Tired of Resealing and Waxing VCT?

VCT Flooring is a cost-effective flooring option for many retailers and offices around the country. However, it is easily scuffed and stained and regular maintenance is required. If you are tired of resealing and waxing VCT on an annual (or more frequent) basis, maybe it is time to look into other options!

Alternative to VCT if you are tired of resealing and waxing VCT Flooring:

So, are there cost-effective flooring options other than the traditional VCT? Yes! VCT flooring can easily be replaced with a maintenance-friendly, polished concrete flooring. Have you heard mixed reviews of polished concrete floor as an alternate to VCT? Here are things that may have you wondering if it is right for your facility.

1. You will always see the VCT pattern in the floor: If you are removing VCT and polishing the concrete beneath it, you will most-likely see a grid-like pattern remain on the floor in the finished polished product. No level of deep grinding will likely remove this. It most-likely will not be uniform and varying colors will often remain in the finished floor as well. This is due to the moisture drive in the concrete that was once covered and unable to breathe. However, if you are tired of resealing and waxing VCT flooring, polished concrete may be right for you! The maintenance is minimal. With regular dust mopping and water alone, this floor will outlast VCT flooring.
   

   VCT grid-like pattern in a polished concrete floor.

2. Polished concrete is expensive: VCT ranges in pricing from $4 – $7 per square foot. There are a lot of design options available with VCT. On the other hand, polished concrete ranges from $1.5 – $3 per square foot with bigger discounts for larger square footages which is significantly less than most floor covering options. Of course, there are design limitations with polished concrete, dyes can be added for an additional square footage price and aggregate can be exposed for additional cost, but the concrete is what the concrete is – there will most likely be character (some may call these flaws) in the floor.
3. Polished concrete is slippery: Most floors are slippery under certain conditions – if oils or greases have been spilled on the floor to name one. Polished concrete is not slip resistant under these conditions, however, there are polished concrete systems that have been certified by the NFSI (National Floor Safety Institute) as high traction.
4. Polished concrete is NO maintenance: The short answer to this is FALSE. While polished concrete has a significantly reduced maintenance schedule, it is still required to keep the floor’s luster lasting. Durability and dusting are not issues with polished concrete flooring, if no one maintained the floor it would still hold up to high and heavy traffic. However, the preferred maintenance on polished concrete is daily or weekly dust mopping – keeping the dirt off the floor will keep it’s luster lasting for a long time. Then weekly or monthly use clean water to clean the floor – no detergents needed. Every 5 years a spiff coat may be needed, but the cost of installing that is significantly less than the initial installation cost.

While polished concrete is a great alternative to VCT, it may not be the perfect fit for your environment. However, if you are looking for an easy-to-maintain, cost-effective flooring option is a perfect alternative. Titus Restoration is capable of both removing VCT and polishing concrete in nearly any environment. Our crews are trained to work around your operation if that is neccesary for you. Contact our estimators today to learn more about our High Traction Polished Concrete Products!