polished concrete floor

theirishlad

Has anyone in the donegal sligo area got polished concrete floors done...any recommendations for some one to do the work would be great.....also do you like the finished floor

tedimc

I'm in the Sligo area - but haven't them done yet. Will likely get them in the next 3-4 months.

I'll PM you the 2 suppliers I've chatted to and am considering.

From what I know, not many reference sites available in the area, but let me know if you find any.

The suppliers are quite happy to take a test cube from your local concrete provider and polish it so that you have some idea what it will be like.

theirishlad

tedimc wrote: »

I'm in the Sligo area - but haven't them done yet. Will likely get them in the next 3-4 months.

I'll PM you the 2 suppliers I've chatted to and am considering.

From what I know, not many reference sites available in the area, but let me know if you find any.

The suppliers are quite happy to take a test cube from your local concrete provider and polish it so that you have some idea what it will be like.

Cheers look forward to the PM.....

kboc

tedimc wrote: »

I'm in the Sligo area - but haven't them done yet. Will likely get them in the next 3-4 months.

I'll PM you the 2 suppliers I've chatted to and am considering.

From what I know, not many reference sites available in the area, but let me know if you find any.

The suppliers are quite happy to take a test cube from your local concrete provider and polish it so that you have some idea what it will be like.

hi tedimc

I am thinking of getting this done. do you mind sharing through pm the 2 companies please?

Thanks

recipio

So, you leave the polished floor with no covering ? Sorry, I know nothing about the process.

tedimc

Yes, depending on the finish you want - the concrete can be ground down and polished which will show up the stone and give a nice glossy finish. Or you can just polish it, which tends to leave it a more matt finish.

You can get any colour or aggregate, some people put metal, glass, shell, etc. though it and it can look really well. Even the plain gray concrete can polish up very nicely. As with everything though, it needs to be mixed, laid, ground, polished and cut correctly!!

I seen it in holiday and thought it looked the business. Planning on getting it done in a house I'm renovating and it's actually working out cheaper than say a decent marble tile - when everything considered.

BryanF

tedimc wrote: »

Yes, depending on the finish you want - the concrete can be ground down and polished which will show up the stone and give a nice glossy finish. Or you can just polish it, which tends to leave it a more matt finish.

You can get any colour or aggregate, some people put metal, glass, shell, etc. though it and it can look really well. Even the plain gray concrete can polish up very nicely. As with everything though, it needs to be mixed, laid, ground, polished and cut correctly!!

I seen it in holiday and thought it looked the business. Planning on getting it done in a house I'm renovating and it's actually working out cheaper than say a decent marble tile - when everything considered.

What about some pictures of the finish?

tedimc

Sorry for the delay. See first set of attached images - I received these from suppliers, and had to remove some detail of furnishings, etc.

My own set of images will follow.

tedimc

Not great detail - but it did look good.

theirishlad

And do you reckon underfloor heating is a must or would you get away with raditors. ? If anyone has seen it in a home

tedimc

You would get away with rads, as it would be the same as tiles really.

It may be cold in the bedrooms though?

Also, I'd just be careful around the detail over the radiator pipes. the high temps may cause cracking. You would need to make sure they are well insulated.

kboc

tedimc wrote: »

Not great detail - but it did look good.

What mix was the concrete to produce such a "white" finish?

BryanF

Would it be ggbs?

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ground_granulated_blast-furnace_slag

kboc

BryanF wrote: »

Would it be ggbs?

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ground_granulated_blast-furnace_slag

it seems to be. it looks really nice.

Effects

Some people have mentioned to me that I would need under floor heating with a polished concrete floor. I'm planning on a wood burning stove with a boiler to run my rads the majority of the time so I don't think ufh will suit. Will the concrete really be that cold? It'll be on a first floor level living area as the ground floor will have the bedrooms.

D_D

On a separate but related note, I'm looking to put in a fireplace base made of polished concrete. There is a wooden floor down at the minute, after the entire fireplace has been ripped out. I'd like to put in a built-in stove sitting on a polished concrete base.

Is this possible? And if so, does anyone have a contact for someone that does this sort of thing? PM please!

tedimc

kboc wrote: »

it seems to be. it looks really nice.

My own pictures were from the Maldives - local sand, sea shells and I presume just a white cement?

When asking about it in Ireland, I've been told that white/cream would be mixed on-site with white sand and cement. Works out quite a bit more expensive than regular readymix - which would also look good.

Deano7

tedimc wrote: »

My own pictures were from the Maldives - local sand, sea shells and I presume just a white cement?

When asking about it in Ireland, I've been told that white/cream would be mixed on-site with white sand and cement. Works out quite a bit more expensive than regular readymix - which would also look good.

Wouldn't fancy it myself. Concrete absorbs moisture and in our damp climate it would get into your bones.

BryanF

Deano7 wrote: »

Wouldn't fancy it myself. Concrete absorbs moisture and in our damp climate it would get into your bones.

This is a new build, and we can assume this concrete floor will have insulation and damp proofing below/all around - ie it's within the insulated fabric envelope and once initially cured will not be damp .

Our (externally) damp climate has little to do with a modern heated internal environment.

'the damp in your bones' has nothing to do with this thread about polished concrete as a floor finish

just do it

Deano7 wrote: »

Wouldn't fancy it myself. Concrete absorbs moisture and in our damp climate it would get into your bones.

I wouldn't fancy having concrete in my bones, under my feet might be alright though

tedimc

Regarding the 'dampness in the bones' - I'm not sure if I would consider it for a house heated with rads, would still look well, but two things:

• Obviously it would be cold - maybe no more so than tiles, but at least with UFH it would be reasonably warm to the touch.
• Also,I think the high temp of the rad flow and return pipes may cause issues/cracks in the concrete. It wouldn't be a definite, but the risks would be increased significantly. Cracks may not bother everyone, but they would bug the hell out of me!!

Dudda

With any building but more so with a polished concrete floor it's important to heat the building slowly and gradually. Turning the underfloor heating on full blast on a new polished concrete floor will crack it. If using Rads or underfloor you have to heat it slowly. For the rads ensure the pipes are insulated and the concrete floor is a sufficient depth. For example if you have pipes which are 60mm including insulation and the concrete floor is only 80mm you could get cracking. Having a 100mm floor, and therefore 40mm above the insulated pipe reduces cracking risk. Same goes for insulated water pipes, insulated pipes to manifolds, trunking for fire, data, alarms, etc. and take into account matwells too if you have them.

Swift2005

Tedimc

I am also in the Sligo area and want to do polished concrete floors also.

Could you please PM me the details of the 2 suppliers you were dealing ?

thanks