Polished Concrete Floor Cost in Houston Texas for 2019
This guide is intended to help educate those interested in learning the general costs of commercial installation. Home improvement or residential project costs can vary greatly from these estimates. Cement Shines’ target client is in the commercial environment. We will do (Barn) condos as they are built in a commercial fashion.
It’s very common for people to call a polishing contractor and ask what the SF polished concrete cost. You have to understand that the contractor is not being coy by not answering this question directly. It’s just that there are many factors that can affect the true price of each unique project.
The myth that concrete flooring is always the most cost-effective solution is wrong. It can be, but it depends. Generally, these floors are similar in costs to other quality flooring solutions.
The cheapest solution in the short term is industrial carpet or laminate. Polished concrete may be the most cost-effective flooring solution when considering the life cycle and low maintenance costs.
What factors influence polished concrete floor costs?
Slab Conditions:
The existing condition of the concrete will affect the polished concrete pricing. For example, some concrete may be new and a smooth surface and some may be old and uneven or damaged. Even some new concrete can be a bad candidate if not hard troweled or screed-ed properly.
Many times the existing concrete may be covered in paint or epoxy and many times covered in mastic or glue.
Other old flooring removal and disposal costs. The type of floor that is existing can increase the cost to polish. For example, it’s faster to remove floating laminate then ceramic tile and thin-set from a slab. The weight is different with regards to disposal.
Variable expenses:
The obvious variable expense is the size or square footage of the floor.
Another cost driver is the linear footage of wall space. This usually dictates the amount of edgework required by hand. In other words, wide-open spaces are less costly than similar square footage with many dividing walls. The time required to complete a job with more wall space can sometimes take twice the time.
Rare circumstances:
Soft concrete can actually wear down diamond tooling 3-4 times faster than hard concrete. Using hard bond diamonds helps but this is still an issue.
Night Shifts have lower production rates than day shifts. If job access to the project is limited it can affect the efficiency of production and costs to mobilize. Distance from home base. If the project has a zip code far from the normal service area, this can make the process less cost-effective.
In some cases where polish-able overlays are required the cost of concrete bag mixes can also drive cost. Polish-able overlays can start at $15 per square foot, and go all the way to $25. Non-standard products don’t help.
Payment and contract terms:
Is the project a cash deal or a check? Many large contractors and clients may stretch out AP for months. The cost of financing short term business borrowing can cost 10-19%.
Extra insurance costs. Many large General contractors usually require normal GL, WC, and automotive insurance from the concrete contractor.
Some may also require an additional 5 million in blanket insurance. Some may also need other expensive completion bonds(1-3%) and wavier of subrogations.
There are office costs of filling out insurance forms, putting together submittals, and notary expenses for lien release documents.
Government or safety requirements:
Prevailing wage or extreme safety requirements at certain government facilities can really drive a price.
Flooring options:
How much does Stained concrete flooring cost?
Elaborate design ideas or anything that includes staining or dying concrete can drive price. Stain application using the existing concrete slab is one option. Another option is using decorative concrete flooring materials to make a new canvas for concrete staining. These can drive price and are best if they are a self-leveling polish-able type overlays.
Some people like to roll the dice and use multiple colors when staining which is an added option. Best to stick with one. Dying a floor will usually add $1-1.50 to an existing polishing job.
What do Concrete floors cost?
Published estimates:
According to Angie’s List, Improvenet, and Home Adviser the price per foot can vary from $2-$6 a square foot. Concrete Network Claims $3-$12 a square foot. Remodel expense says the price can be anywhere from $5.17-$7.76
I think there is a definite distinction in costs in residential vs. commercial. In general, residential has more cost drivers usually making the cost twice as much as most commercial per square foot. Cement Shine only services commercial clients.
Usually, there are not a bunch of extra factors on the average project. There are variable costs to a project and fixed costs on a project. If the square footage is high the fixed costs get divided over larger footage.
There are also ways to value engineer a floor to meet your needs and hopefully your budget
Give me a call and I can offer you a tighter ballpark. After a few questions, I can access our historical cost information and give you a pretty close competitive range. I don’t mind talking to people about their concrete floor ideas. If I can not help you I will try and send you in the direction of someone that can help you.