About Polished
Concrete
The process, different designs available, costs, and applications
Polished concrete comes from a series of steps after a slab has been poured it's then mechanically ground down by polishing/grinding.
This process also includes the use of a hardening chemical that penetrates the surface to create a dust free surface. The concrete surface polishing typically involves 6 minimum steps to reach a basic polish. The grinding tools work in a series of progessive grits of industrial diamonds in a bonded with other materials called diamond polishing pads.
Concrete is not considered polished before it reaches 800 grit,, and usually the polished concrete slab will be finished to either the 800, 1500, or 3000 level of grit. There are other textures that can be incorporated into the slab such as scoring, creating lines, bands, borders, and other designs. Concrete polishing can also have certain dyes applied to add colour to polished concrete surface.
Polishing concrete and sanding wood are a very similar procress. The machines used are equipped with diamond-segmented abrasives, that are used to grind down concrete surfaces to the desired degree of smoothness and shine.
The process gradually involves going from coarser grit to a finer grit abrasive.
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Concrete polishing can be done with either wet or dry methods. Both has its advantages, dry polishing seems to be the industry standard and most commonly used practice by most concrete contractors because its faster, more convenient, and environmentally friendly.
Wet polishing uses water to cool the diamond abrasives and eliminate grinding dust. Because the water reduces friction and acts as a lubricant, it increases the life of the polishing abrasives.
The main disadvantage here is the cleanup and the slurry it creates which needs to be collected and disposed of in an environmentally friendly way. However dry polishing requires no water. The floor polishing system will be hooked up to a dust management system to vacuum up all those toxic particles.
If you would like any concrete work done here are some common projects we manage for our customers:
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• Concrete stairs + Retaining wall + Planters
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Common finishes available
• Broomed
