Thread: Cement repair???

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My favorite gargoyle lost a wing this season Any recommendations on a product that can attach it back on? Should I try to drill into each piece and secure it with some rebar or will that make it more fragile? Thanks for any help!

How big is it and do you know what it is made of?

duh! I just saw "cement" repair. Are you sure it is cement?

Don't know of any reliable way of cementing. I suspect you first thought is correct. Get masonry bit and drill down in the middle of both pieces. The big question is how large a diameter do you have to work with. If you could get a very long bit, you might consider drilling through the wing and into the point where it broke off. This would help in getting the holes to line up. If you could get the wing in it's correct position while you drilled, that would be ideal. One other thing if you drill completly through the wing. Once you get the hole in the body where the wing broke off, you could increase the hole size and then cement in a piece of threaded rod. Then you could mount the wing and bolt it on. Of course a great deal of care will be needed to make sure the contact point on the outside of the wing is dressed to be flat as it relates to the bolt and washer. Once it is mounted you can cut off the excess rod and dress it up with paintable caulk. Fiinish with matching paint to hide repair. I suspect you could drill the hole to nearly the exact size of the rod and then instead of using cement, use 2 part epoxy to lock the rod in the body. That might be easier as drilling the hole in the body larger to allow setting the rod with cement opens the door for possible misalignment.

Originally Posted by spinman1949

Don't know of any reliable way of cementing. I suspect you first thought is correct. Get masonry bit and drill down in the middle of both pieces. The big question is how large a diameter do you have to work with. If you could get a very long bit, you might consider drilling through the wing and into the point where it broke off. This would help in getting the holes to line up. If you could get the wing in it's correct position while you drilled, that would be ideal. One other thing if you drill completly through the wing. Once you get the hole in the body where the wing broke off, you could increase the hole size and then cement in a piece of threaded rod. Then you could mount the wing and bolt it on. Of course a great deal of care will be needed to make sure the contact point on the outside of the wing is dressed to be flat as it relates to the bolt and washer. Once it is mounted you can cut off the excess rod and dress it up with paintable caulk. Fiinish with matching paint to hide repair. I suspect you could drill the hole to nearly the exact size of the rod and then instead of using cement, use 2 part epoxy to lock the rod in the body. That might be easier as drilling the hole in the body larger to allow setting the rod with cement opens the door for possible misalignment.

There is an epoxy for cement I'm not sure what it's called but I have seen it used on cement.call around to a couple of concret contractors and ask what it's called and where you can get it.

All good advice so far. The key to the repair is making sure it is in fact cement. 2-part construction epoxy can react badly with composite materials. If you have any doubts maybe you can turn the beast upside down, expose a small test area and test for a bad reaction. Safety first of course: gloves, ventilated area etc. Good Luck

J B Weld....

Thanks guys...it's definately cement...very heavy and has the small pebbles mixed in it. It came from a statuary place and is actually part of a fountain. I just remembered there is a statuary place close by so I'll see if they can do repairs before I ruin it.

Prolly best profs do it.

Just how much handling does your gargoyle receive?
(as in...is it public accessible, so kids can handle it / pull on it / knock it over...or is it behind a fence or up on a pedestal or someplace else where no one will be fiddling with it?)

If it's not going to have anyone pulling on it, a do it yourself job will likely be sufficient.
The idea of drilling some holes, and slipping metal rods in is a great one.
As for an adhesive, this stuff might do the job:
DAP Products - Repair Products - DAP® Liquid Cement Crack Filler
(you can find this stuff at most hardware / home improvement stores)

I can tell you this stuff sticks to concrete extremely well, maintains a little flexibility (so it remains watertight), and withstands weather nicely.

An idea would be:
Drill a few holes - coat the ends of the rods in this stuff, and insert into one set of holes - coat the other end of the rods, and the concrete with it - bring the wing in, slide it onto the rods, all the way down to the main piece, until the concrete filler oozes out.
Once it dries up, you can trim up the excess that's oozed out with a utility knife.