Diamond Grinding Bits for Concrete Floors
Diamond bits, full set
The whole ladder, carried on every job
Diamond grinding bits are the interchangeable segments a floor grinder cuts with, graded by grit and by bond. A crew carrying the full range can match the tooling to the slab it finds: coarse metal bonds to open hard or coated concrete, finer grits to refine it, and a softer or harder bond to suit the concrete itself.
Not one grit. The full range, from a 16 that will take a trip hazard off a slab to a 400 that will leave it closed, in both metal and resin bond, in the van on every job whether or not we expect to need it.
Concrete is not a specification. Two slabs poured the same week by the same crew can grind completely differently, and you do not find that out from a photograph or a site visit. You find it out in the first ten minutes.
Chosen off the slab, not off the quote
We put a head down, run it, and look at what comes off. Hard, dense, power-floated concrete needs a soft bond that will wear and keep exposing new diamond. Soft, green or sandy concrete needs a hard bond or the segments disappear.
Getting this wrong does not ruin a floor. It costs a day, and the day is ours, not yours, which is precisely why a contractor carrying one grit has an incentive to tell you your slab is fine.
A consumable, not an asset
These are bought to be used up. A set of segments is a running cost on every job we quote, and it is in the price whether or not you can see it there.
Without itOne grit for every floor, which means the wrong grit for most of them.
What to ask
Ask what grits are coming to your site. "Whatever it needs" is not an answer if there is one box in the van.
Where it is used
Day 01 of the job, prep, on every system we lay: decorative epoxy, flake floors, urethane cement, quartz broadcast, heavy industrial and repairs & recoats.
Questions people ask
What is the difference between metal bond and resin bond diamonds?
The bond is the material that holds the diamonds. Metal bond is tough and used for coarse grinding and removal. Resin bond is softer and used for fine refining and polishing. Before a resin floor, most of the work is done with metal bond segments.
Why does hard concrete need a soft bond diamond?
Diamonds only keep cutting while fresh diamond keeps being exposed. On hard, dense concrete a hard bond wears too slowly, so the diamonds glaze over and stop cutting. A softer bond wears away and exposes new diamond. Soft or sandy concrete is the reverse: it needs a hard bond, or the segments wear out in hours.
Can a contractor tell what grit a slab needs from a photo?
Not reliably. Concrete strength, surface hardness, curing compounds and old coatings all change how a slab grinds, and most of that only becomes obvious once a grinder is running on it. A test area at the start of the job is the usual way to choose.