Hey Baldy, that is what most people do.
Though a lot go for standard polished concrete risers and treads
... and there seems to be no issue.
Browse Forums Flooring & Floor Covering Re: Polished Concrete or Timber floors 61May 28, 2011 8:30 pm Hey Baldy, that is what most people do. Though a lot go for standard polished concrete risers and treads ... and there seems to be no issue. Where you are coming from is where you are going to... Re: Polished Concrete or Timber floors 62May 29, 2011 10:34 am After several months of researching, asking questions and looking at displays of polished concrete, we've finally made our decision NOT to do it. I still love the look of it when it turns out perfectly but, even according to the experts, concrete has a mind of it's own and you can't really predict the outcome totally. If any expert is reading this, correct me I'm wrong , but you can do all the right things, from the mesh to the concrete mix and the weather, but the day and the pour can still affect the finish detrimentally. I was so keen on having polished concrete because it seemed like the best way to achieve an easy care, attractive floor that would leave us free of any major ongoing maintenance. I was concerned about having timber because of the wear and repolishing (I don't want to ask my visitors to take their shoes off and I don't want a floor that I have to worry about). Porcelain is beautiful but I don't want a "show floor" and porcelain, like tiles still chips. To be honest, I'm still not sure what we will end up with but it won't be polished concrete because I finally went to see a home in our area that was for sale and the floors in all the living areas are polished concrete. The owners love it and the real estate agent selling the house said he would have it in his house if he builds again but the moment I walked into the house, it felt "unfriendly", commercial and it even looked a bit dingy. I was told the job was done expertly (and the owner is a TV presenter so I'd presume they would have had the finances and contacts to get the best job available???). I'll pass on my observations to anyone who, like I was, is wrestling with a decision ... should I or shouldn't I go with PC. Firstly, the agregate wasn't perfectly evenly dispersed so there were busy and less busy areas. There were many hairline cracks which I could put my fingernail into ... these were not immediately evident (I saw them because I'd come to see the floor and was inspecting it) they could probably be filled and polished so this may or may not be a problem but it concerned me. Around the edges of the rooms, there were uneven gaps between the finished PC surface and the skirting board. I presume the concrete can only be smooth to a relative degree but the bottom of the skirting board is straight so this left uneveness which I thought looked unattractive. There were "muddy" looking patches in the middle of the family room which I instinctively wanted to clean (I restrained myself, of course) and when another person inspecting the house asked what they were, she was told that this was where the table and chairs had been and it was where the chairs had been moved in and out and they had dulled the floor. I'm 100% sure it could be polished again, but this is exactly what I'm trying to avoid. Lastly, the overall feel of the house was that I was in a cafeteria. It just looked very commercial and I didn't like it. In defense of PC, I will add that the finish wasn't highly polished but I would also have chosen a less polished finish because high shine shows all the marks and I want easy care. All in all, I still love the IDEA of PC but I've decided it's not for me in my home and because I was so anxious to make the right decision, I thought I'd share my observation with others in the same position. As a last thought, I must add that, on a trip to Italy a few years ago, I visited many relatives of my husband and I couldn't put my finger on it, but their houses all seemed rather "cold" ... not cold temperature wise but cold in atmosphere. I couldn't work out what it was ... the people were lovely and hospitable, they had nice furnishings and decoration (in some cases too much ) but there was a feeling of the place not being homely - for want of a better word. I vowed to get to the bottom of it because it was something I didn't want to replicate. I have finally found out what it was. I had the same feeling of not being homely in the house with polished concrete floors that I'd viewed. Most of the floors in Italy (all the ones we went to) are Terazzo which is virtually polished concrete! I hope I haven't been unfair to PC ... these are just my honest thoughts. Re: Polished Concrete or Timber floors 63May 29, 2011 11:25 am Good on you for your opinion IMHO if the job looks sh it then it will feel sh it too, the faults you have mentioned do not espouse the virtues of an expert, cracks that have not been repaired, dull areas, random stone exposure, edging that looks crap.. sounds ugly to me too. Sorry you feel that way, but I am more disappointed with the job looking crap than anything else, they were not 'expert' in the delivery, but life would be boring if we all liked the same thing. So I guess it is back to tiles then? The last 5 months for us have been bigger than the last 10 years in output of work, the next 7 months will take us passed the entire turn over of 21 years since we started... this is by no means an excuse for all ills, because PPP always results in under-performance. And I did neglect future planning by not hiring earlier.. but needed to know the people I was hiring were 'Trained' sufficiently to avoid the issues you mentioned. Another 2 guys have joined the team in WA they are granos that think like me and cure their concrete and think about issues that will cause pain for following trades and the 'Owner'. Sorry for the rant but I feel in some ways I have made the process more difficult than it should have been and for this I apologize your PC floor should look like this Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ or this before and after with the skirting boards on Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Where you are coming from is where you are going to... Re: Polished Concrete or Timber floors 64May 29, 2011 12:24 pm Nice to hear from you Onc. I know what you mean - poor tradesmen do a substandard job and create a bad reputation for a product that doesn't deserve it. I must say that the terazzo floors in Italy were superb in quality but I've discovered that, as you say, we're all different and I'm glad I recognized that PC is not for me, before we did it. Had you been less busy, I would have probably gone with PC before I discovered what it was about the Italian houses that made me feel less than comfortable, because you instilled confidence in your knowledge and ability to do the best job possible. Understandably, you are just one person and can't be everywhere at the same time. I wish you well and for everyone who decides to go with PC ... if you do it, knowing what you're getting and get someone like Onc to do the job, I'm sure you'll be happy. Re: Polished Concrete or Timber floors 65May 29, 2011 12:38 pm Thanks Jan Just a matter of interest what colour was the floor in the house? aside -- In this economic climate for a business to be growing we must be doing something right. Where you are coming from is where you are going to... Re: Polished Concrete or Timber floors 66May 29, 2011 12:41 pm Love your post Jan. I love polished concrete and would have gone for it in a hearbeat, but it would have totally changed the look and feel of our house. That's not a bad thing, I think it would have looked great, but it has to be a look and feel that you want, and obviously it's not for you. Whatever you do will look great as you've put a lot of thought into it Re: Polished Concrete or Timber floors 67May 29, 2011 2:35 pm Hi there, Onc, it was a light floor ... cream/white? with a mixed small agregate. Rizzo, thank you. I hope we get it right in the end because this is supposed to be our last home before the pine box I actually really like our current floor tiles except that the grout is too wide and they have chipped in a couple of places in the kitchen, but the house is 25 years old so I suppose we've done well. This time we're building a Tuscan style house which will suit porcelain but I don't want the hi gloss ultra modern look (I'm too busy/lazy to be cleaning the floor every five minutes). Problem is there are just too many choices and it makes it very complicated because at the end of the day, I can only blame me, if I get it wrong. As you say, I should get it right because I've done everything humanly possible to make well informed decisions.... we will just have to wait and see Re: Polished Concrete or Timber floors 68Jun 06, 2011 9:34 pm IM going to butt in here because I figure I am entitled too! Onc tomorrow will be doing the last stage of our floor and I am beyond excited. Polished concrete was something I decided to have at the very last minute, and I mean the last minute and I DONT REGRET IT ONE BIT!!! Now Onc will attest to the fact that we have had MEGA MEGA problems with our build including an entire wall collapsing on our floor, two tramps squatting and cooking, some awful neglect from tradies and even though it is not finished it still looks gorgeous. The fallacy that polished concrete creates a minimalistic cold feel is just that. Our house can best be described as a beach house. It has a very very coastal feel. We choose the white concrete with light agregate. Admittedly I have got really expensive taste and it is the most expensive on the market but it is also beautiful. Whilst the decorating in our home is not finished the overall feel is light, breezy warm. Having PC has completely saved our bacon in my opinion. It has saved us time with tiling, looks awesome and when we realised that the architect completely stuffed our plans up and we couldnt have airconditioning we were so grateful for the grey stuff! For me it was a no brainer to have PC in our main living areas. Our upper storeys have wood and we have finally decided to lay carpet in the kids bedrooms due to the fact they are young and still play on the floor. Dollars and cents - I suppose it is a bit dearer but then I didnt seriously consider tiles. Cracks - I have been on the crack hunt since the project began and it was only today that I have found the smallest of cracks. I am confident though that Onc will sort this, he hasnt let me down so far! ADvice re polished concrete - you only pay for what you get. Not every grano worker can lay a slab that will look beautiful polished. It is worth paying a bit extra for the real deal. kay - a serioulsy proud polished concrete owner!!! PS I give full permission for ONC to post pics of my floor in the next few days for you all to see. Re: Polished Concrete or Timber floors 69Jun 07, 2011 12:31 am So nice to hear of a happy result. I'm so glad it turned out well for you. I'm really rather envious as I'd love to have had the courage of my convictions and gone with PC but after the house I saw, I just couldn't do it. It would have been my fault if things had gone bad as hubby had left the decision up to me (I'm in the house more often and I'm the one who does most of the cleaning). I have seen wonderful photos of finished floors that do the tradesmen proud. Can't wait to see your photos. Re: Polished Concrete or Timber floors 70Jun 07, 2011 1:17 pm After much deliberation - DH and I have decided to go with Polished concrete throughout the whole house when we build. (Onc - will arrange with you as soon as we have a date!).... We thought the best scenario was to have polished concrete - if we really, really hated it, then we could put something else down afterwards. Yes it would be an added cost, but we feel it we love polished concrete then it wouldn't matter. We couldn't go the other way in having something and then changing to polished concrete..... I am sure we are going to love polished concrete and am really looking forward to arranging it with Onc!..... Re: Polished Concrete or Timber floors 71Jun 07, 2011 9:21 pm Mapcalla I think you contacted me a while ago to come through the house. I was in a tough place with the build and never got back to you. I have said to Onc to put as many pictures as he wants of the floor up and I am sur ethere will be some in the next few days. I am sure you will be delighted with it. Even though ours looks a bit rough prior to being polished, EVERYONE comments on it in a positive way. My parents thought we were barking mad spending that much money on flooring. I am pleased to say when they are telling people about our house one of the first things they mention is the polished concrete!!!! We are just so looking forward to it. It has a life all of its own and already gives our room a really beautiful feel. It does not look cold at all. Actually I will take a pic of the area and post it up tomorrow if Onc lets me put it up prrior to posting!!!!! You will love it. we do! kay Engineering timber is certainly a less fuss option, times cheaper to supply and install and better withstands humidity. 1 15886 Sam There is a much stronger glue than liquid nails. It's called T Rex and will stick your timber to the concrete. Cheers Simeon 1 1545 |