The Benefits of Polished Concrete

Polished Concrete Melbourne

Recently, there has been a burgeoning trend to replace complicated wood, carpet, and tile flooring with a simpler, more sustainable option – polished concrete. Polished concrete, which has become a very popular flooring option for businesses and retrofitted warehouses in trendy neighborhoods is also starting to become popular for residential and light commercial buildings as well, and for very good reason.

The Cost Benefit of Polished Concrete

First up, the cost of polished concrete is comparably less than that of many original flooring options. While the costs may be similar when installing a new polished concrete floor, savings can really start to pile up when converting an existing floor into polished concrete. Because few additional building materials are needed and the energy costs of laying a new floor are far lower, the cost is substantially less.

Even for a new floor, the cost can be very similar if not lower for polished concrete. Almost all buildings require at least as single layer of concrete in the foundation. As a result, the flooring on the first floor can simply be raised and polished with an aggregate to give it a smooth, finished look at a much lower cost.

Environmental Benefits of Polished Concrete

In addition to the cost benefits, many builders are finding that polished concrete is environmentally friendly – providing a sustainable building option that requires minimal energy to install or maintain. Even the necessity of laying new concrete for a just built structure is far less damaging to the environment than a wood or tile floor.

Cleaning and Maintenance Benefits of Polished Concrete

For large businesses, polished concrete is popular due to its low maintenance requirements. Once a polished concrete floor has been installed, things like allergens, dust mites, and mold are non-issues. The concrete doesn’t require regular buffing or waxing and can often subsist on a weekly or biweekly mopping to keep it clean. For grocery stores or other large single floor buildings, this is a fantastic option that saves on labor costs and time spent.

Aesthetic Benefits of Polished Concrete

One of the initial deterrents for many people to polished concrete is the thought of having a slab of grey concrete for a floor. However, with the chemical treatment used on the concrete and the aggregate layer always placed atop the original slab, it is possible to specialize your floor without spending thousands of extra dollars.

Simple river stones or basalt or advanced patterns and gridlines can all be shaped into a polished concrete floor, along with dyes and stains to give it a fresh, professional color. This process works on both new and retrofitted concrete floors.

The Bottom Line

Concrete floors are a very popular building option right now, and for good reason. With a low upkeep, minimal impact on the environment and durability that few other flooring models can match, especially at the price of a polished concrete floor, it is quickly become the retro chic flooring option of choice for businesses around the globe.

For more information and a no obligation free quote call Bob now on 0434 515 892

What is Polished Concrete?

Polished Concrete Melbourne

For many years, flooring options competed with each other to be more ornate, more attractive, and more opulent than the next. However, with the rise of energy efficient, sustainable building, polished concrete has quickly become a popular choice in many renovated and old style buildings.

How Concrete is Polished

Polished concrete is a concrete surface that has been chemically treated with a densifier before being ground down with fine tools that remove any of the grit and roughness that typifies most concrete. Gritting tools are usually progressive with diamond grinding wheels and polishing pads. The polishing is not considered complete with anything less than 400 grit, but most polished concrete will be pushed to at least 800 grit and sometimes as high as 1500 or 3000 grit.

After polishing, many concrete floors are then treated with stains and dyes to add color and style to the flooring. Other options for finished concrete include banding, borders, radial lines or grids.

The Benefits of Polished Concrete

Polished concrete has become popular because it is a flooring method that is sustainable with low energy use and no new materials needed for completion. Rather than retrofitting or changing the materials used for the floor, the existing concrete slab foundation is stripped down and polished for use as a flooring.

A polished concrete floor is far easier to maintain than a traditional flooring and easier to clean. It can also be made non-slip very easily with a basic chemical treatment and it reduces a lot of allergy and dust problems that affect wood and carpet floorings. It also does not support and result in mold growth unless a culture base is added to the floor.

Additionally, many builders and designers recommend polished concrete as a way to reduce the need for internal lighting. The highly reflective surface enhances the natural light sources already in the room and cuts down on the need for saturated lighting. No scientific evidence has been gathered to back up this claim, however.

New vs. Retrofitted Floors

There are two kinds of polished concrete flooring. New floors generally take less work to polish because they don’t need to be prepped or cleaned before polishing. However, the slab will need to have an aggregate made of black basalt or river stone (most commonly), and it needs to be finished to a high degree to meet most building standards. Most builders need to know as quickly as possible whether polishing will be done to ensure the quality of the finished floor.

Retrofitted floors will need to be sanded down or cut to present a polishing surface that an aggregate can be added to. Alternately, a second slab of at least 5 centimeters can be added atop the old concrete for polishing.

Polished concrete is quickly becoming a highly popular, very effective means of adding modern style to a building without utilizing energy hungry building materials. Always review the foundation and building materials in a floor before opting for a polished surface, to ensure it will work effectively.

For more information and a no obligation free quote call Bob now on 0434 515 892