Removing old vinyl tile adhesive (mastic) from painted concrete floor

[bopat]

I'm hoping someone out there has some experience with this problem. We've got an indoor lanai with a painted concrete floor (similar to what you'd see with a painted driveway), and the previous owner installed vinyl tile on top of it. We're in the process of removing the tile, but we're running into trouble with the old adhesive (mastic) that's left behind.

The mastic is pretty rubbery and not water-soluble, which makes it tough to remove. So far, we've tried a few methods:

* Scraping with a razor blade - this seems to work okay, but it's slow going.
* Using heat to loosen the adhesive, followed by a wire brush - this has been somewhat effective, but it's still taking a lot of elbow grease (and patience).

We'd love to hear from anyone who's had experience with removing mastic from painted concrete. Are there any specific products or techniques that can make this process easier? We're looking for anything that might save us time and effort, while also preserving the integrity of the floor.

Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer!

[Pondboy]

I’ve no experience in the removal…but, if I “google it”there are a number of chemical based products on the market.

Looks like Lowe’s carries a few.

Not sure what you mean by preserving integrity of floor….you’ll probably mess up the paint with anything. Scraping or chemical.

Hope that helps

[bopat]

Not sure what you mean by preserving integrity of floor….you’ll probably mess up the paint with anything. Scraping or chemical.




When we had our house painted, they used a stiff wire brush to clean up any spills from the painted patio concrete floor. It cleaned up the fresh paint while not affecting the patio floor concrete paint. The lanai seems to be the same way, a wire brush, while slow going, doesn't seem to affect the paint at all.

[villagetinker]

Depending on what you are planning for your lanai floor makes a big difference on the removal. I have no idea how to remove mastic, and i am sure any chemicals will damage the paint. I would suggest a suitable floating floor.

[vintageogauge]

There are industrial floor scrapers that will remove mastic. You'll have to find a industrial cleaning equipment rental company. I once bought an industrial building that had a old paint room and the floor was covered with old paint and this thing really did a good job. in removing it.