Polished concrete
Grind, densify, polish — a low-maintenance finish built from the slab itself, with nothing on top to wear through.
01 / THE PROCESS
Three steps, no coating applied.
Polished concrete is not a product applied to the slab. It is the slab, mechanically refined until the surface itself is the finish.
- 01
Grind
Coarse diamond tooling levels the slab and removes surface contamination, opening the concrete for the steps that follow.
- 02
Densify
A chemical hardener penetrates the slab and reacts with free lime in the concrete, hardening the surface from within instead of coating over it.
- 03
Polish
Progressively finer diamond grits refine the surface through a sequence of passes, taking the sheen from a flat grind up to a high-gloss finish.
Because there is no film thickness sitting on top of the concrete, there is nothing to peel, blister or wear through under traffic — which is why polished concrete has become the default floor for showrooms, distribution centers and retail spaces that need a durable, low-maintenance surface at scale.
02 / THE SPEC
Sheen levels, aggregate exposure and colour.
Sheen is controlled by how far the polishing sequence is carried — commonly described by the finishing grit: 400 grit leaves a low-sheen, matte-satin surface; 800 grit is a mid-gloss finish common in warehouses; 1500 grit moves toward a high-gloss look; 3000 grit produces the mirror-like finish seen in showrooms and high-end retail. Higher grit levels generally cost more in labor time and hold up best under managed foot traffic.
Aggregate exposure is a separate choice from sheen: a Class A finish exposes little to no aggregate and reads as a smooth, uniform color; a Class C finish grinds deep enough to expose the stone aggregate throughout the slab for a terrazzo-like look. Concrete dye can be added before polishing for color beyond the slab's natural gray, and the dye gets locked into the surface by the polishing and densifying steps rather than sitting on top of it.
System spec
- Sheen levels
- 400 to 3000 grit finishing grit
- Aggregate exposure
- Class A (no exposure) through Class C (full aggregate exposure)
- Dye options
- Concrete dye, standard color range on request?
- Topcoat
- None — the finish is the densified, polished slab itself
- Warranty
- 10-year commercial warranty?
03 / MAINTENANCE VS COATINGS
Less upkeep, and a different set of trade-offs.
Polishing and coating solve the same problem — a durable commercial floor — from opposite directions, and each fits different slabs and different budgets.
A polished floor needs dust mopping and an occasional neutral-pH cleaner — there is no topcoat to schedule a recoat around, which is the main advantage over a coating system on a large, high-traffic floor plate. A coated floor adds color options a natural slab cannot match, hides more surface inconsistency, and can be recoated or refreshed years later without regrinding the entire floor.
Polishing is the wrong call on a slab with heavy existing damage, extensive patching, or aggregate that is inconsistent enough to leave a mottled, uneven look once exposed. A slab that needs full color uniformity a natural material cannot deliver is usually better served by a coating. We will tell you honestly which direction fits your floor during the walkthrough, not just sell whichever service has the better margin.
04 / QUESTIONS
Polished concrete, answered straight.
01 What do the grit levels mean?
Polishing runs through a sequence of progressively finer diamond grits — commonly 400, 800, 1500 and 3000 — each pass refining the sheen further. Lower grits leave a satin finish; the higher end produces a high-gloss, mirror-like surface.
02 Is polished concrete the same as a coating?
No. A coating adds a resin layer on top of the slab. Polishing mechanically grinds, densifies and refines the existing concrete itself — there is nothing sitting on top of it to eventually wear through or peel.
03 When is polishing the wrong choice?
A slab with heavy existing damage, extensive patching, or a surface that needs color uniformity a stained substrate cannot deliver is usually better served by a coating system. Polishing also will not hide significant aggregate inconsistency the way a full flake broadcast will. We will tell you if your floor is a better fit for coating than polishing.
04 How much maintenance does a polished floor need?
Dust mopping and an occasional neutral-pH cleaner is close to the whole routine. There is no topcoat to recoat on a schedule, which is the main reason facilities choose polishing over coatings for high-traffic warehouse and retail floors.
05 / GET A NUMBER
Request a commercial quote.
- 01
You tell us the scope
Company, role, project type, square footage, location and timeline.
- 02
We follow up
A short call or site visit to confirm scope before we price it.
- 03
You get a written quote
Pricing, lead time and crew capacity for your schedule.
Prefer to talk? (623) 000-0000?