Concrete is quickly becoming the ultimate no wax flooring material. Thanks to the many recent advances in concrete polishing equipment and techniques, polished concrete contractors are now grinding concrete floor surfaces, both new and old, to a beautiful high gloss finish that never needs to be waxed and has no topical coatings.

"Its something you have to see with your own eyes."

Polishing concrete is very similar to sanding wood. Heavy duty polishing machines equipped with progressively finer grits of diamond impregnated segments or disks (akin to sandpaper) are used to gradually grind down surfaces to the desired degree of shine and smoothness.

Almost any structurally sound concrete floor, whether new or old, can become a polished concrete floor. There are some exceptions. Floors that are wavy, need extensive patching, or are extremely porous may not be good suitable for polishing. An experienced contractor can usually determine a floors availability to be polished.

There are literally hundreds of options available with polished concrete, including:

• Colored aggregate which can be applied to the concrete mix or even seeded into the top layer of the mix. The polishing process will then reveal these aggregates.
• An integrally colored concrete can be used.
• Glass can be seeded within the mix. The polishing process will then reveal the glass pieces.
• You can also use nails, bolts, computer chips, or other objects which can be placed into the mix and polished smooth.

The choices with polished concrete are starting to be as numerous as those with regular concrete. There's no doubt that decorative concrete, whether polished, stained or stamped is quickly becoming the way to build valuable equity in your home or place of business.