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Rented a power trowel for a garage slab, went back to hand finishing after 20 minutes
Had a 1,200 square foot garage pour outside Austin last Tuesday and my buddy talked me into renting a power trowel. I figured it'd save my knees but that thing got away from me on the edges, left washboard marks I had to grind out. Ended up bull floating and hand troweling the whole thing in 6 hours anyway. Anyone else find power trowels only worth it on big commercial pours, not small residential jobs?
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troy_price1mo ago
Austin heat is rough on concrete, especially with a big slab like that. I did a 1,000 sq ft shop floor a few years back and thought the same thing, rented a power trowel and almost wrecked it in the first 10 minutes. The key for me was keeping it flat and not trying to run it too fast, let it do the work and just guide it. But honestly, on anything under 2,000 sq ft, I'm with you. Hand finishing gives you way more control and you don't have to fight the machine on the edges. Plus you can feel the concrete and know exactly when to hit it next. Power trowels are for big warehouses and tilt-ups, not our little garage pours. You saved your back maybe, but then you spent more time fixing your own mess. Live and learn I guess.
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