What Is The Concrete Polishing System?
What Is The Concrete Polishing System?
Polished concrete is concrete that has been treated with a series of mechanically ground “polishing/grinding” processes using professional concrete polishing equipment.
A concrete densifier/hardener is also used in this procedure, which penetrates the concrete and causes a chemical reaction to help harden and dustproof the surface.
During concrete polishing, the surface is treated in a series of phases using increasingly finer grinding tools (in general, a minimum of 6-8 grinding steps of processing is considered polished concrete).
The grinding tools are diamond polishing pads made of successive grits of industrial diamonds in a bonded material such as metal/hybrid/resin.
Concrete is not regarded well-polished until it has reached the 800, 1500, or 3000 grit level.
Color is commonly added to polished concrete using concrete polishing dyes and other choices like scoring and producing radial lines, grids, bands, borders, and other patterns.
How Do I Keep Polished Concrete Looking Good?
Polished concrete requires relatively little maintenance. However, routine cleaning is still required. Regular maintenance involves moist mopping to eliminate dust and grit.
You might also use a neutral cleanser and conditioner to clean the surface while leaving a dirt-resistant coating behind.
Polished concrete will retain its luster for many years except in high-activity areas. It is simple to repair if it ever becomes uninteresting.
Occasionally, rubbing the floor with a professional polishing chemical may be enough. If further touch-ups are required, the flooring can be lightly re-polished with a fine-grit abrasive.
Is The Concrete Polishing System Considered A Coating?
Concrete polishing is a chemical and mechanical interaction that occurs with concrete. The concrete is still naked when the application is done, but it has gone through a chemical and mechanical process to preserve, harden, and polish the surface.
The system’s beauty is that the concrete is preserved and polished, yet there is no coating to peel, scrape, or wear away.
Polished concrete flooring is generally not advised in areas where strong acids will come into contact with the floor.
However, they are often minor areas of a building, and the rest of the floor might still be polished.
What Is Concrete Grinding And Polishing?
The act of smoothing down uneven concrete surfaces to expose a smooth and shining surface is referred to as concrete grinding and polishing.
Heavy-duty concrete grinding equipment and diamond-impregnated segments or discs, which resemble durable sandpaper, are required for this operation.
To achieve a high shine or smoothness, the discs are gradually changed with finer grit discs during the concrete grinding process.
As a result, concrete polishing is merely the last step of the concrete grinding process utilizing the finest grit discs to obtain a high shine finish.
During the last stage of concrete polishing, a polishing compound may be added to assist clear any residue left on the surface and add gloss to the floor.
Concrete grinding and polishing, when applied combined, may provide a smooth, stunning surface that mimics polished stone.
How Do You Prepare Concrete For Polishing?
There are a few key steps to take in preparing concrete for polishing. The state of the floor you’ll be polishing will influence the outcomes of any component of the job.
It is the most important component in determining the type of equipment and diamond tooling to use, the time and labour required to finish the operation, the grit, to begin with, the quantity of densifier required, and the production rates of your equipment and staff.
Determining The Hardness Of Concrete
The hardness, or density, of the concrete, is the most important consideration in deciding the kind and grit of diamond to employ.
Cleaning The Floor
Suppose there are pre-existing oil stains on the concrete floor. In that case, you must remove them first since they will block the penetration of densifiers, dyes, and stains, resulting in undesirable color variations.
For lightly contaminated surfaces, degreasers and detergents are generally adequate.
For thicker oil stains, use a poultice powder, which is a dry absorbent clay combination that is efficient at removing persistent oil and grime stains from concrete. Pour mineral spirits onto the stain and absorb it with cat litter to remove small oil stains.
Chip, Spall, And Crack Repair
When repairing concrete before polishing, the objective is to integrate the repair as nearly as possible to the surrounding concrete.
You must use certain products for various repairs to achieve the greatest results.
Depending on the severity of the damage, you can use a number of cement-based patching solutions to repair carpet tack strips, tiny divots, and spalls.
However, keep in mind that even the greatest repair may not be an exact match to the remainder of the polished floor.
Use a patching substance that may be tinted to match the desired hue for repairing colored concrete.
Joint Cleaning And Filling
Filling contraction, isolation, and construction joints is just as vital as polishing the floor—not just for cosmetic reasons, but also to considerably limit the possibility of the joint edges chipping and spalling, especially in commercial settings with a high forklift and other vehicle activity.
Filling the joints also makes the floor simpler to maintain by keeping debris out of the gaps.
Are Polished Concrete Floors Freezing?
Concrete floors are commonly thought to be cold in the winter. Polished concrete is one of the greatest surfaces in your home during the winter.
Polished concrete is classified as a ‘thermal mass material.’ Unlike other types of floors, concrete is good at absorbing and storing heat.
When you heat your house, polished concrete floors absorb and retain the heat in the air.
The heat stored in the concrete flooring will thus continue to keep the home lovely and toasty when the heater is switched off.