Geoshine™ floors are not only works of striking beauty, but are also highly durable and resistant to wear, stains and dirt penetration.
The Geoshine™ polishing system eliminates the needs for expensive refurbishment or the use of harsh chemicals, waxes, topical sealers and coatings, resulting in a premium, low maintenance, low cost surface. Following a daily and weekly maintenance routine will reduce your floor’s slip factor, maintain its beautiful surface shine and prolong the life of the concrete surface.
Your Geoshine™ maintenance plan
Paul Warner provides Geocrete clients with a comprehensive maintenance plan for their floor, as well as ongoing service, advice and assistance with everyday cleaning and upkeep. The maintenance required for each floor will vary depending on your household’s size and activity levels.
Alchemy Floor Conditioner
A lack of specifically designed cleaning products for polished concrete spurred Paul to develop Geocrete’s premium cleaning product, Alchemy Construction Chemicals Floor Conditioner, that will clean, maintain and enhance your Geoshine™ floor, ensuring its strength and lustre for many years to come.
Concrete is naturally alkaline and has a pH of around 10.2. On the other hand, most general purpose and ‘environmentally friendly’ cleaning products are closer to neutral, with a pH of 7 to 8, and act like acid on polished concrete.
Alchemy Floor Conditioner has the same pH as concrete, as well as powerful surfactants that neutralise fats, grease and dirt more effectively than other cleaning products. Added nano technology hardens and densifies your floor every time it is cleaned.
Geoshine™ cleaning and maintenance:
Polished concrete is not a bullet proof self-cleaning system! You must clean your floor regularly and correctly. Geoshine™ floors have a 10 year warranty when maintained with Alchemy Floor Conditioner and according to the following specifications:
Daily or weekly
- Use a dry microfibre mop on your floor daily. Long standing Geocrete clients find daily dry mopping quicker, easier and more effective than vacuuming. Use the flat blue 600mm microfibre mops from Sabco, not the large loop-pile shaggy ones.
- Vacuum your floor twice weekly.
- Mop your floor daily or weekly. On larger areas an auto scrubber can be used.
Use a solution of at least 60ml Alchemy Floor Conditioner to 10 litres of hot water. It is important to use hot water, as it is superior to cold water in removing grease and oil contaminants. You may need to change the cleaning solution depending on the floor’s size and how dirty it is.
Alchemy Floor Conditioner will last a very long time, as just a few squirts are needed in the mop bucket. If you use a general purpose cleaner, your floor will break down within five years.
Monthly or annually
- Commercial areas require buffing monthly or annually, using an auto scrubber or burnisher with an Alchemy Construction Chemicals HD diamond impregnating buffing pad, in 800, 3000 and 8000 grit.
Residential floors may only require this buffing every 3-5 years. Geocrete can provide this ongoing schedule or service if requested.
- To prevent stains, act quickly!
Thanks to advanced concrete densifiers and a penetrating sealer, Geoshine™ floors are highly stain resistant, but not stain proof. Like all stone floors, polished concrete is porous, so it is important that spills are cleaned up as soon as practical.
Most stains, such as red wine, coffee, and olive oil, will be trapped in suspension for up to 30 hours before being absorbed into the top surface. Because each concrete slab differs in strength, density and porosity, absorption times will differ between floors. We recommend that you test a small patch underneath your fridge or cupboard to get accurate staining times for your own floor.
To clean spills, use hot water and a microfibre cloth or mop, with Alchemy Floor Conditioner if required. Vinegar is the number one worst cleaner for your floor as it is essentially acidic. It can etch your floor within five to 10 minutes, so please act quickly to clean it up. Other acidic substances include soft drink, wine, lemon juice, plant matter and animal excrement.
- Clean heavily trafficked areas more regularly
Areas such as the front entrance and hallway, where levels of grit, dirt and wear are the highest, require more frequent cleaning.
- Use floor mats on entry points
Consider using external entry floor mats and internal walk off mats to help keep your floor clean.
- Fit furniture legs with felt protection
Fit your furniture’s legs (such as chairs, tables and lounges) with felt adhesives. Clean or replace felts annually to remove embedded grit, which will act like an industrial grinder on your floor. Office chairs with wheels are the worst for this, so always use a plastic protection mat under your office chair.
The DON’T’S:
- Not cleaning spills as soon as possible.
Unfortunately they don’t just evaporate and WILL cause damage.
- Using any other floor cleaning product than the Alchemy Floor Conditioner.
Commercial grade floor cleaners and home-made cleaning products (like vinegar mixed with water) will quickly degrade your floor.
- Dropping very heavy pots and pans or household objects on your polished floor.
While the surface is very strong, durable and resistant to surface abrasion (up to eight times the strength of normal concrete), very heavy items dropped on the floor can cause damage.
- Not using caution on wet floors.
When floors are wet, be careful not to slip and hurt yourself. Polished floors meet Australian standards for slip resistance, but every smooth surface, whether tiles, timber floors, or terrazzo, requires caution when wet.
- Placing very hot items on the floor surface.
Fry pans and other hot items will leave burn marks on polished concrete.
- Using aggressive abrasives like black Scotch Rite pads or steel wool to remove stubborn stains. Always use a hot microfibre cloth and soak the stain for a few minutes, then try agitating the surface with Alchemy Floor Conditioner.
Following the recommended cleaning schedule is critical in maintaining the beauty and lustre of your Geoshine™ polished floor. Improper rinsing and mopping, not using Alchemy Floor Condition or the use of harsh detergents may attack the floor’s finish or directly affect its ability to perform as designed.
Always follow Geocrete’s maintenance schedule and if unsure please contact Paul Warner. Paul will happily come onsite for free to demonstrate the best cleaning methods or answer your questions.
Expert knowledge and quality ongoing customer service is all a part of the Geocrete difference, and Paul is as invested as you are in maintaining your premium quality, exquisite Geoshine™ floor.
