Can I use Bondo to repair a Concrete Garden Sculpture?

Question

I have had this very unique garden sculpture for many years. It was made by an Ontario Artisan from concrete and a resin I believe. Sadly it sat in moisture and snow and has begun to crumble at the bottom. 
 I have never used Bondo so I was hoping to get advice from someone who has. Could it be used to repair the damage and then the whole owl could be repainted? 
 Can anyone suggest another method or product? 
 Thanks!

Donna Byram · Answer

I would think Bondo would work. You need to remove all the loose particles. Hubby owned and operated an auto body repair facility and he was always using it for other things besides cars. Here is a statement from the makers of Bondo. The Bondo® brand offers a complete line of fillers and accessories - putties and glazes, undercoatings, and tools - for many applications including automotive, household, marine, hobby, and many others. The products can be used to repair and restore aluminum, wood, concrete, brick, metal, fiberglass, stone and sheet rock.

Cyndi Neumann · Answer

beautiful owl!

Robert Snow · Answer

I am sure you can . I have sold this product for some 30 years now and know people in the building trade that even use it for wood filler . Just follow the directions they give you and have fun with your project . The trick to this of course is preparation , take time to get all of the loose particles off and then fill in stages . Don't try to fill to heavy , build it up slow until you get what you want . Good Luck !!!

Martha Cousins · Answer

You might try mixing Bondo with a little bit of concrete mix or sand to mimic the texture. Try your concoction on a brick b4 putting it on your gorgeous owl. Good luck!

Patricia Martin · Answer

Have never used Bondo, but seems like it would work. Have used epoxy putty to repair broken ceramic pieces and it works great, but have never used it on a large project like yours.

Valerie · Answer

I do not have any answers for you, but would be interested in knowing what you do and how it turns out - would you please post again once your beautiful owl has been restored?

Paula · Answer

They make a concrete Bondo patch check your home improvement store.

Ter9098374 · Answer

I repaired an angel garden statue that was in terrible shape -- missing concrete all the way down to the iron framwork.   I used Quickrete and filled in all the cracks and holes and actually rebuilt the large missing sections, filling in and sculpting it to match the lines of the statues.    It came out great and is nice and sturdy (solid) -- Concrete is a little different color than the original but doesn't bother me as it will age nicely and the statue is somewhat mottled anyway.    Should be easy for you to fill in on this statues with simple lines to follow -- Just lay it on its back and get rid of all the lose concrete and rebuild what is missing.

Sheila Ogle · Answer

I a such a novice at this but I have a large concrete garden fountain that has a large crack that I want to repair so is Quickrete different from concrete and can it be mixed n small portions?

Bondo Guy with a dog...statue · Answer

I used body filler to repair a concrete garden statue after reading the original question here, and I’m back to join this site so that I can report that it worked great.

It was was one of those dogs with a basket in his mouth, with a severed head and only half the basket handle left after it had been knocked over. A few smaller pieces were also missing.

I set down a thick layer of filler on the neck stump and set the head on top, letting the excess squeeze out when everything lined up. The head was supported until the bondo cured.

I made a frame for the missing basket handle out of bailing wire, then loaded it up with body filler and smoothed it into shape with a spatula. Any cracks or missing areas in the statue were filled, as well.

After the filler is cured, you can carve it, drill, file, plane, sand it or probably anything else. I even used a dremel tool and burr bits to recreate the basket weave on the new half of the basket handle and a bow on the side. It’s pretty cool stuff.

I’ve always heard about body filler absorbing water, so I made sure to seal it with an exterior primer and latex house paint. I used a “faux marble” technique with streaks and splatters, which looks quite nice. I was more interested in it hiding my amateur bondo-sculpting, and my attempts at art repair blend in quite well with the technique.

Its been around two years since Charlie had his head glued back on, and he’s doing just fine- in full sunlight, and there’s been a fair amount of rain.

Thats my report on repairing concrete with bondo, I hope somebody else finds the information useful.

Thanks to Joan for a great idea!

Jacque Phillips · Answer

Yes! Makes a very strong repair.

Can I use Bondo to repair a Concrete Garden Sculpture?

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Can I use Bondo to repair a Concrete Garden Sculpture?

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