Polished concrete flooring is a modern and versatile material that can be customised in its appearance to create a range of colours, textures, and surfaces. It is long-lasting, hard-wearing, and very attractive, with a sheen that creates an ambience unmatched by traditional flooring.
What Is Polished Concrete Flooring Melbourne?
Polished concrete flooring is a modern and versatile material that can be customised to create a range of colours, textures, and surfaces. The sheen provides an ambience that traditional flooring options can’t match, making it both attractive and durable.
One of the key benefits of polished concrete flooring in Melbourne is its sustainability. Rather than replacing the existing concrete slab, the process enhances it, reducing the need for new materials and minimising waste. This makes it a “greener” option and a lower-cost alternative that also lasts longer.
The process involves several stages, including:
- Grinding the base concrete to create a flat, smooth surface.
- Sealing the surface with hardeners to increase durability.
- Polishing the surface to your desired sheen level.
The beauty of polished concrete is that it can be adapted to suit any style or function, whether you’re renovating a home, upgrading a commercial space, or designing a new build. It’s ideal for both residential and commercial properties, as it not only provides an elegant finish but also requires minimal maintenance.
How Is Concrete Polishing Done?
There are a number of methods for polishing concrete. Each with its own advantages and looks.
Mechanically Polished Concrete Floors
The least expensive but common method is the mechanically polished concrete floor. It’s similar to sanding and polishing wood for context.
The concrete is polished down repeatedly to a smooth flat surface with finer and finer diamond pads to the sheen level you require. Finally, a hardener is poured onto the concrete to minimise dust production and densify and seal the floor.
To make this floor look good, it needs to be a new pour with no cuts, stains or scratches in it. The final outcome depends highly on the original quality of the pour.
Grind & Seal Polished Concrete Floors
This is the most common method where the concrete is once again ground or “sanded” down until the aggregates (the stones and additives like glass or coloured stones) are exposed and form part of the pattern of the concrete’s new surface.
Again a hardener is placed on the surfaces and then the surface is ground down to the desired sheen level.
Burnished Polished Concrete
Burnishers aren’t as powerful as concrete grinders and once the surface is smooth and flat, the burnisher melts and buffs a chemical coating that seeps into the tiny holes and imperfections in the concrete.
This surface then has a sealant applied to it, making it shiny and waterproof.
Salt & Pepper Polished Concrete Floors
A technique where just the layer of concrete paste is ground off the floor, leaving just the tips of a darker aggregate showing through. This gives it that classic salt & pepper look that you will be familiar with. Used outside, this is the perfect flooring for around pools, as it’s naturally nonslip.
When used inside the home, a layer of chemical coating is placed over the top, and it’s then polished to the sheen level that you desire.
Honed & Polished Concrete Flooring
Honed polished concrete undergoes the mechanical grinding as above to the degree that you want to see the exposed aggregates that the concrete is made up of.
Rather than undergoing a chemical hardening and densification process, a chemical sealer is used to produce the polished concrete look.
Honed floors will probably need resealing every 5 years or so as the sealant will wear. Polished concrete flooring Melbourne will take a lot longer to wear as it’s not a surface “coating”.
Tips for Concrete Floor Polishing In Melbourne
If you are going for any kind of concrete flooring you’ll need to ensure your base floor is structurally strong enough – and deep enough to grid down a significant amount if it’s not pretty flat.
If you are getting a new pour polished, mention to the concreters what your plans are so they can make sure it’s as flat and blemish-free as possible. It’s not often that their workmanship will is on show. It’s usually covered by tiles, laminates or vinyl these days!
If you want colours, special aggregates like glass, different coloured stones, coloured powders etc let your concreter know to put them in the final coat so that the colours and effects can be bought to the surface in the grinding process.
One huge advantage of residential polished concrete floors is that with even less traffic than their industrial counterparts, they will last even longer and are very unlikely to crack or need any repairs at all.
Polished concrete floors are perfect for bedrooms as they eliminate dust and allergens that lurk in carpets and are much easier to keep clean and stain-free. Being scratch resistant and cheaper than marble or slate but with a similar look, polished concrete is a great alternative for bedroom and bathroom flooring that is often overlooked.
We Provide The Best Concrete Floor Polishing Melbourne Services
We are local concrete floor polishing Melbourne experts and can advise you of the best approach for your floors based on their age, state, depth and condition.
No matter what condition your floor is actually in, we have the techniques and experience to turn it into a thing of beauty, right before your very eyes (well over a period of time, like all good things it’s not really instant)
Contact us for a free concrete floor polishing quote for your house, commercial or industrial building. Because of the durability and longevity of concrete floors, it’s one thing you can cross off your to-do list for at least a decade and probably more!