Beauty and strength unite in decorative concrete. With a perfect acid stain, they combine together to form a durable, beautiful floor. Because a lot relies on the concrete installer to deliver the perfect decorative concrete floor, you as the expert must be on top of your game. In this regard, here are two key tips to keep any decorative concrete installer ahead of the curve.
Product knowledge
Initially, decorative concrete had only a handful of the types of finishes that were applieded. However today, the broad range of finishes, additives and techniques applied in decorative concrete each possesses its own pros and cons. Whether for practical, aesthetic or economic reasons, the decorative concrete installer must always understand the application and the preferred result of each material that will be present in the concrete mixture or smeared to the finished slab. The interesting part of the variety of options available, including staining, stamping, overlays, dyes, micro-toppings, aggregates, polishes, and more is that the final outcome is only limited by the installer's product knowledge. Despite being a staple in the construction industry, concrete remains sensitive to several variables that could translate into undesired outcome if not comprehended and managed properly. For example, excess moisture content in the concrete slab will eventually find its way to the surface and cause staining, scaling or overlay failure, among other surface issues. So make sure you are fully aware of the required specifications for every product used in the installation.
Negotiate a breakthrough schedule
In any building project, time schedule is always one of the important elements. However with decorative concrete, the risk of running the project using the clock is that the drying schedule of concrete can't be projected by any rule-of-thumb tactic. Many variables are likely to influence the drying time of concrete, like ambient conditions, the initial mixture, troweling methods, particular necessities for texturing or stamping, and the existence of color tints or dyes in the admixture, among others. With decorative concrete flooring, attempting to rush the project can eventually translate into a flooring failure of installed decorative finishes or floorings alike. To avoid moisture-linked flooring problems, the concrete contractor can measure the internal moisture conditions of the concrete slab and make the decision whether or not to proceed with the selected decorative concrete finish. In a nutshell, negotiate a timeline that allows for absolute readiness of the decorative concrete floor.
By observing the above-mentioned tips, concrete contractors can be sure of providing expert installations.
Share19 April 2016
Concrete may seem boring to the uninitiated, but as the wife of a concrete contractor, I have learned, over the years, that it is anything but boring. Contemporary concrete can be used in a range of applications from functional sound walls to decorative koi ponds, and it can be left gray, stamped or acid stained. If you are getting ready to do a project, you have come to the right place. In this blog, I am going to post a myriad of information about concrete with an emphasis on project ideas and the different uses of concrete. By the end, I hope you find concrete as exciting as I do!
