Polished concrete

[jane99]

Hi all

I've been trying to find out about polishing a concrete slab - 4 x 4m, but info. so far is that it will be very expensive because of the set up cost - minimum cost applies - $3500! The Cement & Concrete Association said you can buy polished concrete pavers and tiles but I"m having trouble finding out anything about them - the best I've heard is that I could have them done specially in Brisbane and get them shipped to Melbourne! Any information greatly appreciated.

[Robert WA]

If you are talking about a concrete floor, just remember that it will be slippery. I have scars to prove that.

I understand that wet concrete can be given a high polish finish by using a wooden float.

[bitingmidge]

If the slab is already in position, have you tried contacting a terazzo contractor?

Terazzo is simply polished concrete, poured with custom aggregates then polished in situ.

Cheers,

P

[journeyman Mick]

You can hire machines to polish concrete, 16M2 shouldn't take too long.

Mick

[jane99]

Thanks boys, I decided after I got your posts last night that I really should get the tiles off the slab and see what condition it's in. The house has been tiled throughout, sometimes in 3 inches of mortar, mostly it's on baltic pine that's been well protected by masonite, old lino or thick plastic, but we know that the dining room is on a concrete slab, and we think this is part of the slab that's under the verandah outside. This weekend we're going to get to the tiles over the dining area.

Robert: I've heard that polished concrete is slippery, is it generally slippery or only if wet?

Mick: That sounds interesting, where would you hire such a machine and how difficult would it be?

P: Where would I find a terrazzo contractor? Yellow Pages??

[arose62]

Have you visited

http://www.polishedconcrete.com.au/


???

Read about them in the promo for the recent building and renovating show.

Cheers,
Andrew

[arose62]

Also try

www.boral.com.au and search their site for polished concrete.

They have a "BoralStone" polished concrete product.

Regarding slipperyness - from their site:

"When it came to creating an elegant and cost effective look for a new retail flower business in an existing shop, owner Mariella was faced with making important decisions on a wide range of quality interior finishes. Of particular importance was the floor surface.

With water being a key element in her business - fresh flowers need to stand in water, it was essential to choose the right finish for the floor.

"I basically wanted something that worked well with water and didn't get slippery," explains Mariella, "especially as water is on the floor quite a lot."

An architectural finishes consultant from Boral advised Mariella of her choices, and explained that a special sealer on a polished concrete floor would counter the usual slippery effect of water on a polished surface. "

Cheers,
Andrew

[journeyman Mick]

Jane, I know that a couple of the local hire companies here (Cairns) have them. As far as degree of difficulty is concerned, well I haven't tried it as I hate working with concrete in any way shape or form with a passion (and have a bad back to prove it!) so I don't want to add any new concrete related strings to my bow. I know you don't need to be a big macho bloke to use one of these polishers though, a few years ago I did some work for a gay couple (both of slight build) and they hired one to polish all the pavers on their patio area. They don't make pavers slippery as the surface is porous and it simply flattens the tops of all the particles. The greatest difficulty will be in masking off the work area so the resty of the house won't be covered in a fine film of concrete dust. I suggest you think about hiring a barrel type extractor fan and flexi ducting. You may need to exhaust the ducting against a large wet sheet so as to catch the dust before it annoys the sh*t out of the neighbours. Then again, it may be a wet process so you won't need to worry about it, like I said I've not actually done it.

Mick

[jane99]

Andrew I've had a look at both those sites - thanks for your help. The one in Perth looks fantastic, just want I need - unfortunately I'm in Melbourne! Boralstone I suspect is about having a new slab laid, rather than polishing an existing slab. I had heard that you can get polished concrete pavers from Boral, but when I rang their "Ideas" line they didn't know anything about it. I'll see what the condition of the slab is on Friday and take it from there I think.

[leonh]

Hi.

We have had problems with polishing Boral concrete. We ordered our slab coloured, and the paper bags that the dye came in got mixed throughout the slab. When my partner and I ground it, we were left with an ugly mess from the paper fragments throughout it.

It is only our experience, but we would stay well away from boral concrete if we had the choice again. It is about 7 months since we brought the problem to their attention, and they still haven't fixed it.

[Pulpo]

Toying with the idea of polishing the concrete slab myself but my slab has not been poured.

I would recommend looking at the link below, if you have not done so.

http://www.boral.com.au/brochures/orders/PDF/concrete.pdf

Although its on borals website it is produce by the Cement and Concrete Association.

Lots of useful info, but not well written, it could flow better.

possiblities are limitless. :confused:

Good luck

Pulpo

[jane99]

Ok, here's the update on the slab situation. We still haven't checked the condition of the slab (we're lazy renovators!) but we have found a place in Melbourne (www.alternativefloors.com.au) that brings coloured polished concrete pavers over from Tasmania ranging in size from about 100mmx100mm to 1000mmx1000mm and ranging in thickness from 15-25mm, nice range of colours including 2 or 3 shades of grey similar to concrete. Don't know why they don't just leave it uncoloured to show the aggregate - I'll investigate this further. This is going to be the most cost effective way of getting the look of polished concrete, without the expense of it ($90 metre (we have 8 metres to do) versus $2500-3000).