Micro Cement as an Alternative for Floors
Micro cement is an excellent alternative for your home due to its great mechanical characteristics. Add to this its spectacular finish and its versatility.
As an alternative, it’s been gaining more and more acceptance for floors. Moreover, it’s increasing in popularity and in interior design.
This is due to the fact that these floors are highly resistant. They also withstand adverse climatic conditions and above all bumps and scratches.
This flooring can be installed in a wide range of colors. Besides its lovely artisanal application, it allows continuity with our spaces. It’s very versatile, so you can use it on floors and even walls.
Also, it can combine with multiple decorative styles for its ample gamete of colors. With this kind of flexibility, it can be used in any place you can think of.
What is micro cement?
Resins and other high resistance materials are part of the composition of micro cement and help support the weight that it supports. This material can be seamless, without joints between pieces.
Its application should be done in a continuous manner and in multiple layers. If you want a colored finish, you need to add pigment to the composition.
Since this material has been available for a while, it’s been very popular in recent years. This has occurred mainly due to its widespread use in renovations in Spain. It’s a popular material because of its great durability and is highly sought after by customers.
The composition of micro cement ensures extraordinary adherence, allowing it to attach to any surface. Thanks to this quality, it’s popular in covering concrete, cement, plaster, porcelain, tiles, or drywalls.
What benefits does it have for floors?
This material has a great variety of color finishes and textures and it doesn’t need expansion joints. This flooring doesn’t expand or contract with temperature changes, which happens with other materials. It also has an excellent level of adherence. The only exception is the application over parquet or floating floors, due to their continuous movement.
Due to its great versatility, micro cement is used in both interiors and exteriors. Because of its easy adherence to a variety of materials, it doesn’t take a great deal of work to install it.
It doesn’t take heavy machinery to install micro cement and its maintenance is simple. When applying it you need a good sealer to protect it from marks. At the same time, this increases its mechanical and chemical quality and gives an aesthetic finish.
The difference between micro and smooth cement
The notable difference between these two materials in the thickness. Micro cement is a coating that isn’t very thick at between .08 inches and .12 inches. On the other hand, smooth cement has a thickness of between 2 and 3 inches. This has repercussions on the weight of the structure since micro cement is lighter in weight than smooth cement.
Smooth cement needs expansion joints, a characteristic not necessary for micro cement. A benefit of micro cement is it can be vertical as well as horizontal without a problem, a quality not shared with smooth cement.
Micro cement – some disadvantages
The greatest disadvantage of micro cement is the high cost of installation – the price point difference with other materials is considerable. Comparatively, it requires more time to apply and dry. This means between 4 and 7 days.
Another negative characteristic is that it doesn’t provide good insulation. You should limit its use in cold climates.
When this material is damaged, you should repair it in complete sections. Due to not having expansion joints, it may have fissure problems because of the movement of the subfloor. Since it’s not impermeable, the base needs an adequate seal.
As we’ve seen, in spite of having some disadvantages, micro cement is a great alternative for your floors. Overall, it’s an excellent choice for remodeling. So if you’re considering putting it in your home, don’t hesitate to use this high-performance material.