Some Grouts Major Flaws

I have been in the concrete floor industry for 43 years now. Forty of those years in the field hands on for applications, full time. I chuckle at the thought of what “full time” means to my fellow applicators compared to those that work forty-hour weeks. I once worked a 96-hour week in six days setting the company record.

Started participating in social media in 2010. What a great source for good information and advertisement. But there existed and still does much more misinformation than correct information.

This concerns the misinformation on Polished Concrete grouts.

I see recommendations for top coating resin floors all the time. The same person will say that you should never use a topcoat of epoxy due to weak Ultraviolet performance. The reason being that it will yellow, chalk or color change. Then I will see that same person recommend a resin grout for polish concrete that has weak Ultraviolet performance and will yellow, darken and color change.

The information that states it will color change is clearly written on the manufacturer’s official Technical Data Sheet.

What happens if you use a resin grout that has weak Ultraviolet performance?

1.??????Upon application these grouts darken the concrete immediately.

2.??????Within a short period of time, the floor will color change. The speed and severity of the color change is determined by the intensity of UV light the floor is exposed to. It is also determined by how absorbent the concrete is. The more that is absorbed the worse the color changes.

3.??????Any repairs needed later will show like a sore thumb in a large lighter color ring around the repair from removing the original grout that has color changed. Just plan on re-grinding the entire floor to make it right.

4.??????Never have heard a customer say that they like a yellowed floor. They usually want a color natural floor so expect a call-back.

Are there grout systems that do not color change? Absolutely. Should polished concrete floors be grouted? Absolutely.

There are now resin grouts that are UV resistant and will not color change or darken the concrete. They can be tinted with UV resistant pigments or just left translucent/water clear.

There are also cement based grouts that do not shrink, or color change. These are my favorite as they are inexpensive and easy to install and process.

For more information, please send me an email with “Book” in the subject line and I will be happy to get a copy for you. If you would like information on where to obtain the premium Resin and Cement based grouts, please send me an email with “Grout Info” in the subject line.

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Thank You