I think I might’ve removed the cream from my buddy’s concrete patio. He bought the house new 4 years ago, so I was confident it would be fine.
Can yall confirm what I’m seeing from the surface cleaner swirls and small tan areas? Would I still be considered liable given the age of the concrete patio? Or is it the builder’s fault?
I’ve noticed that patios and porches, really anything that isn’t a driveway, tends to be a lot softer, especially if they were poured during the covid era when materials were harder to source and contractors skimped out more frequently on doing things properly. That said, you’re still liable because you caused the damage. It doesn’t matter how long the surface has been there. If a house is 100 years old and you blow off some siding, that’s on you, not the builder from a century ago. What PSI were you running?
2500psi
Are you sure it was 2500 psi? Did you have a proper gauge hooked up to the surface cleaner?
2500psi with 0 deg tips??? Look at that pic of the step, that’s pretty badly etched. What equipment do you have and what tips in your surface cleaner?
25 degree tips
I have a 4gpm machine with a 2 tip surface cleaner. So when one looks at a surface cleaner nozzle chart, if one wants 2500psi with that equipment, one uses 2 2.5 orifice tips, which is what I used.
I think Ohio’s right, the patio concrete was pretty soft, likely due to poorer materials from covid era building standards. I’ll likely have to utilize my GL policy.
I was going to mention a few more things now that I’ve had a chance to look at the images on a larger screen.
Did you notice a milky color in the water while cleaning? How long after cleaning were these photos taken? Did you pre or post treat?
Before filing a claim, I’d recommend going back out and giving it another pass. In the first photo, along the wall and about a foot out, it doesn’t even look rinsed… more like dirty water was left to dry. The steps also looks rushed, you can see on the top step the surface cleaner did its job, but only on 1/2 of it… just below there’s still a lot of tan and orange where it doesn’t look like the cleaner even passed.
Try pre treating the whole area, surface cleaning with circular motions instead of straight lines, and then post treating. Check it again the next day to see how it looks. If needed after that, you could use a turbo nozzle or chemicals to help blend any remaining discoloration.
I did notice a milky color in the water while cleaning
I post treated after washing and rinsing
These pictures were taken around 3-4hrs after being done
You have a good point, especially on the steps. I likely did rush that area. My initial thought of me ruining the cream was 1. I did notice a milky water coming off. 2. The inconsistent splotchiness of how the top patio turned out. 3. The tan areas, which I thought were also a hallmark of cream damage. Maybe (hopefully) I’m wrong here…
At all costs don’t file a claim with insurance. Companies are just itching to cancel for any little reason.
If you are using the proper tips
They are aligned correctly on the bar
Your PSI was 2500
You have cleaned other surfaces without issue
If all the above are true, then it most likely does come down to the concrete. Unfortunately that doesn’t change the fact now, and it doesn’t fix it. At this point you really have nothing to lose by trying a couple options to fix it… it’s already damaged and worst case is paying to have it skimmed or pour a new patio. You can try going back and cleaning it again using the techniques in this video (read the description as well for the 3 “fixes”). You may also want to look into tint-able sealers… maybe a grayish tint will help blend it better.
