Grind and Seal – The Affordable Alternative to Polishing

Grind and Seal is the industry term for concrete which has a clear coating system installed on your concrete floor. In many cases, people think they are getting a polished concrete floor, however, there are significant differences between a coating system and true polished concrete.

There is a difference… Grind and polish is more expensive. The reason is that the floor surface must be ground with a succession of finer grits until a desired surface evenness and exposure of underlying stone is achieved. This is followed by a process of application of chemical densifier. The densifier hardens concrete and makes it harder and stronger. After this, the surface is honed using fine grit diamond polishing wheels of increasing fineness with each pass until the desired smoothness or polish is achieved. This is followed by a coat of penetrating sealant. It may be superior and lasting but it is also more expensive. A better, cheaper and just as effective alternative is to opt for grind and seal concrete floor. We offer both.

The grind and seal concrete floor process is simpler and faster. The concrete surface is ground first with a coarse grit and then with fine grit. The surface is cleaned and allowed to dry. A seal coat is then applied over the concrete. The concrete sealant may be solvent polymer based, water-based or a reacting polymer that cures when two components are mixed together. Epoxy resin is tough and forms a clear, transparent coat or it may be modified with additives to form an opaque coat with a suitable color.

Grind and seal concrete floors are affordable as less labor is involved in the whole process. The process is also fast due to fewer steps involved. The grind and seal process is a suitable floor option in a variety of industrial and commercial spaces such as Warehouses, Manufacturing, Retail, and Food Service.

The advantages of a grind and seal concrete system over other systems are:

• Initial installation costs are comparably low to true polished concrete
• Beading or grit can be added to enhance slip resistance
• Not as reliant on concrete quality to achieve consistent gloss level
• As long as concrete has been poured and installed correctly there are options for exposure levels
• Full gloss or satin options available in indoor systems

When you add these things to the seamless, dust-free, hypoallergenic, easy-clean, thermal mass properties and appearance qualities – grind and seal options are highly flexible.

We welcome your questions about our applications to your unique flooring needs. Please contact us to talk about your floor and learn how we can help.