Perfectly imperfect (when done by the best team possible).

It’s been 6 years since we polished+stained the concrete floors at Jersey Mike’s in Austin. The location in Harker Heights that I just enjoyed a sandwich from looks about the same age. I was struck with what a good choice that floor is for that restaurant, but how important it is to communicate the caveats up front.

First thing I noticed was this efflorescence in the bathroom (We stopped in driving home after a wedding, so you know). I imagine the client hadn’t ever heard of efflorescence. I imagine them thinking the stain was fading. Since somebody got paid to stain and polish the concrete slab foundation into these floors, I imagine they are going to get a call to come and take a look at it. 

Seems like a reasonable request. The client may think something like “I paid you several thousands of dollars, I just want you to take a look at it, (and I sense you don’t want to do that.)” If the company that stained+polished those floors has been in business for a while, going to look at efflorescence might seem like a bad deal. They have to know there is nothing wrong with the stain and that efflorescence happens and simply removing it and applying a finish will solve the problem. They can either count that time to “customer service” or they can try to communicate the truth in a way that totally doesn’t seem like a lie. That is, clients are reasonable to suspect that their explanation is a bit of a ploy to not spend the time to look at their floor.

So we go look at the floors. And we explain what happened. And we fix it in the short term. It it will probably happen again in the future. And to the shallow-thinking reactionary, stained and polished concrete may seem like a suboptimal choice. At least provided that person doesn’t think about the big picture.

Stained+polished concrete continues to offer lower up-front cost (financially to the client and ecologically to the world at large), lower maintenance cost, and the great feeling evoked by a common material (concrete) processed to an uncommon level (mechanically flattened/ground to expose some aggregate, stained, chemically hardened, polished, and sealed like stone (no plastic).

It is just a bit of a drag of a business to run because the end product is inherently imperfect and unpredictable. Which is why you are wise to be working with the true innovators and not another copy-cat/knock-off company. We created or at least introduced dozens of unique finishes to our market. We also created a few ex-employees-cum-contractors. These guys stole what IP they could, and the market is strong enough now that it’s hard to not sell a lot of work. The most competent, most trustworthy provider of stained+polished concrete flooring is still less expensive than tile, wood, or stone. That’s element7concrete. Accept no substitute - it is truly not the same when it matters. 

One last point: ask a nutritionist how your diet could be optimized and they may encourage more animal protein or they may not. Pose the same question to a butcher and there’s no question. Given our knowledge base and processes, this bathroom would’ve gotten a better finish that would cover the ugly plumbing trench and stand up to the chemical attack of a commercial restroom better at minimal cost. In a world of proverbial butchers, our Designer/PM’s are trained like nutritionists.