When moisture invades your building, it may cause slips and falls, encourage the growth of mold and mildew, and deteriorate your assets and surfaces. Water can enter your facility in more ways than one, too. Any cracks or gaps in your property create an avenue for moisture to get through. No matter the specific cause of moisture intrusion, mitigating its presence and worst effects is imperative to keeping all occupants safe and maintaining your property’s integrity. A great place to start is with your flooring.
Here’s how to improve moisture mitigation and overall safety at your facility with high-gloss flooring and other methods.
At first, glossy floors and moisture mitigation might seem unrelated. On the contrary – the same flooring solutions that provide your floors with a brilliant shine also protect them from multiple threats, including moisture intrusion. In order to reflect light so strongly, glossy surfaces must be smooth and impermeable, after all. Still, there are multiple ways to achieve high-gloss flooring.
You might invest in epoxy floor coatings, which, in addition to shielding your concrete floors from moisture intrusion, are low-maintenance, easy to clean, highly durable, customizable, widely applicable, and slip-resistant (especially with the addition of specialized aggregate material).
Concrete polishing is another option to consider. Interior polished concrete floors offer a quick process with minimal downtime – moreover, they provide a dust-free, non-slip, water-resistant finish that’s easy to clean and care for. Additional high-gloss, water-resistant flooring options include urethane cement and methyl-methacrylate (MMA) flooring.
As alluded to above, polishing or coating your concrete floors offers advantages beyond mere moisture mitigation. For starters, high-gloss flooring increases your facility’s interior visibility, improving safety for all personnel and guests. This boosted brightness also helps you cut energy costs, as less light output is required to illuminate a room with reflective floors. High-gloss floors are also extremely durable and low-maintenance, withstanding not only moisture intrusion but also abrasion, pressure, thermal shock (temperature changes), and more. The sturdier your flooring, the longer it will last, meaning you won’t need to invest in repairs or replacements as often.
Even if your floors are well-protected via polishing or high-quality coatings, more can always be done to further guard them from moisture intrusion. Purpose-made waterproofing methods include:
Liquid Waterproofing Applications
Bentonite Sheets
Cementitious Waterproofing
Rubberized Sheets
Crystalline Curry Compound
…and more
Each of these waterproofing methods is unique, but experienced professionals can apply them easily. They’re also cost-effective resistant to mold and mildew. These applications will further strengthen the structural integrity of your concrete flooring, increase your property’s value, and present a cleaner appearance.
It’s important to protect your concrete floors from water and other spills, but it’s best to prevent moisture from entering and lingering inside your facility in the first place. If you live in a humid region, installing dehumidifiers throughout your facility is essential, and maintaining effective climate control via HVAC systems and insulation is a must for every business. Beyond these efforts, thoroughly caulking every gap and crack in your property will block out external moisture as well as drafts, pests, and other contaminants.
Glossy floors might look wet, but they’re actually working hard every day to wick moisture away, creating a safer environment for all occupants and prolonging the lifespan of your flooring. The commercial flooring contractors at PAINTech offer a range of high-gloss and waterproof flooring solutions for our clients in Maryland, Philadelphia, The Main Line area, Delaware, and Northern Virginia. Contact us to learn more about all of the services that we offer!
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