What You Need To Know

Polished Concrete – the benefits

Durability & Longevity

Everyone knows concrete is tough and durable.  It has been used as a building material for thousands of years.

Polished Concrete has evolved into one of the flooring products of choice for both new and existing concrete floors, due to its hard wearing characteristics.

Polished Concrete floors are low maintenance, easy to clean and more durable than many flooring options; as well as providing you with a modern, natural and stylish looking floor.

A polished concrete floor is desirable for its longevity, and when properly maintained, it can give you decades of service.  The low maintenance cost and the longer life means you will have chosen the most cost effective, long term option.

Energy Efficient

Along with its durability, Polished Concrete is energy efficient.

Concrete has great thermal mass. It can absorb and retain heat from the sun and internal heating, such as a fire, and then release that ‘free heat’ later; it is a common misconception that it is necessary to have under floor heating.

A highly polished concrete floor can reduce your energy costs by reflecting ambient light, thus reducing your need for extra lighting.

By making use of the materials already present, it is considered an excellent sustainable flooring solution; by polishing the exposed concrete, you eliminate the energy and materials consumed by applying an alternative floor covering.

Kind to You & the Environment

Polished Concrete is one of the most eco-friendly options, by using the natural surface of the concrete. 

Polished concrete floors are low maintenance and more durable than many flooring options, as well as being much easier to clean – no cleaning chemicals required……purely water! 

A polished concrete surface has significant health benefits, such as reducing allergens, dust mites and it does not support mould growth.

Strong & Economical

Polished Concrete flooring is extremely economical, compared to other hard flooring options, such as tiling. Polished Concrete has an unrivalled lifespan, in comparison to Urethane topical sealed concrete.

Polished Concrete is not a resin or a coating.  It is a meticulous process of refinement that gives you a durable and easy to clean, hard wearing surface which is natural, modern and stylish.  It will not chip, dent or discolour, like a coated floor can, and will last you a lifetime.

Your initial investment is the same, or lower, than for traditional flooring solutions, but the low maintenance cost and the longer life means you will have chosen the most cost effective, long term option.

Knowing the Product

Polished Concrete floor vs. Urethane/Sealed floor

“Polished Concrete” can be a broad term used to define the method of grinding the concrete surface to achieve a decorative finish.

Within the trade, there are two different methods which get commonly referred to as being “polished concrete” – they are a concrete ‘grind and seal’, and a concrete ‘grind and polish’. Be sure to know the difference between the two, so you know that what you are getting, is what you actually want!

Too often, we come across clients who have been unclear on these options, chose a ‘grind and seal’ and were unhappy with the result.

Here is what you need to know!

Grind & Seal –

A ‘grind and seal’ (which can also be marketed as ‘resin floor’ or a ‘coated floor’) is often portrayed as, but is definitely not, a true polished concrete floor.
The process involves grinding back the concrete surface to achieve the level of stone exposure desired, however, after the grinding has been completed, the concrete surface is sealed with a thick coating of sealer, such as a urethane, acrylic or epoxy which gives the concrete a polished look.

Granted, this can be a cheaper alternative to polished concrete, but only in the short term. This system of flooring is prone to the sealer scratching and marking, discolouration (UV light or stains), the initial shine will fade, and it can even delaminate from the surface of the concrete; thus creating ongoing, long-term maintenance and costs.

Grind & Polish – 

The ‘grind and polish’ system is the system we at Perfect Polish Limited specialise in, and is a much more specialised and meticulous process.

We start the same as with a ‘grind and seal’, by grinding the concrete surface to reveal the desired stone exposure. Once the grinding stages are completed, we apply a densifier, which reacts with the cement by hardening and strengthening the surface. This is then polished with a series of diamond-blades at varying grits, to achieve the desired finish and gloss level. A penetrating solution is then applied to help protect against stains and water marking, and then the final process is burnishing (buffing) the surface to remove any excess stain protector.

A polished concrete surface will not scratch, chip, dent or discolour (like a coated floor can) and has an unrivaled lifespan. 

The low maintenance cost and the longer life means you will have chosen the most cost effective, long term option.  It is certainly worth opting for a true polished concrete floor, over a ‘grind and seal’ finish.

~ Care & Cleaning ~

Looking After Your Polished Concrete

Your polished concrete floor is an attractive feature, and investment, in your home or business.  When well maintained and looked after, it will remain looking as good as the day it was polished.

Regular cleaning is important, as is using right tools, products and equipment.

Manual cleaning (for your home or business)

• Dust mop the surface daily with a microfibre pad to keep it free from dirt particles. Soils act as an abrasive and can ruin the clarity and shine of polished concrete.
• Spills should be cleaned up immediately (especially anything coloured, oily or acidic, such as coffee, red wine, cooking oils, vinegar, lemon juice etc) to help limit the amount of seepage into the porous concrete surface. A penetrating Stain Protection Solution has been applied to your polished concrete which will provide a small window of opportunity against potential damage; however it is not a stain resistant surface and spills not attended to, can absorb or etch into the polished concrete surface, damaging it.
• If you are wet-mop cleaning, ensure your mop and water are clean (and regularly changed during cleaning) so you minimise spreading damaging particles as you go, and this will also help keep the floor streak-free.
• It is vital that you do not use any abrasive, acidic or alkali household, industrial or commercial cleaning products, such as Handy Andy, Jiff, Spray & Wipe, citrus cleaners, floor polish or floor sealers. Strong alkaline or acidic agents will damage the floor properties, and polish or sealers applied to the floor will leave a (hard to remove) coating which will scratch, discolour and dull the look of your polished concrete.
• If cleaning solutions are required, choose a pH neutral formulation that suspends the particles of soil for easier removal.
• Two products we recommend are HOLER 4 IN 1 QUAD CLEAN (which is available from holer.co.nz) or HUSQVARNA ENZYME CONCRETE CLEANER (available from www.yrco.co.nz)

Cleaning with Automatic Equipment (for larger Commercial/Industrial floors)

• In conjunction with the above cleaning products, automatic floor scrubbers or a mechanical buffing machine may be used, but they should be equipped with pads that are soft and non-abrasive. Pads that are too hard can cause damage to the finish of the polished concrete.
• We recommend an HTC Green Twister pad (available from www.holer.co.nz) or a similar 3,000 diamond grit buffing pad (which is designed for polishing and cleaning terrazzo, marble, and stone floors)
• Ensure the wheels on the equipment are made of rubber or other materials that help prevent damage.

 * Please pass this information onto whoever will be cleaning your polished concrete *

For commercial and/or high traffic floors, we would also recommend you get us back for an annual rebuff and reapplication of our specialised polished concrete stain protection solution.

This can also be arranged for your residential floor after a few years of enjoyment.