The world's foremost resource on decorative concrete
Please take a second to answer this question, because ignoring it could very well cost you a lot of money. Are you a well-kept secret?
Let me start by being blunt. Almost anyone can squeegee down a couple of coats of topping. But overlays and microtoppings are handcrafted, not generic flooring you buy on a roll. How do you go from doing what anyone can do to creating your own distinctive look and giving customers exceptional projects?
I was once a much younger concretist, really impetuous and passionate. I was working for L.M. Scofield Co., and as my wife told me, I worked way too much. So she left me. To be more accurate, she left me in charge of the kids for 10 days while she and her best girlfriend toured a bit of England and Scotland.
Concrete-making uses water. Cleaning concrete-covered mixers, tools and buckets uses even more water. Add to that the sludge that’s rinsed out and you’re often left with a big mess. Everyone who makes concrete faces this dilemma: what to do with all that dirty water and gritty sludge.
Riviera Brush Co. has been a leader in the concrete brush industry since 1989. They started out by developing their line of Orange-Crete wash brushes for the ready-mix industry. The brushes were designed to stand up to the harsh conditions inherent to the industry — lime, abrasives, muriatic acid and other cleaning agents. They were ideal for cleaning trucks and equipment.
It has become pretty clear that polished concrete is the hot market in decorative concrete right now. There was no shortage of equipment and chemical manufacturers touting the latest and greatest at the show, with each making a case for why their system was the best option on the market.
This is not intended to be comprehensive or complet list, but here are a few things to think about when you are beginning any project that involves solvents.
SurfEtch from Butterfield Color is a water-based mild surface retarder that, when used with fresh concrete, exposes the sands in the concrete for a unique decorative finish. In addition to its aesthetic appeal, it can add slip resistance and is solvent-free. Best of all, it’s easy to apply for even the beginning contractor.
Fu-Tung Cheng announced the 2011 winners of Cheng Concrete’s annual Circle of Distinction Design Challenge at the 2011 Concrete Decor Show & Spring Training, in Nashville, Tenn.
When Shawn Halverson first tried his hand at concrete installation, he didn’t intend to make it his livelihood. He got into structural concrete in high school after meeting a contractor who was working on a house for Halverson’s parents, and at the time, he viewed the job as a temporary gig.
