Shoutout to the guy who showed me how to use a magnesium float right

I've been finishing concrete for about 8 years now and always thought magnesium floats were just for smoothing out bumps. Last month on a job in a new development near a creek, an old timer named Rick watched me fighting with a steel trowel on a slab that was setting too fast. He handed me his worn down mag float and said just use this with barely any pressure. I was skeptical because I'd tried mag floats before and they left lines everywhere. But he showed me the angle and the speed, and I swear the cream came up perfect without tearing the surface. The slab looked way better than anything I'd done with a steel trowel on that kind of weather. Now I'm wondering how many other basic tools I've been using wrong this whole time. Anyone else had a veteran finisher show you a trick that totally changed how you work?

2 comments

2 Comments

richard_young801d ago

Man, that's exactly how it goes with the mag float. I've seen guys beat themselves up with steel trowels in hot weather when a mag float would've saved the day. It's wild how just a tiny change in angle and pressure can make or break a slab. Makes you wonder what other basic tricks are hidden in plain sight on every jobsite.

theas281d ago

Hidden in plain sight" feels a bit dramatic for a float.