B

Bleed Through – Color change caused by the diffusion of color from an underlying surface.

Bleed Water (bleeding) – Water that rises to the surface of freshly placed concrete due to segregation. Bleeding may interfere with finishingoperations. If a dry-shake color hardener is being applied to the concrete surface, some bleed water is needed to wet out the hardener sufficiently so it can be floated into the surface.

Blistering – The formation of blisters in toppings or coatings and the loss of adhesion with the underlying substrate. On concrete surfaces, this is often caused by moisture or moisture vapor transmission problems.

Bond – The degree of adhesion or grip of a material (such as coatings, toppings, repair mortars, or sealers) to an existing surface.

Bonding Agent – An adhesive agent used to increase the adherence of coatings or toppings to the existing surface. Also used to bond new concrete to old. Also known as a primer.

Bond Breaker – A material that prevents adhesion of materials to a concrete substrate.

Broadcast – To hand toss a dry-shake color hardener,decorative aggregate, or other dry material in a uniform layer over fresh concrete, overlays, or coatings to add color or traction. (Also see Seeding.)

Broom Finish – Surface texture obtained by pushing a broom over freshly placed concrete.

Build – The wet or dry thickness of a coating or topping. (Also see High-Build Coating.)

Bull Float – A tool with a 3- to 4-foot rectangular blade made of wood, resin, aluminum, or magnesium. Used to eliminate high and low spots in freshly placed concrete slabs, embed large aggregate at the surface, bring a layer of paste to the surface needed during final finishing, and float in dry-shake color hardener. Long handles either clip on or screw into the float head so it can be pushed out onto the slab while the user stands at the perimeter. (Also see Hand Float.)

Bush Hammer – A percussive hammer with rows of pyramid-shaped points used to roughen or profile a concrete surface.

  Tags: adherence, blisters, bond breaker, bonding agent, broom, color hardener, concrete slabs, concrete surface, concrete surfaces, dry material, hamme, moisture vapor, repair mortars, segregation, slab, surface texture, transmission problems, uniform layer, vapor transmission, wood resin
Category: Concrete Glossary