Floors, floors, floors
Original concrete floor installation
The ground level concrete floors were installed by Meld-USA of Raleigh which has since been bought by Michigan-based Landscape Forms which no longer does this type of work. The pale red color that is in most homes was added to the concrete while it was in the mixer. Two homes (including 111) had an additional dark red stain applied on top of the original pale red. It was then waxed. Color in homes to be Santa Fe # 1117 in the Davis color line. Common House to be “San Diego Buff” in Davis color line. Buyer options to include additional stain and finishes at additional cost. Slabs are to be treated as finish floors, and should be protected as a fine wood to be stained.
Caring for your floors
A few community members have recommended waxing the floors with a masonry wax about once a year. This sacrificial coat will help protect the floors from stains.Former owner Dave Bellin suggests that they can be cleaned with a power brush, then after they have dried, applying hot oil (unclear as to what kind). Alternatively, use a floor stripper followed by commercial floor wax.
What's involved in refinishing concrete floors?
The following is based only on the experience of the Collins/Fischer household. Your mileage may vary. It’s a messy job. You will need to move out of your house for at least a week and move all of the furniture off the first floor. If using Robert Witcraft-Decorative Concrete Coating, they will remove kitchen appliances, doors and toilets for you. They will also remove the quarter-round molding of baseboards so the epoxy can get to the edges of the floor. You will need to replace that yourself afterwards.
The first step is to grind the entire surface of the floor. This removes stains and roughens the top layer to accept the epoxy. Only a millimeter or so is ground off so this does not hurt the pipes underneath if you have radiant heat. Surface is then cleaned of all dust, epoxy is applied. Witcraft can apply metallic coatings using a variety of artistic techniques. See examples: Metallic Floors.
Collins/Fischer chose the other main technique, known as broadcast floors in which tiny flakes of varying colors are spread heavily over a base coat of epoxy, giving the floor a granite-like appearance. See: Flake Floors. This method is cheaper than the metallic coating process. After the flakes are spread, a clear epoxy coat is applied on top. It takes 3-7 days to fully cure. The epoxy coating is supposed to be extremely durable and impervious to staining. It is recommended to put a wax coat on it once a year.
At least one Pacifica resident covered the concrete with stone tile and reports no difference in the radiant heat’s effectiveness.
Refinishing concrete floors
The Collins/Fischer household [#111] hired Robert Witcraft and is pleased with the results. Other companies listed here are provided as a resource.
Robert Witcraft-Decorative Concrete Coating Highly rated on Angie’s List. He says this work generally runs $6-$8 per square foot for the metallic coating finish; slightly less for the broadcast finish. It cost Collins/Fischer $3,500 for the entire first floor. They are pleased with the finished floor and with the service provided.
Precision and Decorative Concretes Based in Durham.
Express Yourself Paint Company mentioned they do concrete floors.
Collins/Fischer hired for interior painting.
Additional information
Quotes gathered for damaged floors in unit #135, March 2018:
- Option #1: spot repair method
- Precision and Decorative Concretes at: 919-730-0623
- Grind concrete floor. This is the best preparation for resealing a floor by removing paint, stains, oils, waxes and sealers, etc. and create a clean canvas to work with. Includes removing coatings down to clean concrete. Some aggregate may show through after concrete is ground and will not have the same color as the concrete around it (the aggregate will have its natural color as the pigments of the concrete [or stains added after the concrete is ground] will not penetrate the aggregate). Dust control equipment included is shrouded grinders with attached vacuum. Concrete will be smooth at finish (unless there are holes in concrete) but does not include polishing of concrete. Apply polyurethane (low gloss low VOC water based sealer takes 1 week for full cure at 60 degrees) or polyaspartic floor coating (high gloss 1 day cure). Includes supplying and installing sealer according to manufactures.Includes two coats. Cleaning is not included and not needed if concrete is ground. $3923
- Option #2: overall refinishing method
- Robert Witcraft-Decorative Concrete Coating at 919-723-7746
- Coating Removal. Repair cracks to the floor if necessary. Diamond grind floor to resurface and set up a new profile for coating material. Apply one (1) coat colored primer 10 mils. Apply one (1) coat metallic epoxy 20 mils. Apply one (1) coat Poly-siloxane clear coat 5 mils.$5600