Polished concrete is a craft that tends to be misunderstood. Often when people hear about polished concrete, they assume it is achieved through the application of a topical product or that it defines a cleaning process that makes the floor appear shiny. However, neither of these accurately describe the process of mechanically refined polished concrete. Polished concrete is a detailed, labor and skill-intensive process that requires highly specialized tooling and training to produce. One of the numerous tools required in this process is a grinder with diamond tooling.

Nowadays, most of the concrete grinding is performed by diamonds. This process is called as “diamond grinding”. Grinding concrete with diamond tooling is a mechanical process that renews worn or irregular concrete surfaces. It uses specialized tooling to produce a smoother surface and reduce concrete failures such as joint faults, warped slabs, and traffic wear. Due to the power needed to grind concrete, the diamond tools can quickly overheat during a wet grind process. Overheating is prevented by cooling the machine with water. However, this means a slurry is produced from the grinding and water excreted but the slurry is removed and disposed of. Dry grinding is also done with an air-cooled system. Both options can achieve the same desired result.

Polished concrete is not a look created by a topical product. Its created through a physical grinding of several progressions of tooling. The final look of polished concrete can differ when grinding to different depths with results in varying aggregate exposure levels. The more aggressive the grinding the larger the aggregate exposure will be. This does not mean the floor will not be smooth, it just means rocks and sand will be more visible. And because each concrete slab is unique, the final look will be entirely unique as well.

TransGrind Tools is dedicated to providing suitable concrete diamond tooling at every stage of the concrete grinding or polishing process. We offer professional services and technical support to help you select the right tooling and successfully complete a job.