of experience.
You can make a wooden rule in 30 minutes - take a planed wooden beam, attach it to a shovel or rake holder, reinforce the fastening with diagonal slats, and the trowel is ready. It is possible to level the working surface of the beam empirically - by running a wooden tool over dry sand or other bulk material, and marking those places after which irregularities remain. Level the bar by planing or jointing. To lighten the total weight of the structure in the beam, holes Ø 30-40 mm can be drilled in increments of 70-90 cm, after which the surface should be sanded with fine sandpaper.
But it is easier and easier to work with duralumin trowels (industrial or homemade). And if two people work, then the length of the handle can be increased to 12 meters, that is, almost any area can be smoothed without seams and bubbles. The width of the working surface of the metal bar for such tools can reach 3-4 meters. These devices are conditionally divided into the following varieties:
- Metal channel trowel, with which you can smooth out the concrete even some time after it is poured, but even before it sets;
- A scraper device can also level an already hardening concrete mixture, but at the same time as leveling, the scraper draws out excess water from the surface of the concrete, and excess cement laitance.
When making the tool yourself, you must follow two rules - the working smoothing surface must be even and smooth, and the handle of the device must be of such length that all corners and areas of the room can be smoothed.
Preparatory work before pouring concrete on the floor
Before the concrete can be made smooth, the mixture must be poured onto a clean surface, so if the new floor is on top of the old surface, it must be cleaned of paint, plaster, and other construction debris. Cracks must first be filled with cement and wait until the mortar hardens - after that you can fill in a new layer.
Floor preparation:
- First, a “zero level” is noted in all rooms where the pouring and smoothing of the concrete floor will be carried out. To do this, it is necessary to mark the height at the level of 1 meter from the bottom of the door, and mark this height with a laser level in all working rooms. A cord is pulled along this height, and then a horizontal strip 1 meter lower is marked from it - and so on for all rooms in which there will be a new floor. At this zero level, a concrete screed will be poured;
- The surface of the old floor is leveled and, if necessary, rammed manually or mechanically (with a slab);
- A layer of crushed stone or gravel of medium size (fraction) is poured onto a flat surface, the height of the layer is up to 5-7 cm. The crushed stone is moistened and compacted;
- A 10-centimeter layer of sand is poured onto the rubble, which is also moistened and compacted;
- A 10-cm layer of crushed stone (gravel) is poured onto this layer of sand, moistened and compacted;
- Where the surface has irregularities, portions of sand are poured.
Important: You can achieve the required smoothness if the thickness of the concrete screed does not exceed 70 mm - such a layer will not crack and will not begin to peel off when the concrete dries.
Further work is as follows:
- A layer of waterproofing is laid on the floor surface (best of all - polyethylene);
- Warming is laid on top. It can be polystyrene, mineral wool, cork - whatever the owner chooses;
- A polymer, metal or fiberglass reinforcing fine mesh is attached to the thermal insulation;
- Before you make a concrete floor, a wooden formwork is assembled to pour the mortar.
Pouring solution
Building dry mix for leveling the floor can be purchased ready-made, but you can cook it on your own. Self-preparation of the solution will be cheaper, but you will have to work hard, as well as prepare the following tools and materials:
- Manual or electric concrete mixer, or container for mixing mortar;
- Trench tool (bayonet and shovel);
- Gravel or crushed stone of medium fraction;
- Purified or river sand;
- Portland cement grade ≥ 400.
Proportions of components: 1 volume part of cement (for example, a 5-liter bucket), 2 parts of sand, 4 parts of gravel or crushed stone, ½ part of clean water. Everything is thoroughly mixed in a dry form, and closed with water. The density of the solution is liquid sour cream.
To make it easier to pour the solution in portions, the floor surface is divided into sections up to 1 m wide using metal perforated beacons, which are attached to the floor on gypsum or alabaster. A solution is poured between the beacons, and leveled with a home-made or industrial trowel. Filling and leveling the mixture starts from the farthest corner of the room. 
When using a standard rule without a hand to smooth the solution, the beacons are attached at a distance that will be 30-40 mm narrower than the rule itself. If the leveling of concrete is carried out with the help of a trowel, then it will be more efficient and faster to work with two devices at once. Movements are made in different directions, but with a common vector - towards the exit.
The leveled floor should set within 72 hours, and all this time the concrete should be moistened every 5-7 hours so that microcracks do not appear. On the 4th day, the floor is covered with polyethylene (roofing material), and left to gain strength for another 28 days. 
Then a screed is poured onto the concrete:
- Liquid mortar or self-leveling mixture is poured in a layer of 1-1.5 cm;
- 3-4 days the surface is wetted with water.
After the screed has hardened, the floor surface is rubbed and a decorative floor covering is laid.
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