Polished concrete floors today are quite common and well-known. They can be seen in shopping centers, large halls and airports both in Russia and abroad. This flooring technology has proven to be economical and reliable and is attracting more and more attention from flooring experts. Polished concrete at the moment has already become a separate direction for building materials, which has acquired a dynamic development. Let's look at its advantages, production technology, varieties, and also refute a number of misconceptions that exist in the Russian construction market and lead to irrational monetary losses.
A little history of polished concrete
Technology came to our country from abroad. It has been practiced in the United States and other foreign countries for thirty-five years. Abroad, not a single object under construction can do without creating a floor from such a material. Polished concrete is very popular here. Photos and other images of suchcoatings impress with their beauty.
The technology is used almost everywhere, regardless of the purpose of the future object: concrete (polished) is a suitable material for premises with a large flow of people: shopping malls, warehouses, business centers. It has also found use in country houses and apartments, where it is used as a final flooring and is still a new type of flooring for domestic homeowners.
Development of material in Russia
At present, polished concrete production technology has already been established in our country. She becomes more and more popular every day. Of course, in its development in the domestic market, it experienced some difficulties. One of the main reasons that has prevented polished concrete from becoming an alternative to other flooring for a long time is its poor quality. For quite a long time, it was not considered as the final material for the floor. Therefore, extensive requirements were not imposed on its quality, such as strength, density and aesthetic appearance. This prevented the active promotion of such material as concrete in the domestic market. The polished floor is now actively used. It is not a draft foundation, the attitude towards its qualitative characteristics is gradually changing.
Required properties
Concrete for flooring must first of all have a grade strength of at least B22.5, be well vibrated and rubbed, have any filler except forlimestone rocks. An important condition is the time that has elapsed since the laying of the concrete base. It should be about twenty-eight days, no less.
Other conditions will primarily affect the speed of work:
- concrete undergoes a leveling operation to eliminate differences;
- such coatings can be restored to smooth out chips or cavities;
- old concrete floors can be partially restored.
But such operations require additional financial costs and free time. Only by observing the above properties can high quality materials such as polished concrete be achieved. The floor, subject to all requirements, will differ from other coatings in durability and aesthetic appeal at low cost. Of course, alternative materials can be used: decorative polymer concrete, which does not require a ten-centimeter screed or reinforcement, if there is no desire to perform a lot of mechanical work. But then the final price tag of such floors will increase.
Common mistakes
After receiving the concrete base, you need to proceed to work on its polishing and grinding. And it is at this stage that most mistakes are made. Let's look at the main ones.
- Helicopter rubbing to make concrete shine. Indeed, with this method of grouting, the shine will be present, but will be short-lived and will disappear during operation.
- GrindingCO or GM machines. Using this tool, it is impossible to achieve the desired shine. Many tests were carried out with the use of technology, which showed that the surface is only matte. These sanders do not have enough rotation speed to achieve a long lasting gloss and they do not have a planetary mechanism to achieve a high quality finish.
- Polishing "Bulgarian". Its use is not recommended, as the result will be poor due to the lack of sufficient weight of the tool, the ability to follow the horizon and its very low productivity. The "grinder" is best used for auxiliary work around the perimeter (it is perfect for polishing hard-to-reach places).
- Applying a lacquer to achieve a sheen. This method was used in the nineties, covering ordinary stone floors with wax or varnish to give them a shiny surface. The use of varnish changes the whole essence of the material: polished concrete is incompatible with it. The technology of its production implies a natural luster achieved by proper mechanical processing. Moreover, the lacquer coating is quickly erased during operation and all aesthetic beauty deteriorates.
Let's take a look at the proper polishing of concrete, as well as the tool used for this.
How to properly polish concrete?
First of all, it is necessary to carry out preparatory work to study the cultivated area for the absence of foreign bodiesand fittings, measure the grade strength, analyze the presence of chips, cracks, various differences with their further correction.
To perform the work, it is recommended to involve specialists in the repair of premises. But getting polished concrete with your own hands is also possible with sufficient effort and care. How is concrete polished? It is best to use highly professional equipment for this - grinders with a planetary mechanism.
They allow you to carry out all the preparatory work, as well as the main polishing of surfaces. All grinding usually takes place in a dry mode, without the use of water. Therefore, you will also need an industrial vacuum cleaner in order to remove fine dust. For good processing of the surface perimeter and hard-to-reach places, it is better to use special edging machines or a grinder.
In addition to mechanical work, to obtain a high-quality concrete surface, it is necessary to use special chemical compositions that allow it to be "dust-free" and hardened. One of the best types of such chemicals on the domestic market is Ultralit.
Steps of polished concrete flooring
First of all, to get a perfect concrete surface, you need to level it and rough polish it. The purpose of such actions is to remove large irregularities. The second stage includes work on the restoration of potholes and caverns. Their result should be a single flat surface. It is also dedusted and hardened here.
The third stage is the final grinding or polishing. Micro-scratches are removed. And finally, work is done on the final polishing, which is also called fine grinding. Their goal is a process of caramelization of the surface, through which it acquires a lasting shine.
Finally, you can treat concrete polished with various chemicals to give it additional properties, such as anti-slip. It is important to understand that the main parameters in obtaining such concrete will always be the volume of consumable material, its mass and the speed of obtaining the final product. And the right combination of indicators will make it possible to make a wonderful “mirror” out of an ordinary floor. However, concrete, polished and shiny, can be used for more than just floors. It is also used during the creation of other surfaces.
Production of concrete countertops. Preparatory stage
Tabletop is a necessary attribute in the arrangement of any apartment. And it can be made with your own hands from concrete, which then needs to be polished to obtain an aesthetic appeal. Let's take a look at the manufacturing technology of marbled countertops.
To work, you only need a grinder with a planetary mechanism and attachments for coarse, fine grain and suede, as well as a screwdriver. First of all, you need to assemble a wooden formwork for the future countertop. It is very important to choose a stable and strong frame for it. To do this, you can use ordinary bars with a sizefifty to fifty millimeters. To test the strength of the structure, resort to a trick - the frame must support your weight.
The main stage of work is the production and polishing of concrete
To get a concrete solution, you need to stock up on a bucket of cement and water. We mix the components, then add a couple of buckets of sand and the same number of buckets of crushed stone to the mass. The prepared solution must be slowly poured into the frame to the desired height and left for ten days to solidify. The surface must be smoothed so that there are no irregularities. After the required amount of time has passed, the formwork is carefully removed - work begins on finishing and polishing the concrete. They have already been described earlier, so we will not dwell on this in detail. It is only worth noting that polishing is first done with a nozzle for large grains, then fine-grained, and then with suede with the addition of impregnation. After carrying out all the necessary work, you will get an excellent tabletop made of polished concrete.
In conclusion
Finally, it should be noted what properties high-quality polished concrete (surface) should have and this should always be remembered:
- it shouldn't be dusty;
- surface is not a film material;
- she has an attractive appearance through long-lasting shine;
- durable and easy to use;
- easily restored.
The domestic market has already adaptedto the technology of obtaining concrete coatings. And now you can meet a sufficient number of masters in this field, ready to offer their services.
