Polished Concrete Floors

Polished concrete flooring

If we are talking ‘flavour of the year’ in architectural flooring, polished concrete would have to be ‘it’.  Not yet commonly used in the Australian housing market, concrete flooring is relatively easy to install and is hardwearing, easy to maintain, cost effective, very sleek and will last a lifetime. This shiny stone like concrete flooring looks great in all areas of the home including bathrooms & kitchens and can be used as an alternative to traditional benchtop materials.

Polished concrete floor installation is categorised into two types: new concrete floors, and retrofit concrete floors (a.k.a. concrete resurfacing).

New concrete flooring

New concrete floors require less work resulting in lower costs, but there are a few things you need to be aware of...

Firstly the slab needs to contain a decorative aggregate. The two most common aggregates are river stone and black basalt mix, however the aggregate can be almost anything you like. (The 6 images below were all supplied by Grind & Shine Polishing Systems.)

The finished surface of the concrete will need to be finished to a high standard to facilitate the concrete polishing process. During the finishing phase any decorative aggregates such as seashells or car parts can be dropped into the surface of the concrete. 

Note: the builder needs to be aware at the early stages of your job that you want polished concrete floors, so that the final finish is of the best quality.

Retrofit floors

Retrofit floors or concrete resurfacing, can be done in two ways.  The existing floor slab can be cut (sanded) and the natural aggregate will be the feature (usually black basalt) or a toping slab with a minimum thickness of 50mm can be added on top of the existing slab.

The process

1. The concrete floor is cut 3-4 times depending on the finished surface and the desired aggregate exposure.  This can be done wet or dry depend on the site situation, This process will remove 3-5mm of concrete thickness.  If it is a new slab the cutting should occur before any walls are erected to ensure the best finish (it is harder to work around walls).
2. The surface is then grouted with cement to allow imperfections and air bubbles to be filled.
3. Two more cuts are done after grouting.
4. A clear liquid hardener (indensifier) is then worked over the surface with a window squeegee.  The indensifier will provide a very glossy look to the finished floor and gives the floor extra strength.  The indensifier is worked into the slab for about 1 hour and will soak into the slab 5-10mm. This will require overnight curing before more cutting is applied.
5. The concrete floor is then cut another three times – this is the final polishing stage.
6. Lastly all the concrete floors are to be sealed. There are two main types of sealing processes: Diamond finish is where the concrete is sanded 3-4 for times with varying grades of sanding paper and sealed with a standard stone or tile sealer. Epoxy finish is applied in two layers with sanding over both layers with varying grades of sandpaper. Both sealing systems reduce any oil staining and reduce mould build-up in wet areas. A standard floor sealer for stone and tiles can be used or you may like to use an epoxy finish.

Concrete floors will not chip or dent like softer surfaces such as timber and is easy to maintain.  Mopping with warm soapy water once a week is the only maintenance required.

Cost of polished concrete floors

Polished concrete floors are comparable in price to other high-end floor finishes such as marble tiles.

The cost of polished concrete floors is offset by virtually no maintenance cost (timber floors have a relatively high maintenance cost) and their incredible durability - they last almost forever. Contact one of the businesses listed below for a quote.

Money saving tip: If possible have your floors polished before the walls go up. Finishing and polishing the edges of a room with walls is time consuming and adds a lot to the cost.

Related article

Polished concrete furniture and benchtops. Use polished concrete to enhance the look of your home with polished concrete benches, benchtops, tub surrounds, planters, and more. Polished concrete furniture can have the same look as marble - and there are many ways to make the finish of your concrete furniture or benchtop unique, as well as long lasting.

Find a concrete polisher in your area

Polished Concrete NSW & Queensland

	Sydney based Concrete Culture is your polished concrete specialist for every job. Turn your dirty, dull gray and cracked floors into a well designed, durable and low maintenance floor.  For more information call Martin on 0403-548-683.
	Servicing all of NSW including the Central Coast, Newcastle, Sydney and beyond Grind & Shine Floor Polishing Systems are specialists in high-end concrete floor applications for commercial and residential buildings. For more information call Mark Gooding on 0420-277-887.
	Servicing all NSW & Queensland. ANS Coatings have over 40 years experience in the application of flooring products, including a variety of polished concrete systems. ANS specialise in TPC, true polished concrete, polished concrete that requires no topical high gloss sealer. This unique flooring system leaves your concrete floor with a stunning semi to hi-gloss finish that requires only minimal ongoing maintenance.

Polished Concrete Victoria (VIC)

Melbourne based Concrete Resurfacing Systems are Victoria’s no. 1 concrete polishing and designer floor application company, from design to finished project.  For more information call 1300 13 90 92.

Concrete polishers in Western Australia (WA) & the Northern Territory (NT)

Servicing WA & NT. Grind&Shine Floor Polishing Systems are specialists in high-end concrete floor applications for commercial and residential buildings. For more information call Mark Gooding on 0420-277-887. (Mark travels throughout WA & NT with his equipment.)

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