Polished Concrete Floor

Addle

I've seen these kinds of floors in domestic settings on shows like Grand Designs and am thinking of laying one in my hall, kitchen and utility room.

Has anyone any experience with them?

What do you think of them?

For me, the pros are that I have to lay a concrete floor anyways and it would mean no grout between tiles, the alternative flooring.
The con is that I won't have underfloor heating so it might be cold.

Any advice/recommendations?

Would it work with radiators?

Addle

Any recommendations?

ht9zni1gs28crp

I am too looking for recommendations, at least to get prices!

Thanks

tedimc

I'm looking into this also and have seen a couple of nice examples.

From my own research:

• Yes it would be cold without UFH, however no more so than tiles.
• Prices I have been provisionally quoted are in or around €90 per sqm for the actual polishing, concrete is on top of that.
• While very expensive, it may not be that much dearer than other premium options such as carpet, wood, natural tiles, etc when labour, grout, underlay, etc are all taken into account.
• For medium to large areas, you may need expansion joints.
• You can also consider matching kitchen & bathroom worktops.
• I'm considering it for a house I'm renovating and estimate it will cost upwards of €30k. While outrageous, I think I would end up spending close to that anyway on other flooring options (have to lay the concrete anyway).
• While UFH would be worse, I would consider the running of radiator pipes carefully. If it was me, I'd try to route them in a way that if there was ever an issue you would be able to access them without ruining the floor. Also, if it's a renovation job - I would take the hit on new plumbing. A family member of mine spend put down €100/spm marble tiles in his hallway when renovating his house. A couple of months later, he had to rip a couple of them up to re-lay new pipe.

The biggest piece of advice I have garnered from a thread on here (can't remember where exactly) is to get the same guy to lay the concrete and polish it. Somebody here had issues where the concrete provided turned out to be of poor quality and it only became apparent when the polisher started.

kboc

I have no association with either of these 2 companies, but I have heard good reports regarding both -snip-

Although the second www does not seem to be working

good luck
K

bakerbhoy

I used this company from middleton ,cork on my build . It is a resin finish as against polished concrete.
-snip-

https://us.v-cdn.net/6034073/uploads/attachments/90685/94743.JPG

Vel Satis

I'm looking for a hire company that supply equipment for grinding & polishing concrete floors...

ht9zni1gs28crp

Vel Satis wrote: »

I'm looking for a hire company that supply equipment for grinding & polishing concrete floors...

There are machines out there, last research I did I think Drogheda Hire had one.

bigreddog

Vel Satis wrote: »

I'm looking for a hire company that supply equipment for grinding & polishing concrete floors...

HSS rent HTC Greyline machines

http://www.hss.com/ie/g/43435/450mm-Floor-Grinder.html

http://www.hss.com/ie/g/43434/Floor-Grinder.html

no idea on cost, or if they have them in every store

fclauson

We looked at this a discounted it
a) if it gets damaged its impossible to repair (you can replace a tile)
b) its industrial
c) it can crack unless done really really well (there is a EN or BS standard) about control joints which should be spaced properly. I AM NO ENGINEER but the advice I got was Space joints (in feet) no more than 2-3 times the slab thickness (in inches). A 4" slab should have joints 8-12 feet apart. Lay joints out so that they take the strain at corners and junctions.

bigreddog

fclauson wrote: »

We looked at this a discounted it
a) if it gets damaged its impossible to repair (you can replace a tile)
b) its industrial
c) it can crack unless done really really well (there is a EN or BS standard) about control joints which should be spaced properly. I AM NO ENGINEER but the advice I got was Space joints (in feet) no more than 2-3 times the slab thickness (in inches). A 4" slab should have joints 8-12 feet apart. Lay joints out so that they take the strain at corners and junctions.

It all depends on the look you want to go for - if you want to end up with a floor that doesn't look like concrete, then it may not be for you.
Grinding and polishing will alter it's appearance somewhat - so it won't look so industrial (warehouse floor), but that in itself is an acquired taste.

We went for it, but in it's purer state - i.e. not grinding back and exposing aggregates. So, the floor we will be left with (when the house is finished), will look like concrete! It will be sealed with an acrylic sealer (Sika ProSeal), and wax polished (buffed) - but it will still look like raw concrete.

The screed was laid before the walls were built, so that we could power-float effectively. The concrete mix was C25/20 (even strong would be better), with 10mm aggregrates. Control joints were cut within 48 hours, and Polypropylene fibres were added to the mix (they reduce the chance, and severity of shrinkage cracks). If we were doing again we would also have added dry shake toppings before power-floating, to increase surface abrasion resistance. We also protected the floor during construction (initially with a sand layer, and now with corryboard sheets). We had some cracks, but nothing major - and it was sunny when laid.

The floor we will have at the end of it all will be less "Art Gallery" (ground and polished concrete) and more "New York loft" (imperfections on show), but as I said - it's all about personal tastes!.

Sure the floor can get damaged, but we'll take that in our stride - and when the kids are all grown up, we still can grind the floor and re-seal (since we aren't grinding now, it won't be an expensive re-do, and less of a pill to swallow!).

for raw concrete floors, see:

http://mollyglass2012.tumblr.com/day/2013/04/21

for an overview of polished concrete floors,

the floor we hope to end up with, will be something like this:
-snip-

see attachment of our own floor, after being laid and powerfloated

timod

Hi all,

I just recently started a big refurb job on a house (Cork), and most of floor downstairs will be polished concrete - going with the -snip-

I have a main contractor, so not sure who he's subbing it to. (It will be a few months away yet.)

We got info from the following companies: -snip- PM for details -snip-

Price wise, I'm laying a new slab and UFH, anyway so when that's factored in, the whole thing works out the same as really good tile.

bossanova

I have heard these guys are good, no affiliation:

-snip-

Safehands

kboc wrote: »

I have no association with either of these 2 companies, but I have heard good reports regarding both;
-snip-

Although the second www does not seem to be working

good luck
K

I know the second company and they are good. The quality of the concrete is vital. You can pigment it or stain it and get fantastic results.

medb_corcoran

Bigreddog,

I am getting an extention done and I'm looking to get the concrete floor look you have got in your blog - a raw power-floated concrete look. Could I get the name of the contractor you used?

Thanks,

Medb

BryanF

recommendations by pm thanks

bigreddog

medb_corcoran wrote: »

Bigreddog,

I am getting an extention done and I'm looking to get the concrete floor look you have got in your blog - a raw power-floated concrete look. Could I get the name of the contractor you used?

Thanks,

Medb

Hi,

We just got our contractor to do the floors - they were laid before the walls were built, so it's a lot easier to powerfloat at this stage.

Do I have any tips?
- I would recommend keeping the blades as flat as possible, as we have lots of chatter marks on the floor.
- I would recommend spraying a liquid curing membrane - the sika product I mentioned above can be used as that, as we have lots of shrinkage cracks (even though we added poly fibres to the concrete, and cut control joints the next day - the day the floors were laid was sunny and windy, so the slab dried out too quickly)
- Be careful in protecting the floor while the rest of the build is going on, as we used a builders sand blinding layer and now have some of that colour / dust in the finished floor (and we can't scrub it out!)

But, we got what we wanted - NY Loft / Warehouse style, raw concrete floors!
We sealed the floors, and then used a polish over it (not buffed, only dry mopped), and the floors are very easy to maintain.

In the below pic - you can see the control joints, and also a large crack, right beside it!
Www.imgur.com/z5K0X0S


hope that helps!

Johnboy1951

I am considering a renovation project which involves replacing the floor in a 20x24 feet room.
The intention is to have a 4" concrete slab on high density insulation with underfloor heating in the slab.

I would like to avoid cuts in the slab (to prevent cracking) and wondered if it was feasible to do the pour in two layers of 2".

Would this seriously affect the thermal conductivity between the layers? (even if the 2nd layer was poured before the first layer fully cured).

The intention would be to have the floor polished and sealed.

The other 'concern' involves the corners of the room ..... would grinding the main area leave a raised portion in the corners where the grinding machine cannot reach?

Anyone got experience of such a scheme or similar?

Thanks.

Safehands

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

I am considering a renovation project which involves replacing the floor in a 20x24 feet room.
The intention is to have a 4" concrete slab on high density insulation with underfloor heating in the slab.

I would like to avoid cuts in the slab (to prevent cracking) and wondered if it was feasible to do the pour in two layers of 2".

Would this seriously affect the thermal conductivity between the layers? (even if the 2nd layer was poured before the first layer fully cured).

The intention would be to have the floor polished and sealed.

The other 'concern' involves the corners of the room ..... would grinding the main area leave a raised portion in the corners where the grinding machine cannot reach?

Anyone got experience of such a scheme or similar?Thanks.

This really is a decision your engineer needs to make. Your floor is 7mt long. Assuming it is has no angles, like a fireplace for example, that the concrete will need to bend around, you may get away without a joint. There are a couple of little things people can do to lessen the possibility of cracking. Limestone aggregate can help to reduce the co-efficent of expansion, lowering the water in the mix will also help, as will curing the concrete as soon as it is laid. Two layers will just increase the possibility of delamination and potential for cracking, so I would forget that. As I said, you should get an engineer to do the calculations, it will be well worth the few bob he may charge. Don't ever go strictly by the advice you get from a forum such as this. The advice you get here may be a good guide. Run it past the engineer, by all means and be guided by him.

Good polishing companies can deal with grinding the corners, so get a good experienced one to do the work.

Johnboy1951

Safehands wrote: »

This really is a decision your engineer needs to make. Your floor is 7mt long. Assuming it is has no angles, like a fireplace for example, that the concrete will need to bend around, you may get away without a joint. There are a couple of little things people can do to lessen the possibility of cracking. Limestone aggregate can help to reduce the co-efficent of expansion, lowering the water in the mix will also help, as will curing the concrete as soon as it is laid. Two layers will just increase the possibility of delamination and potential for cracking, so I would forget that. As I said, you should get an engineer to do the calculations, it will be well worth the few bob he may charge. Don't ever go strictly by the advice you get from a forum such as this. The advice you get here may be a good guide. Run it past the engineer, by all means and be guided by him.

Good polishing companies can deal with grinding the corners, so get a good experienced one to do the work.

Thanks for the response.
Yes I understand that info available on a forum is not engineering advice ..... was just looking for some opinions.

Thanks for the info about the corners

stickybookmark

kboc wrote: »

I have no association with either of these 2 companies, but I have heard good reports regarding both -snip-

Although the second www does not seem to be working

good luck
K

Can you PM me the names?

kboc

stickybookmark wrote: »

Can you PM me the names?

done

tomcrows

@bigreddog Thanks for the photos and sharing your tips - are you aware of how this finish works with UFH? Is it simply a matter of (very roughly speaking) 1. laying insulation layer 2. laying UFH pipes 3. pouring over screed (self levelling UFH screed or otherwise) 4. pouring concrete layer which is then power floated. Can concrete be poured directly over UFH pipe and then powerfloated or do you have to have a screed layer first? Thanks

bigreddog

tomcrows wrote: »

@bigreddog Thanks for the photos and sharing your tips - are you aware of how this finish works with UFH? Is it simply a matter of (very roughly speaking) 1. laying insulation layer 2. laying UFH pipes 3. pouring over screed (self levelling UFH screed or otherwise) 4. pouring concrete layer which is then power floated. Can concrete be poured directly over UFH pipe and then powerfloated or do you have to have a screed layer first? Thanks

Hi tom,

We have UFH, and it works great with it - also good for soaking up the solar heating!

There's no need for step 3, as the concrete is the screed layer.

Our floor make up is: Quinnlite block - first course internal leaf (to reduce cold bridging),
then on top of the foundation raft: 6 inches EPS insulation, then UFH pipes on top of that, then 3 inches of concrete screed (powerfloated).

That gives us a floor u-value of .14 (but that will depend on your own perimeter / area ratio)

hope that helps!

Mellor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119128732#Comment_119128732

The helicopter thing is a power float. It gives a smooth flat finish to the concrete, it doesn't polish it.

Polished concrete is expensive finish. Then it needs a sealer to be oil proof. This is a good option, but not cheap.

Putting granite chips in the mix won't be visible when floated. Waste of time imo.

Epoxy finish will be the best for oil proof, stain proof and cost. This is a better option that paint.

Paint will be cheapest. If that's what you are going for,

Mellor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119833824#Comment_119833824

You’ll just need to specifically the mix of the screed to include decorative chips.

Have done plenty of commercial concrete floors.

wibago

I've seen these kinds of floors in domestic settings on shows like Grand Designs and am thinking of laying one in my hall, kitchen, and utility room. Has anyone had any experience with them? What do you think of them? For me, the pros are that I have to lay a concrete floor anyways and it would mean no grout between tiles, the alternative flooring. The con is that I won't have underfloor heating so it might be cold. Any advice/recommendations? Would it work with radiators?

Dudda

You can have underfloor heating. It actually works better than any other floor with underfloor heating.

Mellor

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120374540#Comment_120374540

That's a bot lol, they are just repeating OPS comment.