What is Polished Concrete? For years, Perfect Concrete Care has been getting this question from clients. So we decided to create this blog post just to clear the air on the difference.
Concrete grind and seal jobs are usually carried out with just a few passes on the surface. Then, a concrete sealer is applied to protect the finish.
A Polished Concrete floor is a more detailed process that usually includes 3-4 passes with metal bonded diamond shoes followed by the application of a densifier and hardener.
It is then followed by 4-6 passes of resin-bonded diamond shoes and finally the application of a sealer to protect the finish.
Perfect Concrete Care usually carries out grind and seal for large car parks, industrial units, and factories. More recently we have seen an increasing trend in the demand for grind and seal finishes in commercial locations, retail centres, and even offices.
It has become a very popular design trend. However, polished concrete is usually for more high-end locations like bank lobbies, hotel lobbies, or car showrooms.
Grinding & Sealing
Grind and seal is the name given to the process of concrete grinding a slab and applying a sealing agent to seal and protect the floor surface.
A typical grind & seal project would consist of 3-4 passes with metal bonded diamond shoes. Then, the surface would be thoroughly cleaned with a Polyvac to ensure the surface is completely dust free.
Once the surface is ready we then apply the sealing agent, at Perfect Concrete Care we use ViroSeal as it is a GreenStar-approved penetrating sealer.
Benefits of Grinding & Sealing
There are many advantages of Grinding and Sealing a floor surface:
- Cost Effective
- Strengthening the floor surface
- Provide excellent penetration
- Greater abrasion resistance
- Elimination of dusting from efflorescence
- Stain resistance
- Adds slip resistance
- Improved condition of old floors
- Reduced tire wear
- Less maintenance
- Customisable system
- Improve GreenStar Rating
Polished Concrete
Polished concrete is achieved through applying a series of mechanical grinding and honing steps using equipment, chemical hardeners, and sealers to create a surface that is aesthetically pleasing, durable, and easily maintained.
Depending on the desired effect and finish of the floor surface, a polishing project usually consists of up to 3 passes of metal bonded diamond shoes, conjunctionally with a Densifier & Hardner.
This is then usually followed by 4-6 passes of resin-bonded diamonds and then the application of a sealer.
Polished floors take significantly more time and effort to produce a high-end finish but the results speak for themselves.
Benefits of Polished Concrete
Concrete Polishing is more suited for a more high-end result. Usually, you would see Polished Concrete floors in Bank Lobbies, Hotel Lobbies, or Law Firms. When you get a good Polished Concrete Contractor like Perfect Concrete Care it can really create a “WOW” factor.
- High-end result
- Improved reflection & ambient light
- Improved GreenStar Rating
- Easy to keep clean
- Eliminates Dusting
- Reduces Tire Marks
- Reduces or Eliminates ASR (Alkali Silicate Reaction)
Maintenance of Polished Concrete
Unlike a grind and seal project, polished concrete requires more maintenance to preserve that super reflective surface. Usually, it requires an application of C2 Cleaners designed for maintenance, which is concrete neutral to ensure your floors stay shiny for longer.
Perfect Concrete Care offers maintenance services for the Polished concrete floors we install.
Using the right equipment is important
Whether carrying out a Grind & Seal or a Polished Concrete floor project, it is always important to use the best equipment and consumables on the market.
If you skimp on the equipment this will affect the final finish. That’s why at Perfect Concrete Care we only use the best equipment on the market.
Floor Grinders
When choosing floor grinders it is important to choose a reliable and known brand. As there are a lot of man-hours involved in floor grinding you need to be sure the equipment is fail-safe.
The last thing you want to happen is for your floor grinder to break down in the middle of a large project. This will set you back and delay the delivery of the project.
HTC Duratiq Floor Grinders
Here at Perfect Concrete Care we only use the best floor grinders on the market. We currently have a fleet of HTC Duratiq Floor Grinders that we use.
We really love these floor grinders, not only for their amazing reliability but also because HTC leads the way when it comes to floor grinders.
Their ingenuity and reliability make them the best on the market. We currently have the Duratiq RX600 Remote Controlled Floor Grinder and we find it better than any other grinder we have used before.
The remote-controlled functionality means our operators do not need to stop the grinder when changing the bags on our dust extractors which increases productivity.
With the old HTC 650E Push Grinder, the most meters squared we covered in one night was 250m2. With the new Duratiq RX600 Remote Grinder, our operators were able to average 400m2 overnight. That is an increase of 160% in productivity.
Dust Extractors
When Floor Grinding, it is important to invest in the best Dust Extraction Systems as it creates a safe environment for your Operators. But also dramatically reduces the amount of concrete dust that needs to be cleaned when the floor grind is finished.
Here at Perfect Concrete Care, we use the HTC D60 Dust Extractors as we simply find them the best on the market. Packed with features the HTD D60 has allowed us to increase productivity on our grinding projects by over 100%.
HTC D60 Features:
Digital control panel
The new Digital Control Panel allows our operators to carefully monitor the airflow, pressure, and filter status at a glance.
Automatic filter cleaning
The new Auto Filer Cleaning that HTC has released has been groundbreaking.
In the past, our Operators would have to power down the Floor Grinders and the Dust Extractors just to clean and maintain the filters on the old Dust Extractors.
Now the new D60 cleans the filter as it is working, saving you downtime and increasing productivity even more.
Integrated pre-separator
This integrated pre-separator traps up to 95% of the dust and only allows the absolute finest dust to pass through to the main filter.
This helps to extend the life of the filter which will save thousands on maintenance.
Download our Polished Concrete Brochure [ 2019 Brochure]
Download our latest Polished Concrete Brochure which showcases the various finishes that Perfect Concrete Care can achieve for your project.
Our operators have years of experience in the Polished Concrete Industry and can create that dream finish you desire.
Selecting the right Contractor
Done right Polished Concrete can be a real show stopper. It can give a very high-end corporate feel to the lobby of an office or hotel reception.
Although it is important to ensure you select the right contractor to carry out the works as if it is not done right, it can cause massive damage to the floor and cost thousands to repair the damage and carry out the works properly.
Perfect Concrete Care has been carrying out large-scale Concrete Grinding and Concrete Polishing projects for years. So it has the knowledge and expertise to deliver you a high-end finish that will last for years.
