Polymer Floor

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• Polymer Floor Wall Coatings Selection,
  Preparation, Installation and Troubleshooting

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System Selection Criteria
When designing a floor and/or wall system,
selection of products will depend upon working
environment and severity of use.

• Physical Light foot traffic or heavy mechanized
  traffic? Industrial process or laboratory/clean
  room?
• Chemical Cleaning agents, process chemicals,
  combinations.
• Temperature Freezers, steam washdown, extreme
  ambient temps.
• Electro-static High-voltage equipment,
  static-generating machinery
• Value Engineering Floor design for the immediate
  environment Multiple issues
  occurring over one area

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Systems
When designing a floor and/or wall system,
selection of products will depend upon working
environment and severity of use.

• Coatings
• Slurries
• Mortars
• Urethane Cement
• Wall systems

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Coatings

• Advantages
• Inexpensive
• Aesthetics
• Cleanability
• Concrete protection
• Chemical resistance

• Disadvantages
• Resistance to physical abuse
• Repair of poor substrate conditions
• Less product for the same amount of surface
  preparation
• Life-cycle costing

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Coating Application
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What is a Slurry?
Resinous coatings filled with aggregate
(approximately 2 parts aggregate to 1 part resin)
which is applied at 1/16 to 3/8 in thickness.

• Disadvantages
• Moderate to good resistance to physical abuse
• Will not resurface poor concrete
• Thermal shock resistance
• Downtime

• Advantages
• Great value/installed cost
• Significant improvement to abuse compared to
  coatings
• Non-skid applications
• Resin-rich systems

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Slurry Application
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What is a Mortar?
Resinous coatings filled with aggregate
(approximately 4 or 5 parts aggregate to 1 part
resin), which is applied by trowel and finished.
The systems range in thickness from 3/16 to 3/8.

• Disadvantages
• Cost
• Skill level required for installation
• Resin-aggregate ratios
• Downtime

• Advantages
• Resistance to physical abuse
• Resurface poor concrete
• Thermal shock resistance
• Life-cycle costing

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Mortar Application
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What is a Urethane Cement?
Urethane emulsion combined with cement and silica
sand (approximately 3 parts aggregate to 1 part
resin), which is raked and finished at ¼ to 3/8
thickness.

• Disadvantages
• Aesthetics
• Cost
• Limited colors
• Skill level required for installation

• Advantages
• Great resistance to physical abuse
• Bond in wet environments
• Thermal shock resistance
• Fast installations
• Chemical resistance

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Urethane Cement Application
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Wall Systems
High-build coating systems Fiberglass reinforced
epoxy systems Flexible epoxy wall systems

• Disadvantages
• Cost
• Substrate imperfections
• Downtime

• Advantages
• Chemical resistance
• Wash-down resistance
• Impact resistance
• Gloss retention
• Cleanability
• Aesthetics

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Wall System Application
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Concrete Requirements Mix Design
Proper concrete mix design can produce a slab
that is ideally suited for bonding to a polymer
topping.

• Standard mix design
• Topical treatment Seamless, film-building
  sealers, form release
• Fiber reinforcement Coatings, self leveling
  floors 3/16
• High early mix design
• Concrete additives Plasticizers, Gill 33

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Successful Concrete

• At-use environment
• Surface preparation
• Moisture testing
• Control conditions of installation
• Dew point vs. surface temperature during
  installation

• Sub grade
• Vapor barrier
• Water to cement ratio
• Aggregate selection and gradation
• Finishing
• Curing

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Concrete Concerns

• Moisture vapor transmission
• Levelness of installation
• Drain height
• Lightweight concrete
• Fly ash pozzolans

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Moisture-related issues
Improper treatment of moisture-related issues can
result in blisters, delamination and potentially
a complete floor system failure.
Moisture Measurement A simple calcium chloride
test will determine the presence and force of any
moisture migrating through the slab. Acceptable
levels vary with each system and
manufacturer.Causes Fast-track construction
schedules Mix design (wet pour) Topical
treatments (slow hydration) Pouring slab in a
pan Ground or soil conditions Humidity inside
vs. outside Chemistry changes in flooring
products
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Treatments for Moisture Problems
There are several techniques/products available
for the prevention and remediation of
moisture-related problems.

• Slab design vapor barrier, mix design
• Time may not be on your side
• Temperature and humidity control
• Topical vapor barriers (Aqua Armor, Koester,
  FloorSeal)
• Product or System water-based products, thin
  breathable coatings and urethane
  cements

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Scheduling Planning for Work
A timely and efficient mobilization requires room
preparation and proper communication between
Project Management, Flooring Contractor, and all
other trades.
Heat Temperature must be at least 55F for
coatings and toppings. 65F to 75F is ideal for
most systems. Room/slab temperature directly
affects coverage rates of product. Light The
presence of finished lighting impacts application
schedules, cure time and aesthetics of finished
floor. Power supply 220v 3-phase, 60 Amp. or
480v 3-phase, 30 Amp. Installation equipment
pulls total of amperage when starting up, and
will blow breakers.
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Scheduling Planning for Work
Effect on facility operations and return to
service.
Other Trades Damage to floors, walk off job
site, power, lighting Effect on existing
operations Product odor, contamination of
inventory, work areas adjacent to application,
fire, safety
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Slab Preparation
Chemical process Effective in the removal of
adhesives, oils, animal fats. Acid etching,
stripping, detergents.Mechanical process Shot
blasting, grinding, scarifying, scabbling.
Water process Water jet blasting is entirely
dust free. Consider its effect on product
selection and time of application. Dust Control
All slab prep machinery is connected to vacuum
with HEPA filtration.
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Wrap-up
Return to service Maximum allowable shut-down
time can dictate the type of system and product
selected. Quick-cure polymers, such as MMA and
urethane concrete systems can greatly reduce
application time and return facilities to service
in a matter of hours.Application rates
Installation rates will vary with required prep
work, system selected, product manufacturer and
schedule. Per-foot rates can range from 2.00/ft.
up to 12.00/ft. or more.