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Floor coatings proven throughout the Construction and Facilities Maintenance Industries.
Ever since we laid our first floor back in 1991 (now well over 30 years ago), we have challenged the seemingly impossible. With millions of sq.m of floor coatings laid throughout the commercial and industrial sectors, which have been in daily use and lasted for well over 20 years, we have proved beyond doubt that our floors can withstand some of the heaviest traffic and the harshest treatment.
The protection of your floors is paramount if you are to get the longevity and strength intended. It has been well proven that consistent floor finishes and clearly defined areas such as pedestrian walkways and hazardous areas not only massively reduces accidents but also encourage employees to maintain the same level of safety and cleanliness.
Providing the right product for YOUR needs
First and foremost, our aim is to gain an understanding as to exactly what your requirements are, from the size of the area, the type of traffic it must withstand or any specific chemical resistance necessary, to the amount of downtime you must complete the work. You can then be fully confident that we can intelligently offer you the correct product(s) to provide a long-lasting solution.
Once your needs are established, our installation teams will liaise with you to confirm the most convenient times to complete the work. We have teams willing to work at any time of day or night with the intention of keeping aggravation and downtime to a minimum.
With a full range of vacuum assisted shot blaster and diamond grinders as well as other mechanical equipment from scabblers to tile and carpet removers, we are confident that we are able for every requirement. As a proof of this, we have applied floor coatings to over 5 million sq.m and are able to show floors that were coated over 20 years ago and still going strong.
Production and Processing Areas
Remember, when painting floors in factory production and processing areas, the cost of the paint is mostly a minor part of the cost. Downtime and disruption to production lines is an extremely costly issue. So, no matter whether it is a new construction project with the floors being coated for the first time, just remember that you want to spend as much as is necessary to provide a floor suitable and strong enough for your needs and resistant enough for the amount of wear and tear that is to be exerted upon it. If the area is new, you might not have the shut down costs now to contend with, but you certainly will after you are up and running, should you have the unfortunate experience of realising the original floor was a bad decision! Furthermore, and not that we wish to worry you, but please also consider that if this first paint/flooring system fails, you can’t just paint over the top. You therefore have the agonies and mess of removing ALL that has been done so the new (and suitable) coating is applied directly onto the actual substrate. Certainly not onto the ‘failed finish’.
Warehousing and Storage Areas
As we all know, the creation of dust from wearing floor surfaces is one of the major issues that every warehouse and storage facility has to contend with. Furthermore, these loose dust particles then act as a grinding ‘paste’ on the surface and thus only exacerbates the problem. If construction companies are to offer a long term solution to their customers, it is vital that they do not use ‘cheap and nasty’ floor sealers. These sealers then act as a barrier to any future coating, meaning that no matter how good or expensive it is, the subsequent coats are only as good as the adhesive qualities of the very first coat.
By preparing the floors correctly and priming with the correct primer, the longevity and performance of the top (wearing) coat will be massively increased.
FAQ’s
Why is it completely wrong to use a ‘cheap’ dust sealer on new concrete?
We appreciate it is a bit strong to say ‘completely wrong’, but we want to attract your attention to the following very important points:
The very first coat applied to any floor the most important coat to get right! Simply remember that every other coating is going to stick to this first coat and no matter how much you pay for any subsequent coat or even how thickly it is applied, as and when the first coat delaminates, all further coats or screeds will fail.
So, for this reason alone, if a ‘cheap’ sealer or thinly applied dust proofer has been applied to the concrete prior to our arrival, our installers are instructed to remove (or at least ‘cut through’) this sealer with the use of vacuum assisted diamond grinders or shotblasters, in order to ensure our primers are fully able to adhere to the original substrate. This is why we can safely say they are fully trained and approved installers and ensure you complete piece of mind that your new floor coating or screed will be installed competently and professionally.
What paint can I use on an oil contaminated floor?
One of the biggest issues of painting floors are the oil drips and spills onto new ‘bare’ concrete during the construction process. Our installation teams use our highly specialised OT Primer (Oil Tolerant Primer), which has professionally formulated to adhere to oil contaminated substrates, and together with our top coat Flortex Professional, this system has been proven beyond any doubt to provide a long-lasting solution.
What is the best and longest lasting floor paint?
Obviously, this is a very open ended question and there are many different circumstances requiring differing treatments/products. However, as a rule-of-thumb, Polycote WD Primer which has incredible adhesion to almost any substrate (even ceramic and quarry tiles) followed by one coat of Flortex Professional, a 100% solids, high build and high quality twin pack resin, on a properly prepared surface these two coats have proved their strength and worth in almost every type of industry. We can easily show you floors that have been in operation for over 20 years and still going strong! And at the time of writing, both coats for an incredibly low price of just under £8.50 per sq.m. plus VAT. And if you really believe that still isn’t good enough, our promise to you is that we’ll beat any price in the UK, quoting like-for-like!
What is the best way to achieve a smooth finish if the surface is rough?
Our approved installers will decide upon the best way to mechanically abrade the surface to remove (or at least reduce) as much of the ‘roughness’ as possible. Depending upon the severity or roughness of the floor, this could involve vacuum assisted diamond grinder to scabblers and/or floor planers. To reduce the roughness of the existing surface will save a huge cost due to the amount of product needed to smooth out the surface.
Our self-smoothing twin pack floor coatings Polycote Freeflow is one of the best products to achieve a super smooth finish and is generally applied between 1-3mm thick. It is available in either an epoxy (Freeflow EP) or polyurethane formulation (Freeflow PU), depending upon customer’s requirements / final finish required and our technical teams will advise accordingly.
Why does the aggregate in a non-slip floor paint wear out so quickly?
This is an interesting question and a problem that plagues the industry. Frankly, if you receive a floor paint that includes the aggregate pre-mixed with the paint, this ‘aggregate’ has to be light enough so that it remains suspended in the tin, rather than simply sinking like a sludge to the bottom. The ‘aggregate’ often used is often only a dense polystyrene (due to its lightness) and therefore wear out after only a short period of time. Of course, you can also get paint with good quality aggregate but either the aggregate delaminates because the paint is not strong enough (or thick enough) to hold it or, the paint itself fails.
At Polycote, we supply aggregate separately to almost all of our non-slip versions, and this aggregate is Guyanian Calcined Bauxite, which is one of the strongest minerals under diamonds. We supply it in fine, medium, and coarse, and we also give suggest coverage rates depending upon the amount of slip resistance required.
To give you proof and confidence, we have non-slip floors in daily action that were applied over 10 years ago!!!
What paint is best for sealing Basements and Underground Structures?
We have invested in a full research and development program to provide products specifically suited to the painting and waterproofing of subterranean structures, for both floors AND walls. From an inspection pit or basement to an underground car park, the issue of preventing the ingress of water remains the same
With thorough onsite experience and technical expertise, along with an unparalleled range of products at their disposal, our installation teams are more than able to offer our customers a truly single source solution.