Microcement Flooring Tutorial for rustic and beautiful floors
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- Опубликовано: 26 сен 2024
- Microcement is a finish that can be applied to walls or flooring. It is a very thin, 2mm application that gets troweled on for a very rustic and beautiful finish. In this video, I show how I applied it to the floor of my studio. It was a very easy process that only required one layer of Suretek microcement, with a packet of their color pigmentation. Both items are linked below.
Microcement - surecretedesig...
Color Pigment (I chose limestone) - surecretedesig...
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I do concrete microtoppings professionally, I'd recommend a round edged trowel thats about 12-16inches, the round edge completely eliminates the ridges!
Have a question, what's the difference between microcement and a cementitious coating? Have a contractor that recommended the cementitious coating
@@VentureSD Sorry for the late reply, cementitious basically refers to a resin floor that has cement mixed in with it. They are very different from overlay floors but also very useful;
A microtopping floor is very visually appealing, it is durable but heavy long-term wear will damage it. Very easy to clean but not fully sterile. This is a great and very beautiful floor for your average use. It is superior to traditional flooring of its type like hardwood, vinyl, or carpet.
Cementitious flooring is a pretty ugly type of flooring. But beauty is not its purpose. It is incredibly durable, it can withstand large machinery, grease, oil chemicals, constant impacts, pretty much anything. It can also be made to be pretty much completely non-slip sterile. This type of flooring is poor for everyday use, but for production areas (like a kitchen or workshop) its the way to go.
@@SofaMuncher Perfect, thank you! We're leaning toward the microtopping vs. polished concrete. Does the microtopping overlay cover the imperfections in the concrete slab like old tile shadowing and the glue lines from carpet? We like the overlay option for our home, just want to make sure it fairly durable and won't crack or damage easily
Is doing this on Osb recommended? Or can it rot if moisture gets to it? What would you recommend flooring wise
Could you use a gauge rake and then a spike roller for a smoother finish?
Omggg this is the answer to all my prayers!! Was looking for this kind of floor but had no idea what it was called. Thanks for this video
SAME 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰
Nice job! The idea for microcement is to make those ridges in minimum 2 layers, then sand the last layer and when you do the sealing, those ridges are poping and they get exposed so the sanding is what gives the microcement the look that microcement must have. I suggest in all cases to apply mesh and 2nd coat of underlaying especialy when applying on tiles and wood, and then 2 coats of micro.. Great presentation overall.
please advise - i am trying to use this for interior floor. what type of mesh do you recommend? something like styro from home depot?
Yeah, how do we do the wall? I'd love to find an online course on how to apply microcement on various surfaces.
I'm surprised you only needed one coat! Walls typically take several coats of different grit sizes.
I like the texture of the floor and thin it turned out great, especially for a first try.
Kudos!
I have been looking and looking for something unique for the foyer and possible for me to do by myself. This is it! Thank you! I like your style of videos. Keep more coming!
Finally I found what I’m looking for!!!
Thank you so much 😊
I love it so much
awesome videos man, I'd love to see the place once finished! Funny thing, my wife and I have been lime washing and micro cementing our house for a few months now.
Sounds awesome Tito. I’m sure it’s a beautiful place
Tito, sounds intriguing! Good any links to your results?
I love those ridges!!! Looks so beautiful and rustic!!!
Great video with the commentary on top of all the visuals. A lot of really good information. Thank you.
Awesome application 👍 The definition of pigment is color. 👍👍
every joint line in that wood subfloor will show as a crack at the slightest movement. Need to add metal lath to wood subfloors. Mesh at the bare minimum. Also you sealed your base coat. Should have troweled down a finish coat tight after sanding all those ridges off, then sealed.
That individual is not here to show how it is done. He is here to collect money from views. Plenty of people that have no idea how something is done like to watch videos and get "inspired" to do it themselves. Plenty of other people are ready to give them that "inspiration". It is all fine and dandy until you see unsafe and outright dangerous practices. Watch any DIY garage floor video and you will see a fool with a Home Depot shop vac grinding concrete. Telling them that this is super dangerous (fine dust in your lungs for life) means nothing. People still watch the stupidity, praise the fool, and the he gets money. Look at most comments below - "nice job", "awesome", "beautiful", "thanks".... jesus christ.
AWESOME STUFF BROTHER!
Beautiful! Well done! I love this look as well - been looking into it for a while.
Any cracks later on?
Magic trowels work great
Question is how durable is it and how long will it last. Looks great. The answer to the trowel or taping knife is to use a pool trowel it has rounded edges so it won’t leave those ridges.
Excellent video. I plan on doing this project on my 3 season porch, which now has 3/4" plywood as the flooring. Yours looks great. It sure is a more cost effective way to floor a room. I received prices upwards of $2000 price fora 150 sq foot area. This is a super alternative. Thanks for sharing!!
Hiw about using a Magic Trowel?
I am a professional microcement applicator. Seeing this, I have no words.
Well, I think it turned out beautiful. I love the imperfections. We're here to learn, so please lend us your constructive words.
@@lotsofcurls1000 I am sure you do.
@@lotsofcurls1000I think he’s scared off going out of business clearly. Love your video, one of the best and will give it a go as it seems so straight forward. Thinking to use a silicon tool as well or a brush maybe.
Sure you are. Cool story 👍
If you are sanding please use a mask for micro particles, any cements or anything related damage your lungs plus there’s silica in it.
Thank you,we are looking for same thing for our house, beautiful video.
This was super helpful - thank you!
Thanks super helpful!!
I'm trying to accomplish the concrete floors look but on a subfloor. Can this be added to a subfloor - I have a crawl space below - and how durable is this? Will it crack if walked on - keep in mind I have a subfloor or if something fell on it like a plate, mug or pan/pot, etc? Can heavy furniture be placed on it like a safe, heavy table, etc. What sort of prep to the osb board should be made; such as taping off gaps, sealing the osb with a product, etc? Thank you in advance.
Hey There! Have been loving watching all your videos. We are in the process of a renovation and have many of the same visions/inspo as you. I just got off the phone with Surecrete to ask a few questions and without hesitation, the tech guy highly advised against putting it on wood. That was a disappointment. I’m not against breaking some “rules” though if it might be worth it. After all, I put tadelakt and tile in my van and it has held up extremely well with no problems. So I’m curious, how is your floor a year later? I saw a comment that it has cracked along the seams. Anything else? Would you do it again? Would love a video follow up but any response is greatly appreciated! Thank you!
It looks amazing 🔥
How did you finish the edges ?? Caulk?
Thank you for this!
Thank you for your sharing! I want to Reno my house too so I am wondering is there any preparation need to be done before I do the microcement?
ATTENTION EVERYONE: I used the sure Crete micro cement one coat product on our house. It costs us thousands of dollars. Three times we applied this product to our floors and walls. The color pigment sold by surecrete was mixed using a industrial cement mixer, and two electric mixers. There were black and gold streaks across our entire house! We had a regrind down all our floors ($1050) after following set by step instructions. We contracted surecrete and they told us they tested it in the lab and it works fine, case closed. Absolutely screwed us over. The product cracked within months on the walls. We recoated the entire floors with colored epoxy to finish the issues, another $1000.
Did you mix the pigment separately before adding the cement?
@@roberthvalera followed the instructions to the T, they contacted me and all they said was we replicated your batch #. Didn't get same results. We mixed it ourselves, then hired a concrete contractor to do it again. Same results
@@roberthvalera 6 months later there are air bubbles everywhere. Sucks.
@@ExploringJ the microtek product mentions streaking since the tint aggregate is bigger than the microteks so I was thinking to use the tex stuff that’s supposed to be a bit rougher. I called them and they said streaking only occurs when the tint isn’t mixed first. Would hate to get streaks :/ Did you lay this stuff down on plywood or cement board?
@@roberthvalera ripped up my old carpet, which had our solid concrete foundation. Applied on concrete foundation.
I almost went as far to make a RUclips video describing my issues, but I don't want to waste anymore of my time with it.
Thanks bro 😇
Great video
this was very helpful thank you!!
It looks great, but I don’t see how it could possibly hold up over time. A wood floor will deflect with foot traffic, and concrete doesn’t bend, even a little. Seems like you’d have cracks and chips within weeks. Is it holding up?!
Love the look. I wonder if a typical bull float would work well on smoothing microcement.
absolutely not. A bull float would be a total disaster lol. Not even a fresno would work.
The only concrete tool used for microtoppings is a trowel.
@@TimKollat Oh? Why is that? I don’t know the differences between them.
What kind of sand paper do you use? I used a normal orbital paper with a 40-grit and it barely made a dent!
You cannot successfully apply microcement over what appears to be plywood.
There needs to be an anti-crack membrane of some kind applied, whether that be a liquid membrane, Redgrave, for example. Quick, easy and little skill required to apply.
There may be an application of Ardex P82 bonding primer applied -
Then, there needs to be a base coat applied, referred to as a microbase; this is a XL granulate.
The microbase is then sanded flat and smooth using a dustless sanding system, using an orbital sander with 100g, I prefer Festool.
This is then made to a level 4 finish, which is an acceptable substrate for microcement, walls, ceiling or floors.
Then microcement is applied. There many ways to apply microcement successfully, trowels, spatulas… I prefer spatulas for better control.
Anyone can do a ‘rustic’ finish because it takes a low level of skill set to achieve.
When you see a finish with little movement, purposeful burnishing or polishing, this is where you can identify a skilled microcement applicator.
Another aspect specific to floors is have the correct labour, for example - a floor this size should have two applicators applying in a large arched or fan motion, overlapping the others work in the center.
This applicator only applies one coat… incorrect. Microcement goes on 2-3 mm and should have had a second coat application.
I could go into wet on wet applications but there are plenty of skilled videos on RUclips that cover this.
This would be a cool video if it were showing how to level a floor perhaps, but everything about this is just wrong, bring the hate but it only highlights the ignorance that surrounds microcement.
Also, no mention of pre-sealer or top coat sealer… misinformation is what this video is.
How about primer ? After this apply base cement in 2 layers and then 2 thin layers of topping before you seal your floor. That takes a bit more time but you would get a smooth result…🤗
That's definitely the way to go, Tom! It's worth the extra time
@@MtWashingtonWeekendProject @tommockel8853 what primer do you recommend for Microtek?
Great video. I want to try this in my bathroom. I was wondering if it aged well after a year of making the video. Are you noticing cracks, is it easy to maintain?
Its holding up great, except for the cracks along the joints. That's my bad though, I should have taped them first before applying the microcement
You were able to apply this directly to your wood subfloor ? Did you have any cracking ? When I talked to the surecrete representatives they told me if I laid it on top of wood subfloor, the entire thing would crack as soon as I put a chair on it.
What have your results been??
Unfortunately, it did crack along the wood joints... I am applying new microcement in my bathroom over a concrete slab, which should be nice and crack free.
@@MtWashingtonWeekendProject hello could you please give us an update on your bathroom? I was told to put epoxy first and thrown on resin. It sounds to messy and would rather do what you are doing. Since I have water heat and radiators all over my house. And by concrete slab do you mean typical mixture of concrete and just lay it on the wood?
Thank you for the concise videos- I really like your style of tutorials and you have definitely earned another subscriber. :)
First of all, this looks amazing in your space. I just closed on a house yesterday and the very first thing I did was rip up the carpet which smelled horrible. Now, I’m left with a concrete floor with liquid nails to scrape up. I would be really curious to see how this finish has held up for you after a year of use… Does it crack? Would you recommend it still? Thank you again.
Thanks D.C. If you sand the concrete down to a nice smooth finish, you should be able to go straight over with the micro cement! I did this over pieces of plywood flooring, and I didn't tape the joints. So, it has cracked along the plywood flooring joints. But, I also did this in my bathroom and it was a concrete slab, and there have been no problems with it.
@@MtWashingtonWeekendProject maybe screwing in the plywood to the joists & filling in the seams with a floor patch first would help avoid cracks
How would you remove the floor if you didn’t like it.
My question as well
From other users, the only solution if you didn't like it is to grind it off.
Late to the party! Can i pour over damaged saltillo tile?
Did you use the same micro cement in the shower too?
How’s the floor holding up now that 3 years has passed. I got some microtek one coat, and tested it on a very small area, and after 24 hours I can still make an indentation on the surface with my finger nail, is this normal? I only tested it a small amount of powder and mixed it in a container, not sure if proper mixing would affect the hardness though…any idea?
Any cracking?
Just fill the cracks with more MC 🤷♀️
@@swatisquantum I think that if there is any deflection in the floor it will crack. Sure, more MC!
My first impression is it would be hard to clean, and after I saw your finished floor, I think i'm right.
Do you think it would really work on tile? Would it stick or seal the grout lines ?
I have the same question
Only 1 coat of micro? Wow. Usually you have 2 base coats of course sanding inbetween each, then 2 coats of fine or medium sanding inbetween each, then 2-3 sealers. And if your on wood you should have put down a fiber mech into the primer coat.
Hey great video, how about Contraction Dilation?
still good after three years?
You need a good troll just like you need a good paint brush you need a good troll that's broke in a taping knife has an arch in it to fill the joint so you don't want to use one of those
can you use this product in a kitchen and bathroom like the shower
I like the color pigment, but what color is the micro cement? they have white or grey options
I heard him mention limestone at the beginning. I would assume white based on how it looks dried.
i have been seeing these types of floor finishes on walls and floors all over insta and finally found this video! thanks!
after some time, did the microcement had any cracks?
how is it holding up?
Round pool trowel
please advise - i am trying to use this for interior floor. what type of mesh do you recommend? something like styro from home depot?
This turned out amazing! I noticed the OSB Is white. Did you prime it before hand?
Thanks for the video! Inspired me to do my garage floor. What grit sand paper did you use to smooth out the ridges?
Yes, please advise what grit sand paper you used?
Just found your channel, love the videos man! You've got a new sub from me. Had a question about your microcement vs Tadelakt experience. It seems like they give both a very similar look/feel, but its hard to tell over video. Would you agree? Any benefits to either? It seemed like the microcement was a lot easier.
Is this the same like putty?
HI! Thank you for the awesome video! What kind of 100-grit sandpaper did you use? I'm having trouble sanding it. I used two different brands and the color is staining the micro topping and causing little dark bumps on the new plaster. I used the same pigment like the one on the video.
Can you add this product on existing cement flooring
You can, I did that in my bathroom. Works great
@@MtWashingtonWeekendProject thank you so much! I have a big project ahead of me.
Do you have a sink video love your videos
Good look
Hey man can we know how it’s holding up and any recommendations?
thank you for all these tips, we will be using them soon! how is the temperature of the floors? does it keep the cold like tiles/stone or is it warmer? how is the feel to walk on it barefoot?
I like the feel of it. It is smooth, without being slippery. Make sure that you use an anti-slip sealer. I would say it keeps the cold, similar to tile
if i'm doing this on a counter, do you think i should use less water to get a thicker consistency?
You could, but I've noticed the microcement gets a little gummy if its not thin, maybe I just didn't mix it enough... but, you can give it a shot. If its too hard to work with, you can always add more water.
Great video! With a plywood floor, what would you suggest as something to put on the wood underneath the concrete to assure the concrete sticks well! Thanks
Fyi you xan also do this with $5 bag of quickqreete and also a bag of concrete color die
how did you get such a smooth surface to trowl on? If i have tiled floors that I want to microcement over are there any additional steps I would need to do?
Is miceocement and microtopping same or different?if differnt please expalin the difference
Lets be honest "yes" microcement can be applied over a wooden substate - however if you don't glue and screw to stop any movement and treat by embedding fibreglass and fibregalssing every seam your floor will crack
So would you embed fiberglass over the whole floor or just the seams?
@@roberthvalera seams with cloth . If there is movement in the substrate than I would mesh the entire floor over lapping the seems. Than flood coat with epoxy to bring up and finally broadcasting sand prior to any micro. Any movement in the substrate with micro cement WILL crack . If you’d like to see the process send me you details I can send images along with photos from start to finish
Adam, I'm interested in the process, can you please share your process?
@@adamnicholson4635 hey Adam, curious about this process. Could you send me a private message with your email?
Not all wood can take Microcement and this is one of them. Fair play to the man he’s had a good go at it but should have done a bit more research, I’m sure next one he will do better 👍🏼
Do you find that the irregular surface of the floor makes it harder to clean?
Nice!
Do you need to install micro base first before you apply product? Or can you just apply on existing flooring?
Hello, i have a raised foundation can I do this to all the flooring? Would it crack??
For the microcement how much floor prep do you need? I have tile but I ripped put carpet leaving an uneven section. Should I take my tile out and then sand more floor to start with a blank floor. I found terrazo underneath.
What's the coverage for the 40 lb bag and at what thickness
Hi this is perfect, exactly what i've been looking for to do in my new home! Thank you so much. Question, do you have any suggestions for how to cove and apply either limewash paint or microcement to the vertical surfaces? (Like your inspiration pictures)?
Hi Lou, if you look at some of my other videos, I show how to limewash walls :)
If you want to do a cementaceous wall treatment, you could go for a "feather finish" type cement from Henry or Ardex, and just apply it to the walls in thin layers with a putty knife or scraper. It's a pretty cheap and surprisingly easy project. Once you finish a layer, you let it set up, then you can sand it a little and do another thin layer over wherever you need. Plus if you want it shiny you can just sand it to a really high grit, or you can use a layer of a wet look style sealer and it'll make it really nice and glossy.
@@AtomDavis thanks ! thats great :)
@@MtWashingtonWeekendProject Thanks! yup i've checked out a couple :) love the vids, definitely keep making them!
Should have shown vacuuming and wiping up dust.
It's a good point. Every little pebble on the floor will leave a streak in the finish. I'm recording a new microcement video now, and I'll include that step.
Quick question... going over the OSB, is there any cracking that happens? Maybe over some OSB that might flex a little?
There is! You'd want to tape the joints with fiberglass mesh tape first, and then go over it.
Were you able to find examples of the colors before choosing a pigment? I’m struggling to pick a color cause I don’t know what it’ll look like.
I wasn't... I do feel like the color of the finished floor is much lighter than the swatch online... I think in the future I'll use my own color pigmentations
@@MtWashingtonWeekendProject Where do you find color pigments? Thanks!
If applying over a pre-existing concrete floor, does the basement need to be sanded first? (previous owners had installed tile and or carpeting over the concrete at different points in time, which is now all removed, except for old mastic adhesives and glues and carpet tacking strips).
Please is microtex the same as Poland cement?
it has portland cement in it as well as fine sand, polymer and most likely has some plasticizer in it
Is this applicable for a basement floor? (split level home located in Northern Vermont with pre-existing concrete slab floor).
Did you paint the OSB first. ? Is that recommended for any wood floor?
Thank you for the video. Did you pretreat the floor prior to applying the cement?
I did not, but in retrospect, I wish I did to prevent cracks and to make the substrate more stable.
Thank you very much for this great video! Does this Microcement crack easily?
That one he’s done will %100 crack,
Thank you so much for sharing! We just closed on a home in Joshua Tree and wanted a rustic vibe so I am considering doing Microcement, would you please be able to let me know how many days it might take to do a 2000 sq feet home? And how much the product cost would be?
Congrats on the new home! Head to concreteexchange.com and search for Surecrete Microtek One Coat Topping, and all the details will be there for you
Is this the same as concrete resurfacer ?
Great video! Don't you need more than one coat? In your case two or three more bags/coats applied before sealing?
Supposedly, you can get away with just one coat. But, I am going to do a second layer to smooth out the inconsistencies in the floor. The polyurethane needs to be 3 coats to seal it.
mate, you need to wear a respirator when sanding anything with cement in it.
Very informative and helpful! Thanks for sharing. I do have two questions: did you stiffen the original floor before applying; I noticed you wearing a respiratory mask during application - does the product toxic fumes?
why he was wearing a respirator makes no sense unless he just likes to. There is no need for one at all during the microtopping application. Only use one if you use a potent sealer. Any water based sealer and you dont need one either
How often do we have to apply a new layer of sealant ? It probably needs maintenance, no?
I've only given it one later of Polyurethane and its held up well. I could see adding a new layer in a year or two.
Could you not have used a paint roller?
will the cement fill in grout lines?
Base coats will if prepped correctly
We have the same design style so loving your videos!! Really stuck on baseboards. What are you using here?
Thanks Elodie! I just used common board 1x3" and stained it with English Chestnut, 1 coat.
I wouldnt not use polyurethane
can you do this over existing tiles?
You can :)