There is no one right way to polish concrete, and every job can be different.  This is supposed to be used as a rough outline so that you may understand the process. 

The most important thing you, the customer, can do is research the polishing process and the firm that you plan on hiring to do your polishing.  Corners can be cut and inferior densifiers/etc can be used, and you can still end up with a beautiful polished concrete floor.  But will it still be beautiful after 2 years? 4 years?  At Texas Shot Blast we strive to build long lasting relationships with our clients and we will do everything possible to provide you with a beautiful, long lasting polished floor.

Step 1:  Coating removal (if necessary).  Depending on the thickness and bond of the existing coating, we will shot blast and/or diamond grind with 16/30 grit diamonds to remove the coating.

Step 2:  Rough grind to level the floor.  This is the most important step.  If the floor is not extremely level after this stage it will be very difficult/impossible to get a highly reflective surface at the higher grit diamonds.  To get the floor level metal bond diamonds are used in progressively finer grits (30, 70 and 120 grit).  If the concrete is extremely soft a hardner/densifier may be applied after the 30 grit diamonds, but usually the densifier is applied after the 70 grit diamonds and left to cure for at least 3 hours on new concrete, or longer for an existing slab.

Step 3:  The further down into the concrete we grind to expose the aggregate, the more pinholes and air pockets will be exposed.  Too many of these will result in decreased reflectivity.  To combat this we apply a latex based grout system that when ground will fill any holes and effectively "grout" the floor.  This step is usually not necessary when polishing the cream of a slab.

Step 4: After the densifier has been applied and the slab has been ground up to 120 grit metal bond diamonds, we switch to resin bond diamonds.  We start with the 100 grit and then proceed up to 400.  At 400 a dye or stain is applied if desired.  We will then grind up to 3000, or stop at any of the steps in between depending on the level of shine the customer wants.  (Progression of resin bond diamonds:  100, 400, 800, 1500, 3000).

Step 5:  For the final step, we apply a surface impregnator.  This is not an encapsulating sealer or a wax.  The product penetrates the surface capillaries which acts to further increase the surface tension of the floor, resulting in restricting the absorption of water, oil, fats and dirt. Stains are kept at the surface level making maintenance and cleaning easier and adding to the lifespan of the floor.