Description

Self levelling and sprayed or flow coated floors are gaining popularity in food industry, club & hotel behind the bar applications and industrial sites, due to their incredible toughness and wearability. Elastomeric polyester provides the industry with a lower cost surface than epoxy yet still provides an inert, non porous thick film that hides surface irregularities and resists water, oily and alcohol based spills.

Elastomeric Polyester Coated Floors are more easily cleaned and sanitised than porous concrete with the major benefit of being highly chemical and abrasion resistant as well as offering a quieter, softer more comfortable surface to stand on.

New Applications for Elastomeric films

Whilst architects, industrial designers, builders and office fit out companies are investigating new textures, surfaces and colours for concrete floors in offices, restaurants, laboratories, hotels showrooms, textured spray on floors have exploded in popularity. The textured gloss appearance not only looks good, the raised cross section improves water drainage and helps improve wet-slip resistance in wet area use.

New Maintenance Solution Required

Whilst industrial floors can be cleaned and maintained with industrial scrubbing or pressure cleaning equipment, smaller areas need a completely different technique.

As we have mentioned previously, there is only one synthetic flooring tougher than an elastomeric polyester floor. In these new applications the surface has a tendency to black mark and scuff as well as transfer tyre marks onto the surface. These can prove difficult to remove. The polyester requires a protective finish to act as a sacrificial coating to protect the surface.

Protection of Elastomeric Polyester Coated Floors, why is it needed?

For the ultimate protection clean and a bright and a shiny appearance, it is recommended to apply a water based sealer finish to the floor to act as both a decorative stain and black mark resistant sacrificial wear layer. This surface is much easier to repair (lowering maintenance costs) and is easily re-coated when required. The system we recommend keeps elastomeric polyester floors looking brilliant in areas where high levels of appearance are important.

Products Recommended

We recommend two products that show high levels of adhesion and levels of slip resistance that can be buffed with slow, medium or U.H.S floor polishing equipment and provide the level of gloss the customer requires.

GLAZER

GLAZER is a high solid, urethane fortified acrylic sealer finish which has a high level of adhesion as well as an ultra high gloss off the mop with minimal coats (2 to 3 average) required. GLAZER has very high resistance to black mark pickup and is the toughest product in our range.

For increase slip resistance we recommend the use of FILMSTAR high traction sealer finish. It also has a secondary advantage in that it has the highest buffed gloss.

New Floors - Preparation

In certain conditions a light oily film may be apparent on the floors after curing, it is important to remove this film by stripping the floor. Follow instructions set out below.

Direction for new floor

New floors can tend to have a oily film present after curing it is imperative to remove this prior to coating.

Wash floor with CROSSFIRE at 1 part CROSSFIRE to 50 parts water. Rinse floor with NEUTRO at 1 part NEUTRO to 100 parts water to neutralise any alkalinity.

Let floor dry and buff or burnish with a red pad or Bassine brush. Apply 3-5 coats of GLAZER or FILMSTAR sealer finish.

Existing Top Coated Floor Surface

Light/Dull Floor
If the surface has yellowed or soil penetration had occurred, scrubbing and buffing or re-coating may be necessary.

Heavy Soil
If the surface is dull or, deeply scratched, as well as badly soiled or black heel marked, the sealer finish may have worn away. Test the floor finish depth by scraping with a coin in an inconspicuous place. Stripping will be necessary if coating in breaking up or patchy & worn.

How to Bring Floors to Life

Light cutback
Use SLEDGEHAMMER diluted 1 part to 25 parts water. Apply enough solution to stop the floor drying while scrubbing. Autoscrub or machine scrub using a blue or green scrubbing pad if surface use is uneven use a polypropylene brush. Damp mop rinse with cold water to remove soil slurry. Allow floor to dry thoroughly prior and dust mop. After dry, burnish with a red or tan pad if surface is smooth. If textured use a bassine brush.

Heavy Cutback/Re-coat
Use SLEDGEHAMMER or STEAMROLLER II applying 1 part to 10 parts water. Use a blue or green pad and scrub the floor in a left to right arc. If surface is heavily textured you will require a black polypropylene brush to remove buildup below the surface. Wet mop, rinse with cold water to remove scrubber residue using clean water in a bucket every 20 square meters. Allow the floor to dry thoroughly and dust mop or vacuum prior to burnishing and prior to re-coating as described.

Dry Stripping - Small Areas
To cut time in small awkward areas like high density funnel areas of traffic. Dry stripping can be an alternative using SLEDGEHAMMER 1 to 10 parts cold water and brown pad. Just spray lightly, wait 5 minutes then dry pad off. Dust mop prior to re-coating.

Total Stripping - “No Scrub Method” - Larger Areas
The Labour Saver

Flood mop, apply stripper with a cotton or fringe mop using SLEDGEHAMMER or our new STEAMROLLER II, 1 part to 4 parts cold water. Allow up to 15 minutes for activation/penetration. Re-apply if drying too fast. Wring out stripping mop, mop off sealer build up and transfer into stripper solution bucket. Push the mop ferrule heavily onto the floor to dislodge the existing finish. Particularly required for edges (an alternative is a doodlebug and black pad). Dust mop then dry burnish the floor as described above. When fully dry - re-coat as above.

NB. SLEDGEHAMMER is a product with new technology and provides a “no scrub” water “rinse free” application - a huge time and labour saver. Steamroller II is more aggressive and alkaline and must be rinsed and neutralised with NEUTRO. Both these strippers will remove heavy buildup. STEAMROLLER II being the most aggressive.

Applying Sealer Finish

Because polyester is not porous there is no need to pre-coat with a sealer. A harder sealer finish such as Glazer or FILMSTAR is all that is necessary to reduce scuffing and help the surface resist damage. A minimum of three coats of sealer finish is recommended. FILMSTAR is recommended if the highest level of slip resistance is required.

Maintenance cleaning after sealing

Use NEUTRACLEAN neutral floor maintainer as your regular damp mopping solution or in your automatic scrubber. This medium low foam cleaner leaves a sparkling finish on your floors and prepares the floor for burnishing with either regular speed (400 RPM) or ultra high speed (1500+) machinery.

Dilutions:

For normal mopping, and damp mopping 1 part NEUTRACLEAN to 80 parts water.

Automatic Scrubbing: 1 part NEUTRACLEAN to 100 parts water

Textured Floors: With standard speed buffing equipment a bassine brush is all that is required to remove minor marks and scratches and rebuild gloss.

It is not recommended to use equipment over 1500 R.P.M on this type of floor surface.