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For Dancer Concrete, a recent polished concrete project on the second floor of a former school building in Indianapolis posed a tough test of skill and, thanks to some challenging logistics, strength.
From the playground to the locker room, decorative concrete is inspiring teachers and school administrators across the country.
How strong (in compression or psi) does concrete have to be to take a polish without densifier? Getting an answer for this one was pretty straightforward — 5,000 psi to 6,000 psi, depending on the aggregate.
Regular househousld items can be essential tooks when polishing concrete. Check out some of these tips from an expert to make your next job that much better.
Does size matter in the world of polished concrete? I have heard the arguments on both sides for why smaller or larger polishing machines are better, but ultimately it depends.
The introduction of dye into the polished concrete industry has expanded the market enormously. The business is brimming with potential. However, we still face the significant hurdle of maintaining the integrity of an exposed concrete polished floor while protecting the dye in it against staining and moisture travel.
There are new profit opportunities in polished concrete for the decorative concrete contractor. This is a fact, and every decorative concrete contractor should look into polished concrete. However, nothing ever caused more people to go broke than too much optimism and too little planning.
You’ve heard of densifiers. But let’s face it — much of what you’ve heard about them to date has come from densifier manufacturers.
Concrete Re-Surfacing Technologies Inc. of Palos Park, Ill., was brought in to finish 8,000 square feet of plain concrete floor at the new Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center, one of the nation's largest memorials to the loss of millions of innocent lives during some of Europe's darkest hours.
Three of the nation’s most beloved sports franchises - the New York Yankees, Indianapolis Colts and Dallas Cowboys - embraced decorative concrete when they built their new homes.
Brad Obbink went all-in as a polished concrete contractor a few years ago, discarding the paint pot and brush and hitching his fortunes to the concrete grinder/polisher, for better or worse.
If done right, polished concrete — and other decorative concrete approaches — offer low-maintenance solutions in interior and exterior settings.
That’s “low-maintenance” as opposed to “no-maintenance” or “maintenance-free.”
The polished concrete industry has been plagued with a slew of maintenance systems that confuse and aggravate end users of polished concrete. Many suppliers of tools, equipment, chemicals and cleaning products rush to offer systems of maintenance, none of them adequately tested or proven.
A few colors of dye, some common butcher paper and a little creativity are all it takes to get this handsome mottled finish.
Be careful what you ask for, you just might get it. My dad said we would be willing to do trial services for them in some stores to show them what we could do.
ST115 is a new standard for the concrete polishing industry that was adopted in fall 2013 by the Concrete Sawing and Drilling Association (CSDA). The standard explains in detail how to measure the texture of a concrete surface by using a texture meter.
“As functional as it is beautiful,” was how Dr. Robert Feirsen, superintendent of Garden City, New York, schools, described the polished concrete used in the new addition and renovation of the city’s middle school.
The specification is the best protection that you have, other than the contract itself, to keep from getting taken advantage of by the customer. If you know the specifications forward and backward you are in excellent shape if any conflict arises.
Asbestos is very dangerous when found in tiles and glue on concrete and needs to be professionally abated.
For both new construction and remodel projects, polishing contractors face similar issues when trying to get concrete not poured at the same time to aesthetically match. This is a major problem in the world of construction.
Florida’s Miami Beach is a part of the country known for its high real estate prices, but the penthouse condominium sales price of $60 million for the Faena House Saxony Condo set a new high.
Anthony Allen, owner of the largest winery in Maryland, knew he wanted a very special floor for his newly renovated wine-tasting and banquet rooms, located in a former dairy barn.
So we’re in the early stages of a polishing project after the old VCT (vinyl composition tile) has been removed. We’re progressing with initial grinding diamonds to open the floor, only to have the building owner walk through and complain, “What happened to my floor? What are all those lines? Is my floor ruined?
Colloidal silica was introduced as a concrete densifier many years ago, and it has proven itself a reliable tool for concrete polishers and others needing to harden or densify cured concrete surfaces. However, there is widespread confusion about what it is, and this confusion can lead to misinformation. This article attempts to bring some clarification.
Decorative concrete overlays, stampings, fountains and countertops created from scratch. And the best part of all was that the majority of the work the artisans created are to become a permanent working part of Walla Walla County Fairgrounds.
