Morning pour in Austin convinced me to switch to a power trowel

I used to hate power trowels - thought they left too many swirl marks. Watched a crew in Austin last month finish a 3,000 square foot warehouse slab in half the time with one and the finish was glass smooth. Now I'm looking at used ones on marketplace, anyone have a model they swear by?

2 comments

2 Comments

elliotc1023d ago

What model were they running in Austin? The difference between a cheap homeowner grade power trowel and a commercial one is huge, like night and day. I ran a used MBW once that vibrated so bad my hands went numb after 20 minutes, but then I tried a brand new Whiteman on a job and it was a completely different experience. Swirl marks are usually from running it too wet or too fast, not necessarily the machine itself. Were you watching them do a final pass with the blades flat and a bit of a float, or did they have it pitched for a hard finish?

foster.wade23d ago

Glass smooth" is pretty optimistic for a power trowel finish. Even with the best one, you'll still need to hand finish edges and around columns.