Here are some of our favourite designs utilising polished concrete.

When you see the finished results, it’s easy to see why concrete flooring has fast become the flooring solution of choice for designers. Sleek, stylish and sophisticated, concrete flooring provides both homes and businesses with a modern elegance.

Historically, concrete was deemed too “cold” to put in the home—aside from the garage or outdoor areas—but it’s now finding its way into all rooms of the house, and for good reason. Here are some of our favourite designs utilising polished concrete. We know we’re a little biased, but they truly do speak for themselves.

A unique alternative to the tired kitchen tiles, polished concrete looks sharp in this home. And the neutral colour tone provides for a timeless finish that won’t readily date.

Even in the living room, a room that still needs to feel warm and inviting, polished concrete adds a touch of class. Complete with a colourful or patterned rug or a luxurious leather lounge for the sleekest of sleek.

And in the workplace, polished concrete offers a clean, clear and professional finish to any office. We particularly like the contrast to the redbrick wall and the pendant lighting in this space.

While the view from this New York office is breathtaking, we can’t take our eyes off the stunning polished concrete floor. The high-gloss finish, alongside the floor to ceiling glass, gives the uncanny appearance of an infinity pool.

Hot tip: polished concrete have a high reflectivity so they amplify the natural light entering your home or workspace. Complement with lighting that enhances this natural feature.

Once you go concrete, you never go back.

More and more people are realising the benefits of concrete flooring and making the switch from carpet, tiles and other flooring surfaces in their homes and businesses. It has become the new flooring material of choice for designers who celebrate its versatility.

Once upon a time, people associated concrete words like “cold” and “industrial” but with advances in modern practices, concrete flooring is becoming an increasingly versatile option with many benefits that other surfaces don’t provide. So without further ado, here are the top five everyday living benefits of having concrete flooring in your home or business.

• It’s Unique.

Depending on how it’s finished and what it’s mixed with, concrete flooring has a completely unique appearance. Polished concrete produces a high-gloss, flake flooring has a pebbled look, and acid staining simulates marble or adds a mottled variegated look. Depending on your design preferences, you can tailor your concrete floor however you’d like. Roll away the carpets and choose the flooring option with the capacity to truly individualise like no other.

• It’s Economical.

When compared to other flooring options such as hardwood, laminate or vinyl, concrete is a more economical option. The cost per square metre, which of course will differ depending on the finishing and overall total area, is relatively low. The economical aspects are even further enhanced if the property already has concrete slabs that simply need to be polished or otherwise finished.

• It’s Long-Lasting.

With only the smallest amount of care in return, concrete flooring will last you a lifetime. With the highest durability and sustainability of any other flooring option, its resilience will outlive many generations and countless foot traffic. And there’s no need to worry about stains since anything can be wiped away with ease.

• It’s Impressive.

Nobody walks into a home or business and espouses their love of the carpet in the living room but put a polished concrete floor in and visitors are blown away by how refined the space looks. Polished concrete is sophisticated, stylish and on-trend, offering a finesse that a surface like carpet will never replicate.

• It’s Easy to Maintain

A sweep and mop with the occasional damp mop is the only care you’ll need to provide your concrete flooring with to maintain its finish and prevent any accumulation of dirt. The polish on polished concrete will last at least ten years and there’s no need to lift a finger with constant waxing to keep it looking schmick.

Customise your space with a unique and elegant finish

When looking to customise your concrete flooring, there are few options more unique than acid staining. The chemical reaction that occurs can turn even the plainest slab of concrete into a distinctive feature that draws the eye and add a touch of style to any space.

You can choose a finish that adds either a marble or mottled variegated look to concrete flooring and results in a non-uniformed colouration and patterning of the floor that is quite striking.

If you’re looking for something to individualise a space, acid staining could be the very answer you’ve been looking for. Here are five reasons why you should consider acid staining your Gold Coast or Brisbane concrete flooring.

Related reading – Five Everyday Living Benefits of Concrete Flooring

Durability

All concrete flooring is relatively durable but acid staining adds an additional durability to already hardy flooring. It has a high resistance to wear and tear and decay and you could even go so far as to say that acid-stained concrete floors simply do not wear out. When properly installed, acid staining will not peel, discolour, fade, stain or chip that way that some other concrete coatings do. They are inflammable and the colouring is resistant to ultraviolet light. All of this means that acid-stained concrete flooring will never need to be replaced and rarely needs refinishing.

Low Maintenance

An intermittent sweep or vacuum and a mop is practically all acid staining requires to keep it clean—no regular vacuuming or shampooing or waxing, no worry about stains from spills, no grout that can discolour or concern about chipping or cracking. While the level of foot traffic will dictate how regularly the floor will need to be maintained, acid-stained concrete flooring has the lowest average maintenance costs of any flooring.

Beauty Without the Price Tag

Acid staining has an elegance that can rival real marble or fancy floor tiles at a fraction of the cost. It is possible to reproduce a likeness to some of the most expensive building materials due to the concrete flooring’s receptiveness to the colour from the acid staining. Replicate slate, marble, sandstone, flagstone, travertine and granite and have flooring that is both sophisticated and modern without having to fork out for the hefty price tag.

Low Allergenic

Acid-stained concrete flooring is not a conducive environment for many common allergens. Residual odours, mould, mildew, dust mites and retained moisture—allergens that are associated with carpeting, wood and tiling installations—find no home in acid-stained concrete flooring and can mean that hay fever sufferers, or those who are particularly susceptible to allergens, don’t experience the same level of problems that they do with other flooring types.

Highly Water Resistant

As the most corrosive element on the planet, there isn’t much that is not affected by water. When talking about floorings, water is responsible for wood cracking, buckling and rotting, carpet growing mould and tiles discolouring. However, acid staining a concrete floor makes it practically impossible for water to corrode it. A small amount of moisture may pass through the sealer and the concrete but it dries out to leave no lasting effect.  This makes acid staining an excellent choice for areas that regularly get damp or wet.