A chic and durable alternative to tile, hardwood or vinyl flooring, polished concrete refers to concrete that's been worked to create a high-shine, mirror-like finish with the look an aesthetic of traditional concrete. With the popularity of industrial design, polished concrete floors - originally cast on the factory floor - are becoming a widely popular look, and offer an attractive, durable and decorative floor finish.
A great look for everything from restaurants to retail stores, commercial kitchens, homes, and warehouses, polished concrete involves grinding the surface layer of set concrete with specialized polishing machines to achieve the look. This type of flooring is underfloor heating compatible, extremely resilient, and reduces your carbon footprint. They're built to survive the traffic and weight of heavy industrial equipment with minimal scratching, chipping, and damage.
Matte Finish: A matte finish polished concrete floor absorbs light and aims to enhance the natural tones of your existing concrete. Low Gloss Finish: A low gloss finish polished concrete floor provides some light reflection with some light absorbed. A low gloss is similar to a matte finish, while delivering a sleek appearance. High Sheen Finish: This is the most popular polished concrete finish. A high sheen polished concrete floor delivers light reflectivity to enhance the lighting in the given space. Light and color reflects throughout the space and bounces off the surrounding objects. High Gloss Finish: This is the highest sheen option. With high gloss finish polished concrete, your floor will resemble a glass. Satin: Polished concrete with a semi-gloss subtle chic finish. High Gloss: Does your residential space demand only the finest? Our high gloss offers high durability and protection together with a mirror-like gloss finish. Salt & Pepper: Owing to its extensive and small exposed aggregates. It’s a polished concrete flooring option that is becoming increasingly common in commercial, residential and industrial sectors.
This low maintenance, stone-like flooring can be designed to look similar to luxury materials such as granite and marble, for a fraction of the costs. The material also works well with that self build staple, underfloor heating (UFH). This is because it is a good conductor and will retain the heat produced. It even stores warmth acquired from solar gain (through windows etc) and recycles it as internal temperatures cool – helping to maintain an even climate, and takes a wide range of colours and textures to complement your interior scheme. You can choose nearly any color, create patterns with saw cuts, or embed aggregates or interesting objects into the concrete prior to polishing. The flooring is light-reflective and robust, making it a great option for high traffic areas like stores and basements.
Creating a polished concrete floor starts by mixing cement, gravel, sand and water to make concrete. This is then usually poured over any underfloor heating pipes onto a steel and fibre-reinforced mesh, which minimises the risk of cracking. The concrete is then leveled and compacted using internal or external vibration to remove air pckets and surface voids, which could otherwise reduce the strength and durability of the material. Next, a plain or coloured hardener (known as a dry shaker) is added to the concrete’s surface. This is smoothed using a power float machine featuring a large, round flat disc for rough grinding the concrete. The job can be repeated between four to eight times to achieve the desired effect.
Once the concrete is dry enough to hold the weight of the machine and operator, the polishing begins with the use of coarse diamond segments bonded in a metallic matrix. These segments are coarse enough to remove minor pits, blemishes, stains, or light coatings from the floor in preparation for final smoothing. Depending on the condition of the concrete, this initial rough grinding is generally a three or four-step process. The next steps involve fine grinding of the concrete surface using diamond abrasives embedded in a plastic or resin matrix. Crews use ever-finer grits of polishing disks (a process called lapping) until the floor has the desired sheen. For an extremely high-gloss finish, a final grit of 1500 or finer may be used. Experienced polishing crews know when to switch to the next-finer grit by observing the floor surface and the amount of material being removed.
During the polishing process an internal impregnating sealer is applied. The sealer sinks into the concrete and is invisible to the naked eye. It not only protects the concrete from the inside out, it also hardens and densifies the concrete. This eliminates the need for a topical coating, which reduces maintenance significantly (versus if you had a coating on it). Some contractors spread a commercial polishing compound onto the surface during the final polishing step, to give the floor a bit more sheen. These compounds also help clean any residue remaining on the surface from the polishing process and leave a dirt-resistant finish.
You can polish concrete using wet or dry methods. Although each has its advantages, dry polishing is the method most commonly used in the industry today because it's faster, more convenient, and environmentally friendly. Wet polishing uses water to cool the diamond abrasives and eliminate grinding dust. Because the water reduces friction and acts as a lubricant, it increases the life of the polishing abrasives. The chief disadvantage of this method is the cleanup. Wet polishing creates a tremendous amount of slurry that crews must collect and dispose of in an environmentally sound manner. With dry polishing, no water is required. Instead, the floor polisher is hooked up to a dust-containment system that vacuums up virtually all of the mess.
After a month the concrete is uncovered, cleaned, mopped and burnished to remove any inconsistencies or footprints. At this point some companies will simply apply a matt, satin or gloss sealant to achieve the desired appearance.
Technically a true polished concrete floor is finished using a diamond grinding machine that evens out the surface. The floor is then treated with a chemical densifier to reveal a blemish-free shine. It is not considered polished concrete until a level of 400 grits is reached to achieve a glossy finish.
While it may seem like hard work, the effort that goes into creating a polished concrete floor pays off in the long run, as explained by our friends over at
Grind Kings:
Long-lasting and durable: This is one of the TOP benefits of polished concrete floors. A properly installed polished concrete floor should last for decades, even in high-traffic or industrial commercial applications. Over time, this can save you a significant amount of money and effort as you will not need to replace your floor. And compared to other flooring options, polished concrete is not vulnerable to damage. In addition, they do not need replacing every 3-10 years like other flooring options. Polished concrete stands the test against time and are durable and long-lasting. Budget-friendly: Polished concrete floors are extremely wallet-friendly because they do not require the addition of other subfloors because your concrete polishing company is working with materials that already exist. Eco-friendly: Not only is concrete polishing wallet-friendly, but it is also a “green” flooring option, too. When it comes to environmentally friendly flooring, polished concrete takes the cake because very few raw materials are consumed. The only materials used are water-based hardeners and stain-resistant treatments. Because there is no new material being added on top of your concrete, there is no carbon footprint left behind. Polished concrete is also a durable floor option that is LEED and eco-friendly for both commercial and residential projects. Many traditional flooring options emit harsh materials and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into the air. With concrete polishing there are zero harmful or VOCs being used. Minimal dust and dander: Carpet and other floor coverings harbor dust and dander, as well as can promote mold growth when wet. Polished concrete is a hypoallergenic flooring option because they don’t harbor allergens, dust, and dander. Promote cleaner air in your home by choosing polished concrete floors. Toxic mold resistant: Carpet and other floor coverings can harbor harsh mold when becoming wet. If the moisture isn’t completely removed, mold can grow and thrive in your home and cause ailments and severe illnesses. However with concrete polished floors, toxic mold growth is not supported. Easy to clean and maintain: Homeowners love polished concrete floors because they’re super easy to clean. As previously stated, they don’t harbor dust, dirt, and allergens like other floor covering options. Your polished concrete will require occasional mopping to keep clean. They also are resistant against spills and stains. Endlessly customisable: Want to add color to your polished concrete floor? No problem. While some enjoy the industrial look of colorless concrete floors, others gravitate towards color and texture effects. Stains can be added to your home’s polished concrete floor. Choose from a wide variety of colors and designs. Check out our color chart here.