What is this flooring?

[kylet]

What is this flooring, metal edge very terrazzo like but no aggregate. doesn’t appear to be bonded to the slab below. Many pieces are cracked and broken. 48x48” i took a grinder to it and results are [emoji2369]. I need to repair or replace some and refinishing would also be good too. This is in my kitchen but it’s an industrial looking design.






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[kylet]

Hit with a diamond grinding disc thing on my 4.5” grinder



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[Shiftless]

“Not bonded to the floor”
Sounds like a bunch of really heavy brittle slabs of something were just laid down dry. No wonder it’s cracked so much. Thinset mortar is required to set tiles. What you have are essentially big tiles.

 

[kylet]

I’ve talked to a few flooring experts and they all agree it’s not any kind of tile. If it was I would love to find what kind and try to locate it. I’m hoping the wealth of information here can help me narrow it down. Also there are grind marks in the metal edging that line up with light marks on the surface.

Stone maybe? The bottom edges are notched to sit on the metal edging.


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[Toolfool]

Seen it before. Metal strips laid in pattern and concrete dry-packed to fill. Not enough moisture in the mix to properly bond to the substrate. Always wondered if it was intentional, to create 'uncoupling' effect. Did a house in WA about 20 years ago where the architect spec'd a similar floor finish, with brass strips and fine aggregate , but we laid 1/4" wonderboard then stapled wire mesh on top. The whole floor got polished.

 

[kylet]

Hmm interesting. I’ll start searching more along those lines.


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[kylet]

I did find this tile too https://www.creativematerialscorp.com/product/organic-concrete-gauged/

Called dry fracture. So I’m wondering if that is the actual finish. The other tiles that looked fractured and aren’t loose don’t really have cracks you can feel, just see. They are sealed over.




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[kylet]

Yeah after pulling more up it’s poured in place.


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[Shiftless]

I’d bet the cracking will continue in other sections.
Cracking is usually related to minor movement in the building. Are there any other signs of movement? Cracks or popped nails in the drywall?
Have you considered tearing all of that out and putting down something more conventional?

At my (70 y.o.) house, in order to correct a sloping floor situation in a 6x6 entry, I did drypack over plywood supported by 4x6 floor joists spaced every 12 inches. I tiled on top of that.
There is one hairline crack. That’s what happens when homes are built on expansive adobe soil.


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[The Cobbler]

It looks to me that it was a Terazzo floor that never got the chip ( stones) thrown in .
The chip gets tossed in and tamped into the surface, then all surface ground & polished

 

[kylet]

Yes the whole house moves. North Texas area. It has been stabilized but no clue how much more it will move.

Yes I’ve thought about redoing the whole thing but they put all of the cabinets ontop of it so taking it out is a massive undertaking. I really only need to replace 3 pieces and then lightly grind and reseal
It.

But thats easier said than done.


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[Shiftless]

Good luck with that. How will you handle the dust from grinding?

 

[kylet]

Seen it before. Metal strips laid in pattern and concrete dry-packed to fill. Not enough moisture in the mix to properly bond to the substrate. Always wondered if it was intentional, to create 'uncoupling' effect. Did a house in WA about 20 years ago where the architect spec'd a similar floor finish, with brass strips and fine aggregate , but we laid 1/4" wonderboard then stapled wire mesh on top. The whole floor got polished.

This is the ticket. They actually used a very fine sand to keep it uncoupled in an attempt to eliminate cracking. I pulled more pieces up and it’s very obvious. Looks app most like thin set. I’m going to have to my try to match it as best as I can and re seal it. Maybe with a colored sealer.


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[kylet]

Good luck with that. How will you handle the dust from grinding?

Vacuum, mist and lots of plastic covering stuff with a negative pressure inside the hose to vent it outside too. Major ****.


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[Toolfool]

Take pics as you go. Curious to see how it turns out.

 

[kylet]

Take pics as you go. Curious to see how it turns out.

Will do but I’m having second thoughts about it. If we are going to have to do so much grinding we are kinda thinking about just removing and having the concrete slab polished and Densified. We can then continue the floor consistency throughout more of the house.


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[Toolfool]

Sounds like a plan.

 

[The Cobbler]

Will do but I’m having second thoughts about it. If we are going to have to do so much grinding we are kinda thinking about just removing and having the concrete slab polished and Densified. We can then continue the floor consistency throughout more of the house.


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sounds like a good idea. but you know, just when you're just about finished lifting it, you're going to hit a tough spot that just wont let go, and you'll be cursing!

 

[nadogail]

What ever you have, it resembles a POS job done by someone who thought they were doing a "good enough" job.

 

[kylet]

So you can see the puddling in the sand and the yellowing in the top right corner where I have removed it, that’s dog urine and hair from the previous owners I guess. It was wet when I pulled it up. The smell is horrible.

And yes I don’t know what kind of job this was, this current tile is semi bonded to what looks like old mastic? Might have to get a mini hammer chisel. Or hire it out if I don’t have time. [emoji15]


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