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decorative CONCRETE DESIGNS, Corp. |
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| Maintenance Program |
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Keep Getting Your Floors Or Walkways
Bragged About
We’ll Do All The Work, You Get All The Praise
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We also have an “IDCD Concrete Maintenance
Program” available that I would like to mention.
This program is not offered by any concrete contractors.
Once per year if it is an exterior surface. We will high
pressure wash the surface, inspect the surface for defects,
and reapply a surface sealant. If you have an interior
concrete surface, we will come in, scrub the surface,
again inspect the surface for defects, fix any area that
may have been damaged and reseal the floor. The cost of
the maintenance program is based upon the square footage
and rates are:
All surface reseals
cost $1.00 per sq ft. A minimum of 100 square feet is
required for this rate. Areas that are smaller than 100
ft2 or larger than 800 ft2 will be quoted separately.
Surface repairs are not included in the cost of resealing.
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Overview:
Concrete is one of the strongest building materials available.
Stamped decorative concrete combines the strength of concrete
with color and design to produce a beautiful surface.
A Proper installation will ensure that the concrete will
remain structurally sound for decades. Proper maintenance
will ensure that the concrete surface remains beautiful
for decades.
Proper
Installation:
Concrete should always be installed over a strong base.
IDCD (Interstate Decorative Concrete Designs) installs
concrete over at least 4 inches of compacted process gravel.
The installations are reinforced with steel mesh as well
as micro fiber mesh. At least 2 coats of sealer are used
to preserve the surface.
Maintenance is required when the outer layer of sealer
has been compromised. Depending on the type and frequency
of traffic, sealing may be required every 1-5 years.
IDCD uses a sealer with 53% solids. Therefore, the sealer
will form a barrier against water, petro-chemicals, and
UV light.
Water:
Unsealed concrete will absorb water. Water + Traffic +
Time = Wear. As the top surface wears, the aggregates
(stones inside of the concrete) begin to expose. This
effect is most commonly seen on concrete city sidewalks
and roads. Sealing the surface is a simple and inexpensive
process that will solve this problem. Once the surface
is sealed, it must remain sealed. Driveways, carports,
and high traffic walkways should be sealed every year.
These surfaces are used 12 months out of the year and
are subjected to plows and/or shovels and/or snow blowers.
Sand is the only material used to melt snow on the decorative
surface. Rock salt and dry ice should not be used. These
melting materials will accelerate the wear on the sealer
and can potentially damage the concrete surface. Rear
patios, pool decks, and rear walkways are surfaces that
are generally not used in the wintertime. Therefore, they
only receive 5 to 7 months of abuse. These can be sealed
every 2-5 years. IDCD recommends that all surfaces be
sealed yearly.
Petro-chemicals:
Oils, grease, WD40, and other petroleum based chemicals
will affect the surface of decorative concrete. It will
penetrate the sealer and stain the concrete if allowed
to stand on the surface for a long period of time (2+
hours). If a petro-chemical is spilled on the surface,
wipe it clean and the surface will be fine.
UV Light:
UV Light affects the pigments within the concrete. Colors
will fade if the surface is not sealed and is exposed
to the sun. Maintaining a sealed surface will preserve
your color.
Thinners:
Chemicals such as xylene, lacquer thinner, and paint thinner
are detrimental to the sealer. These chemicals will absorb
into the sealer very quickly and may alter the appearance
of the decorative concrete. If a thinner is spilled, do
not wipe it off. Allow the thinner to evaporate off the
surface.
Freeze/Thaw:
Exterior concrete are subject to freeze/thaw cycles. Expansion
joints are cuts that are made to allow for the expansion
and contraction of the concrete slab. The 4 inches of
process gravel is responsible for reducing the pressure
of frost heaves. Cracks may appear over time if pressure
on the concrete slab is not diverted into the expansion
cuts. Cracks can appear for no reason at all. Even if
all steps in a proper installation are followed, cracks
may still appear. The solution is to fill the crack and
hide it by using color. That area of the installation
should then be monitored yearly. Cracks are never repaired,
they can only be filled. Once filled, a crack can resurface
over time. The time frame can be from 1 year to 10 years.
It is dependant on the Earth’s movements. In IDCD’s
experience, this has occurred in less than 5% of installations.
In all cases the cracks were hairline and easily hidden
at no cost to the client.
Maintenance Program Summary: |
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Keep decorative concrete surfaces
sealed |
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Use only sand to melt snow (no dry
ice or rock salt) |
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Keep the plow or slow blower at lease
1/2 inch above the surface |
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Clean off petro-chemicals immediately |
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Allow thinners to stand. Do not wipe
off and allow thinner to evaporate. Call IDCD for
technical support |
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If the surface cracks, call IDCD for technical
support |
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| Copyright
@ 2004 Interstate Decorative Concrete Designs, Corp. All Rights Reserved. |
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