Terrazzo Restoration, Epoxy Coatings and Concrete Polishing by SafeDry, 877-824-0501

Dispelling Some Terrazzo Restoration Myths | Terrazzo Restoration

2012-01-22T08:10:00.000-08:00

Terrazzo is making is great comeback.
Dispelling Some Terrazzo Restoration Myths Terrazzo Restoration

sTerrazzo Restoration | Safedry's Blog

2012-01-15T06:54:00.000-08:00

Terrazzo Restoration Safedry's Blog
This blog was just updated. Check it out.

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2012-01-08T07:17:00.000-08:00

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1968 Terrazzo Floor Restored by SafeDry

2011-11-27T07:43:00.001-08:00

http://www.SafeDry.com

877-824-0501

This article will deal with the restoration of a 1970 terrazzo floor. Many terrazzo floors from 1968, 1969, 1970 and 1971 look very similar to this floor. Many years ago we struggled with these floors. This era of terrazzo floors was not always of the same quality as previous years. Most terrazzo restoration systems have a hard time getting good results from these floors. It is hard to get a highly polished shine and these floors tend to be thinner then their predecessors. This can cause an uneven look and lines of marble loss in the floors.

Today our terrazzo floor restoration system makes these floors more flat, and brings these floors to a highly polished shine. When a floor has a high shine it can hide many flaws. Our planetary floor grinding and polishing system gives our floors a brilliant shine and helps make the floor more flat. In fact, our system produces the flattest floors in the home terrazzo restoration business. Our process uses wet and dry diamond polishing to give your terrazzo floors a shine that will last years and years. Check out the beautiful floor. These pictures tell thousands of words. By Joe Martin

Terrazzo Restoration Venice Florida 877-824-0501

2011-10-16T15:59:00.000-07:00

Terrazzo Restoration Venice Florida

877-824-0501

http://www.TerrazzoFloors.net

Hello again. This blog willl show a job we just completed in Venice Florida. The floor had vinyl flooring covering much of it and the rest had carpet. We removed the remaining paper from the vinyl on the terrazzo floors and pulled all the tack strip and cut all the nails flat on the terrazzo. The terrazzo restoration took three days and four people to complete. This terrazzo floor was installed in the 1950s. A large portion of the vinyl was on the Florida room and left three lines from the four segments. Thos lines were stubern, but came completely out.

When you see the largest room, part of that room is the kitchen.

The cabinets were completely removed so you need to look for the severe yellowing in that area. The kitchen came up looking great too. Check out the great pictures and call if you have any questions.

By Joe Martin

Vinyl Tile and Terrazzo Restoration

2011-09-23T06:15:00.000-07:00

877-824-0501

http://www.SafeDry.com

Many people call and ask if it is possible to remove vinyl tile and restore the terrazzo floor under it. Vinyl tile can be very east to remove, or extremely hard to remove. In most cases the terrazzo floor under the tile can be restored to look better then ever. We recently did a vinyl tile removal and restored the terrazzo in a home in Punta Gorda. There was an odor problem we had to deal with as well, but the final outcome was a great looking floor.

These are some of the many questions I am asked about removing vinyl and restoring the terrazzo.

Q. Will the vinyl damage the terrazzo flooring when it is removed?

A. Damage to terrazzo from vinyl tile removal is rare, but there can be some problems. Some old adhesives are stronger then the terrazzo floor. When the vinyl is pulled up it can pull peaces of the floor with it. The damage is usually small and can many times be ground out. Another problem is black mastic. Most black mastic is asbestos based tar. It can be scraped off safely, but if you use a solvent the floor might be beyond repair. In any case the floor will be darker when the job is complete.

Q. Will The glue from the vinyl stain terrazzo floor?

A. Again, if the adhesive is black it will darken the floor. Most glue will be completely removed. It is better to have vinyl tile on a terrazzo floor then old carpet pad.

Q. After the vinyl flooring is removed and the terrazzo floor is restored will there be a grid pattern left from the edges of the tile?

A. SafeDry has made a lot of advances in removing the grid pattern left by vinyl tile. we work to ground out the grid pattern with our HTC planetary grinder. our grinder is the most aggressive used in homes. It allows us to grind down without causing any damage to the floor. we also use chemicals to bleach out these stains during the terrazzo restoration process. If there is a pattern left we work to make it faint. This insures it will fade away over the next weeks or months.

Q. Will the vinyl tile effect the final shine we get on our terrazzo floor?

A. No matter what is on your floor we get a high diamond polished terrazzo floor. SafeDry never uses acid or recrystallization to get a high shine. We use all diamond polishing to get the longest lasting terrazzo shine possible.

Q. Will vinyl tile removal significantly increase the terrazzo cost for restoration?

A. Vinyl tile removal will add 50% to the cost of restoration.

Q. Can we remove the vinyl tile ourselves?

A. I am always happy to help people do as much as possible to cut terrazzo restoration costs. If you give me a call I will help you remove the tile yourself. We offer tile removal as one of our services, but would rather spend our time restoring terrazzo.

Q. Do you think if will make my house look a lot better if we remove the tile and restore the terrazzo.

A. Check out the job we recently did and you make call.

Terrazzo Restoration Orlando 2 877-824-0501

2011-08-21T09:18:00.000-07:00

877-824-0501

http://www.SafeDry.com

This video shows a terrazzo restoration done in Orland in August of 2011. The terrazzo floor was diamond polished and used no other product to acheve the shine you see. Truely diamonds are a terrazzo floors best friend. Check out our video and let me know what you think.

Terrazzo Floors Help Spark a Huge Demand for Retro Design In Florida.

2011-07-24T15:25:00.000-07:00

877-824-0501
http://www.SafeDry.com

Florida has a lot of terrazzo flooring from the 50s, 60s and 70s. With a large availability of these old homes in Florida many have gained a love for the home designs from these eras. I have had people call me for terrazzo restoration and say they were going to modernize the homes a little and restore the terrazzo then sell. I let them know that the old bath tubs, sinks, bathroom tile bathroom and kitchen cabinets are in high demand and should be restored and not replaced.\I talk to new home owners every day. Many love the old retro look from these home and want to preserve them.I have had home owners say the were tearing out the tub liners and whatever the tub looked like they would restore it. Even the old colored fixtures are in demand.
Retro is in in Florida and these homes are now in demand. At Safe Dry we restore old terrazzo. When terrazzo was installed in old Florida homes it was often covered with carpet, tile or vinyl. Other areas were left exposed and a topical sealer and finish was installed. These floors were honed to around 200 grit, so they were very respective to dirt and stains. \It is no wonder so many people hated them. Terrazzo finish would get scared very easily. It would need stripped and finish would need re-installed every year or two.
Today we diamond polish terrazzo flooring with a shine that is not the illusion a a shinny floor, but a floor that shines on its own.Our floors do not have a glare. When a light shines on the terrazzo you see the light build, not a glare of light. This is what terrazzo was always desired to look like. With Safe Dry's terrazzo restoration these floors do not need any polishing for seven to ten years under normal residential use. We install an impregnating sealer that penetrates the floor and lasts two years. We also have an upgrade penetrating sealer that lasts five to ten years.

If you are buying a home with terrazzo flooring to make your home, rent it out or resell it you should consider restoring the terrazzo and saving the fixtures. Go retro.

Terrazzo Art of Sarasota

2011-05-22T14:53:00.000-07:00

http://www.SafeDry.com

877-824-0501

This blog is from a terrazzo restoration SafeDry did in Sarasota Florida. This is a great looking old Florida home. The house did not have any windows, but had sliding glass doors in every room. The house was surrounded by atrium's and Florida rooms. This helped to show the true beauty of their terrazzo floors as well as highlighting the wonderful architecture of their home. These old Florida terrazzo floors are art. With all those wall and glass doors to reflect on the floors I think you could do a whole book of art from this home. I hope everyone loves this house. I know I did. The floor had a heave finish product on it, but we ground it off and polished this terrazzo floor to a high shine. We also did a few repairs. We filled around sis holes that were very hard to find after we were done.

Many think terrazzo floors are hard to clean, but after restoration these floors are very easy to clean and keep up. When these terrazzo floors were first done they were very pours and held dirt. After terrazzo diamond grinding and polishing and sealing dirt has a hard time getting into the floor.

When you figure the terrazzo restoration cost against tile or other flooring I am sure you will find it a bargain.

Terrazzo Restoration Before

Terrazzo Restoration After

Terrazzo Restoration Before

Terrazzo Restoration After

Terrazzo Art on the Floor

Terrazzo Before Restoration

Terrazzo After Restoration

Polished Terrazzo

Art of Terrazzo

The Terrazzo Orchid

Terrazzo Restoration Process

Terrazzo Grinding

David in the Floor

Terrazzo Restoration Sarasota Award Winning Shine

2011-04-27T03:51:00.000-07:00

http://www.SafeDry.com

1-877-824-0501

This video is from a two jobs we did in Sarasota Florida. They both came out looking great with our diamond polishing terrazzo system. I have put a lot of before and after pictures on this video so check it out.

Terrazzo Restoration by SafeDry

2011-04-24T12:54:00.000-07:00

http://www.SafeDry.com

1-877-824-0501

Today I want to show some of our latest pictures, including some taken today at a job just completed in Sarasota Florida. I also want to talk about how and why I take the pictures of terrazzo restoration floors.
I could do a whole blog of of plant reflections in floors we have restored. I must admit to being a plant lover. If I had terrazzo in my home I would surround my rooms with windows and flowers and plants. Imagine enjoying your plants , not only outside, but on your floor in high definition.
Sometimes I forget to show the entire floor after the terrazzo restoration. I am trying to do a better job of showing the whole floor before and after. We have made marked advances in our terrazzo floors over the years, but in the past few months we have stepped up our game more then ever.
As the owner of SafeDry, I and promise to always keep up to date with all the advances in terrazzo restoration. When we find high quality new products we always Incorporated them into our system and test their effectiveness and place within our system.
I think one of the best ways to show how great a terrazzo floor looks is to take pictures of the reflection off the floor. When you take a picture of a palm tree, on a quality terrazzo restoration, you can see the space between the fron strands. You can see flowers in bloom. I have even taken many pictures of reflections of people standing outside and these pictures look great.
This does not tell the whole story. Terrazzo floors look great at night. In low light you can often times see the whole room reflect off the floor.
The job just completed in Sarasota was stunning. It had a great variety of marble stones and colors. I am sure you will agree that this floor was worth saving. Now on to the great terrazzo floor.

Here are some pictures from another terrazzo restoration done in Sarasota in March.

Terrazzo Restoration

2011-04-15T06:53:00.000-07:00

http://www.SafeDry.com

1-877-824-0501

Terrazzo Restoration

SafeDry has been doing terrazzo restoration for many years. We test many products and systems to insure we give our customers the best, longest lasting floor possible. Several years ago we made a decision to switch our system to use an HTC grinder.

At the point we changed we were using the same machine almost all our competition used. We were using a weighted swing machine. That machine weighed around 150 pounds. Change meant a significant investment for us. A swing machine runs from $800 to $1,000. Our new system would cost us a $20,000 investment. Since we clanged to our HTC 500 grinder we have never looked back. I have never felt we could match our new system with the old one.

The new system came with one big problem. It made the floors look so good that we had to learn how to step up our game in edging. Floor edging is very important and the better you make a floor look the more you have to work on edging.

In the past couple of years we have tested many new systems and implemented new steps in order to maximize our finished shine. None of our steps include any topical finish or sealer. We use an impregnating sealer the penetrates the floor and fills the pours to protect the floor. When we finish with your terrazzo floor the shine you see is the floor, not the illusion of a shinny floor.
We never recrystallize terrazzo floors. This process means the floor needs buffed every one or two years. With our system, under normal where, your floor will not need any polishing for seven to ten years. We use only diamond grinding and polishing. We show our HTC 500 grinder, but never share all our steps.
SafeDry has spent many late nights figuring out the best products and which order they are best used in. We are not going to show other how to replicate what we do. In short our complete system is secret. The results of our terrazzo restoration system are evident. Check out how great our floors are looking these days.

Terrazzo Restoration Lakeland

2011-04-11T06:46:00.000-07:00

http://www.SafeDry.com

1-877-824-0501

This video is from a terrazzo restoration done in Lakeland from 8-10 April 2011. The floor is over fifty years old and came out looking great. The video shows a lot of before and after pictures. We diamond polished this floor. It does not have a topical coating, so the shine you see is the floor. We did some terrazzo repair and after filling the holes and setting the stones we ground the next day. The result was repairs the were very hard to find. As you can see by our latest pictures and videos, SafeDry has stepped up its game and producing, we feel, the best looking floors in the industry.

If you have any questions about terrazzo flooring, or want an estimate, give us a call.

Terrazzo Polishing

2011-04-10T16:16:00.000-07:00

http://www.safedry.com

1-877-824-0501

Terrazzo Polishing

This video is from a terrazzo restoration we did in Leesburg. The job took three days and included repairing several chips in the floor caused by past nail removal. This terrazzo floor is over 50 years old but looks better then the day it was finished. SafeDry gladly covers the Gainesville, Ocala and Leesburg area, as well as all of central and west Florida.

Sarasota Terrazzo Restoration from 2 April 2011

2011-04-03T11:32:00.000-07:00

www.safedry.com

1-877-824-0501

Sarasota Terrazzo Restoration

2 April 2011

This blog is a review and report from a Sarasota terrazzo restoration done between march 31st and April 2nd of 2011. I will cover many aspects of the job, but not every step. We at SafeDry have spent many late nights developing our system and as such we will not divulge many details of how we restore terrazzo. As I often say, we restore using diamond technology and without tricks. We use many different diamond polishing technique at the polishing stage in order to maximize the shine of our finished product.

The images you will see in this blog will show off how we have evolved into the top terrazzo restoration company in our field. I will apologize in advance as some after restoration pictures show dust that settled on the floor. Most of our steps are wet, but the final steps are dry and as a result can cause some dust. This terrazzo floor is was installed in 1957. That makes it 54 years old. We cannot even imagine all the abuse this terrazzo floor has experienced in all that time, but the final product resembled a granite counter top.

Terrazzo Stain Removal

This terrazzo restoration had some red stains in the living room we had to eliminate. We first scarped off as much as we could then tried some mastic remover. Scrapping held a little, but mastic remover did not help at all. The solution to the red stain was our HTC grinder. It helped by grinding into the floor and getting under the red stain. Check out some of the pictures.

Red Stain Before

Red Stain After

Tack Strip Removal and Nail Cutting

We always suggest people let us remove the tack strip and cut the nails on terrazzo flooring. Terrazzo floors are very hard. This is because of the Portland cement. Portland cement is more dense then sanded cement so it is harder to remove the nails. If you try to pull the nails from terrazzo flooring you will pull up chunks from the floor. This will result in costly repairs and a repair that may be seen after restoration. As you can see, we had to deal with some nails that we already removed in past carpet installations. If you have terrazzo floors and you are having carpet installed on top, remember to always insist the installer cut the nails if they install new tack strip. You should also insist the installer drill holes for the new tack strip and use only aluminum nails. Even if you never want to restore your terrazzo the next owners may want to do that. By insuring proper carpet installation over you terrazzo you are protecting you property value and it may help to sell your home in the future.

Terrazzo Polishing

After grinding and honing the terrazzo it is time for polishing. Though we grind with a 400 pound planetary grinder, to help remove the most imperfections possible, the shine we put on terrazzo is from our many steps and systems of diamond terrazzo polishing and refinishing. We do not use topical coatings for our terrazzo restoration. The shine you see is the floor. We expect out floors to last seven to ten years under normal wear. The terrazzo floors we restore are not slippery. Diamond polished terrazzo has a lot of slip resistance. Check out the results we got from this terrazzo restoration for a cost less then new tile.

Living Room Before

Living Room After

Front Door View After

Front Door View Before

Terrazzo After

Terrazzo Before

Hall Before

Hall After

Living Room After

Terrazzo After

Bed Room Before

Bed Room After

Terrazzo Restoration After

Living Room After

Living Room Before

Terrazzo Restoration Naples, Fort Myers

2011-03-29T16:13:00.000-07:00

http://www.safedry.com/

877-824-0501

SafeDry just completed a couple of jobs in Naples and I wanted to share the great pictures and a video from those jobs. The first job we will show was a 1959 floor we did in three days. The floor had some problems due to rug backing that stained the terrazzo floor. We did not completely remove the stains, but with our 400 pound HTC grinder we made the floor look great. We removed around ninety percent of the staining. We also had a lot of buildup caused by an old topical finish. These coatings darkened the terrazzo floor a lot. All that darkening was completely removed. You will see the spotting from that coating in one of the pictures.

The coatings also caused a lot of yellowing or browning to the terrazzo floor. When SafeDry does terrazzo restoration we do not coat the floor. That is why our floors stay looking great for many many years. One of my customers wanted to know why one SafeDry page they found said we do seven or eight steps and another said eleven to fourteen steps. The reason is simple. For one we now do thirteen to sixteen steps, but SafeDry is always testing new steps and processes. We recently added two more steps because our testing showed they made a bid difference in the finished product.
At SafeDry we know that the people in Naples and Fort Myers love quality terrazzo. The cost of restoring terrazzo is very affordable. Under normal conditions you can expect terrazzo restoration to last seven to ten years. We also just added a new terrazzo sealer that can last just as long and repels water and oil based stains. This product can repel water on the surface of your terrazzo for many hours.

Terrazzo restoration is seeing a great resurgences in the past few years and as a result there are a lot of new diamond polishing products. Some are little known and come with inherent problems. At SafeDry We did not give up after encountering these problems. We instead tried to figure out how to overcome these problems. When you watch our videos, or look at our terrazzo restoration pictures you will see our HTC grinder and little else. The reason for that is that we do not want to show people how to duplicate what we do. Few will ever buy an HTC grinder so that is part of how we make terrazzo floors look great, but we use diamonds in many other ways to get the best terrazzo shine possible. Enough with all that. Here are the pictures and video I promised. Like I said the first terrazzo floor looks great.
Give us a call with any questions you may have. 1-877-824-0501, or email me @ joe@SafeDry.com.

Terrazzo Restoration Naples Video

Terrazzo Restoration Orlando, SafeDry 877-824-0501

2011-02-19T07:11:00.000-08:00

877-824-0501

www.SafeDry.com

This video is from a job we did near Orlando. The floor was in rough shape, but turned out looking great. We treated the terrazzo stains a week before we started the job. This helped remove them for good. The terrazzo cost for the restoration was very reasonable. Terrazzo floors can outlast any other flooring. When you look at the low cost of maintenence and beauty of terrazzo flooring, resteration is a no brainer. Terrazzo restoration cost can very, but if you give us a call we can give you a close idea. You can also have a free on site estimate.

The terrazzo floors in this house are over 50 years old. They look better then any flooring you could install today. It is no wonder terrazzo flooring is being installed today and even terrazzo tile and countertops are in. Give us a call with any quwstions you may have.

Terrazzo Restoration Winter Haven

2011-02-13T08:51:00.000-08:00

www.SafeDry.com

877-824-0501

This blog is of a terrazzo restoration just finished in Winter Haven Florida. We got some great terrazzo restoration pictures. Florida has a lot of old terrazzo. This terrazzo flooring is nearly fifty years old. We spent three days on this job and despite its bad condition, we had great results.

All terrazzo floors are different in their own way. Even if they were poured next door to each other the weather was different on the day they were poured, or the terrazzo was mixed differently, or the marble was broadcast or mixed at a new rate. At the very least they have lived a their own lives. Some with tile others with carpet and vinyl while some had nothing or all these on them.

You can see that terrazzo has a lot of resilience. That is a big reason behind terrazzo flooring's resurgence. Today they are even producing terrazzo tile. One look at our pictures from terrazzo restoration jobs and you can see why terrazzo is cumming back strong.

Dashboard ‹ My Blog — WordPress

2011-02-05T11:46:00.000-08:00

Dashboard ‹ My Blog — WordPress: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

SafeDry Terrazzo breaks ground with www.SolidflooringSolutions.com. Check us out now and in the next few weeks.

SafeDry Kicks Ooff New Terrazzo Website

2011-02-05T10:20:00.000-08:00

Check out the newest SafeDry site. www.TerrazzoFloors.net. We hope it will greatly increase our expositor. This site will be dedicated to everything terrazzo. From terrazzo installation to terrazzo restoration and terrazzo cleaning and restoration products. Check it out now.

Terrazzo Restoration Tampa

2011-02-03T14:32:00.000-08:00

877-824-0501

Hello again. This is Joe from SafeDry. This video was taken in Tampa from a terrazzo restoration job we just finished. This floor is around fifty years old, but looks better then anyone ever dreamed it could. Remember, we put nothing on this floor. All the terrazzo polishing was done with diamonds. After diamond polishing we used an impregnating sealer. I hope everyone enjoys this terrazzo restoration video and if you have any question, give me a call.

Terrazzo Restoration Tampa

2011-02-01T10:22:00.000-08:00

877-824-0501

http://www.SafeDry.com

http://www.safedry.com/This post is of a terrazzo restoration we did in Tampa. The floor had vinyl tile on it. we ground the floor and polished it using an HTC grinder. The floor was a gray Portland cement with a wide variety of marble chips broadcast into it. This terrazzo floor is around fifty years old and has never been restored in the past. As you can see the floor turned out looking great. In fact the home owner labeled the outcome, "Outstanding,".
At SafeDry we use diamonds to polish all the way up to a great shine. We do not show every step, but we never use a topical sealer or finish. Our goal is for a perfect shine with nothing added to the floor to enhance that shine. Remember this terrazzo floor is fifty years old. There is no other floor that could stand up to that many years of abuse and be restored to this level.
Many people cover their terrazzo floor. These floors are mostly marble, so why would anyone want to cover marble that can shine like this.
Many people ask how our system for terrazzo restoration differs from others. I gave an estimate this week in Venice Florida and the woman had just had her kitchen done. She showed me where the last guy had done a test area with a hand grinder and told her that was what the floor would look like. When he came to do the floor he stripped the floor, then crystallized and was done. He never used a grinder on the floor. This situation is so full of problems we can not even go into them all. We always grind and never crystallize or recrystallize. We polish up to a high shine with diamond and no tricks. We do not take shortcuts. If you recrystallize without polishing you are not creating a shine that will last.

YouTube - Terrazzo Restoration Tampa

2011-01-30T21:01:00.000-08:00

YouTube - Terrazzo Restoration Tampa: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

This is our new video from a job we did in Tampa. This terrazzo came out looking great. The home owner's response was, "Outstanding,". Check it out and let us know what you think. We used no topical sealer or finish. The shine you see is the floor and nothing else. Terrazzo restoration, if done properly, needs no help. We can make it look great.

Epoxy Floor Coating Video | Floor Coatings

2011-01-23T09:30:00.000-08:00

Epoxy Floor Coating Video | Floor Coatings: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

This is my updated blog for epoxy floor coatings. It has a lot of pictures and some great information on floor coatings. www.SafeDry.com 877-824-0501

Terrazzo Restoration Fort Myers, Sarasota, Englewood, Venice and Bradenton | Terrazzo Restoration Blog

2011-01-22T10:15:00.000-08:00

Terrazzo Restoration Fort Myers, Sarasota, Englewood, Venice and Bradenton | Terrazzo Restoration Blog: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

SafeDry's newest post. 877-824-0501 www.SafeDry.com. This blog deals with our continued commitment to be and stay on the cutting edge of terrazzo restoration terminology.

Terrazzo Restoration Fort Myers, Sarasota

2011-01-16T09:58:00.000-08:00

This is some more pictures of jobs done in Fort Myers and Sarasota. There are no topical sealers of finishes on these floors. Not every terrazzo floor can look this good, but, we will get the most shine possible from your floor, without the use of strong chemicals or tricks. Check out www.SafeDry.com or give us a call @ 877-824-0501

Terrazzo Restoration Fort Myers

2011-01-14T13:54:00.000-08:00

Terrazzo Restoration Fort Myers. This video was shot in the Fort Myers Cape coral area. We used a planetary grindsr and an impregnating sealer. 877-824-0501 www.safedry.com

Epoxy floor coatings video

2011-01-14T08:31:00.000-08:00

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This is a recent epoxy job done by SafeDry. This video shown floor prep to get a good profile for the initial coating to stick to. Then we filled all the joints and cracks after these cured we used a 10 mil epoxy primer coat followed by a 10 mil pigmented epoxy coating, then applied a 10 mil poly clear coat with a 46 grit non slip aggregate added to the floor. After this we did a 2 inch safety yellow line stripe along with a 1 inch whit line for pedestrian traffic. We also dashed lines to funnel pedestrian traffic.
SafeDry epoxy coating uses all 100% green epoxy coatings, so we can coat in one part of a factory while people work right next to us. This saves on factory down time so you do not need to close during installations.

SafeDry.com | Epoxy Floor Coatings | Industrial, Commercial, Residential| South Eastern United States Division

2010-12-21T05:34:00.000-08:00

SafeDry.com | Epoxy Floor Coatings | Industrial, Commercial, Residential| South Eastern United States Division: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Safe Dry offers 100% green epoxy floor coatings for every need. We can install a flake, quartz or neat floor that is 1005 solids and will stand the test of time and out shine all the competition. We can also re-surface your existing floor with a floor that will cure quickly and stand up to extreme abuse.
We have coating for extreme temperatures as well as acid resistant coatings. Check out our website and see all the different flooring's we have to offer.
We also install terrazzo flooring. We look forward to hearing from you. Give us a call today. 877-824-0501

SafeDry.com | Crown Polymers | Residential, Commercial, Industrial | Serving All of Florida

2010-12-12T17:46:00.000-08:00

SafeDry.com | Crown Polymers | Residential, Commercial, Industrial | Serving All of Florida: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Safe Dry installs quality polymer epoxy flooring. We are certified Crown installers of 100% green epoxsy and polyurethane coatings.

Give us a call for all of your coating needs.

SafeDry.com Frequently Asked Questions | Terrazzo Restoration & Cleaning

2010-11-11T06:35:00.000-08:00

We have received a lot of questions about terrazzo over the years, so we decided to create a FAQ page. This page is dedicated to many of the questions we have gotten form people interested in terrazzo. You can also send a question and we will try to answer it on the site.
SafeDry.com Frequently Asked Questions | Terrazzo Restoration & Cleaning: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"

Concrete Polishing Florida

2010-10-22T07:19:00.000-07:00

1-877-824-0501

www.SafeDry.com

Safe Dry Concrete Polishing covers all of Florida. We have the equipment, tooling and knowledge to complete every job in a timely professional manor. We harden and densify all the concrete we restore and polish. We have pictures of commercial concrete polishing in another blog in blogger, so here we are showing concrete polishing in a home we did. Please give us a call @ 877-824-0501 or log onto www.safedry.com

Terrazzo Restoration Bradenton

2010-10-19T12:55:00.000-07:00

Terrazzo Restoration Sarasota Rocks

2010-09-21T06:47:00.000-07:00

Most of these terrazzo floors on these videos were done in the Sarasota Florida area. Safe Dry covers all of central and West Florida for terrazzo restoration, concrete polishing and acid staining.

terrazzo restoration GONE WILD.wmv

2010-09-14T16:42:00.000-07:00

Safe Dry Kicks off www.TerrazzoSarasota.com

2010-09-14T12:08:00.000-07:00

At Safe Dry we have just fired up our new http://www.terrazzosarasota.com/ website. Please check it out as we have a Terrazzo Cleaning and Terrazzo Repair pages. check out some of our new pictures too. Many of these pictures are on www.safedry.com/terrazzo_restoration.html

YouTube video

2010-06-06T06:22:00.000-07:00

This is the link to our YouTube video. It shows how we clean carpet. You must swich to 480P at the bottom of the video screen to play.

http://bit.ly/d4ykq8

2010-05-24T12:05:00.000-07:00

My name is Joe Martin and I have been cleaning carpet for around fifteen years. In that time I have made it my number one goal to become an expert on carpet cleaning. Through education, experience and mistakes I have gained the knowledge I will try to impart in this blog. I am IICRC certified in carpet cleaning, upholstery cleaning, water damage, floor care and stone and tile care. I am also trained in terrazzo restoration and concrete polishing. I have also taken classes from Chem-Dry and have attended many trade shows and conventions in order to understand every view point in my field. I may make a mistake or two along the way. For that I will apologize in advance.

This blog will cover how to properly care for your carpet; from the installation of your carpet, through and between cleanings. This will include vacuuming, how a professional should clean your carpet and how to identify and prevent excess wear.

Once your new carpet is installed You will need to be sure your vacuum is adequate, In most cases the best vacuum will have a beater bar. This allows the vacuum to dislodged and removed from the carpet. Wind runnel vacuums are the best I have found for the consumer. Vacuum often and you can extend the life of your carpet. Sand and dirt will wear your carpet quickly if left for long. I have cleaned carpet for many people who neglect their carpet as well as people who vacuum often and have a professional cleaner clean their carpet. Improper care can cut seventy five percent from the life of your carpet. Vacuum often and use a pro to clean your carpet.

When a consumer buys new carpet it is a major expense as well as a great inconvenience. Yet, few will properly care for that carpet after installation. I cannot tell you the number of time I have been told, “The installer said we should wait at least a year before we have the carpet cleaned.” The installer is afraid the carpet will loosen from cleaning and they will have to re stretch the carpet. On many occasions by the time I get there the carpet is in such bad shape that it will never look good again. With some people and carpets a year may not damage the carpet, but with high foot traffic, a rural house where dirt is often tracked in, or low quality carpet this can be a fatal mistake. If your carpet looks dirty then you waited to long to clean it.
By the time the dirt is evident, it is doing damage to your carpet.
Now this does not mean the dirt cannot be removed. Carpet manufacturers will tell you if you wait too long it can be very difficult to remove soil, so regular cleaning is a requirement in order to maintain your carpet’s warrantee. If you have to clean, then your first question may be, “which system is best for my carpet”? When I first started cleaning carpet I used the bonnet method. In that type of cleaning the carpet is scrubbed with a buffer. The carpet is pre sprayed and buffed in order to transfer the dirt to the bonnet. The bonnet is like a cotton mop head. This method is best for intermediate cleaning.
Next we will talk about wand cleaning.

Wand cleaning utilizes hot water extraction. The Carpet and Rug Institute says hot water extraction is the most effective way to clean carpet. It is a good way to clean carpet. The down side is that wands can leave the carpet over wet and the carpet will then re soil quickly. It can also be effected by effort. Wand cleaning is hard work. In order to maximize effectiveness the tech has to work very hard. Wands clean back and forth in two directions. While wand cleaning is good, I feel the best cleaning method is deep rotary extraction.

Rotary extraction carpet cleaning has many advantages over other types of cleaning. Also called rotary jet extraction, this system is a low moisture, agitating, 360° dirt eating monster. This system rocks! The RX-20 weighs eighty pounds and cleans six hundred and fifty cleaning passes per minute. We is a truck mounted carpet machine that reaches 230°-250°. This high temperature agitating machine thoroughly cleans your carpet. It has no idea if the tech is tired or fresh. It does not depend on the tech to work hard as a wand does.

The rotary tool does the work. It has the Gold Seal from the Carpet and Rug Institute. That is their highest award they give. The Carpet and Rug Institute is made up of the largest manufacturers. They have looked at the carpet, after it was cleaned with this system, and determined that it thoroughly cleaned the carpet and did no damage the fibers.

When using this system Safe Dry first pre sprays the carpet using a tool designed to utilize truck mounts high temperature. The hotter the pre spray the easier the carpet can be cleaned. After pre spraying we use the rotary extraction tool to apply and extract a cleaner-rinse. It cleans, rinses and leaves no residue on the carpet. This will allow for faster drying times cleaner carpet and a residue free carpet. What that means to you is lees cleanings then with our competitors. This will also extend the life of your carpet.

Once your carpet is cleaned you should re apply the stain guard. Over time all the stain guard will be removed. If you spill something on unprotected carpet there is a good chance it will cause a permanent stain. Stain guards today protect against oil based and water based stains. They will keep those contaminants out of the fiber. Remember that you still need to remove the spot quickly. Over time spots will turn into stains.

Today’s carpet are designed so you will buy new carpet every six or seven yours. That does not mean that it will look bad in six , or seven years, but that by that time you will be sick of looking at its condition and buy new carpet. This being said you can still affect the life of your carpet if you vacuum regularly, clean often and re apply stain guard on a regular basis.

Concrete Polishing

2010-05-09T08:02:00.000-07:00

The following blog will cover proper concrete polishing. I have been polishing terrazzo and concrete for many years and have been trained by HTC and I am certified by RetroPlate as a RetroPlate densifier installer.
Concrete polishing was born out of terrazzo polishing. As far as I can tell it was started by HTC at the request of a box company who wanted a shinny concrete finish,
Polished concrete is a low dust, low maintenance floor that will never need replaced. It can also be very beautiful when done right.
The most important aspect of concrete polishing is a proper pre-inspection along with a hardness test and mock up.
During the initial walk through pay particular attention to nails, bolts, pipes and studs that are above floor level and on the floor. These will need cut before grinding. One stud and render an 850 Pound grinder useless. If one of the heads is bent you will not be able to use the grinder until it receives expensive repairs. Also look for holes in the concrete. while they may not be very evident on an unpolished floor, when the floor is polished, they will fill with dust and will break up the shine. In short they will be much easier to spot.
Also look for Coating on the floor. any coatings may cost additional days to a job.
Always warn that the floor will most likely have level problems between expansion joints. This can and will cause larger exposed aggregate at the joint lines. This is the result of a flatter floor.
Warn that different pours may give different results. Not all concrete will be equal. Last, but not least, understand the expectation of your customer. If you are polishing a factory, they may want a low dust, low maintenance floor, but not care about a few scratches. A showroom may require a perfect shine.
When doing the initial scratch, hardness test one should scratch several areas. I remember a house we did in polished concrete, We went in and scratched five areas. We did not bother to test the bedrooms which were covered by carpet, Upon arriving at the home to polish the concrete we discovered the bedrooms had a lot of damage, including significant cap loss. The cap is the top of the concrete which is flat. When there is cap loss it will take a significant amount of grinding to eliminate.
At Safe Dry we use HTC grinders. For the mock ups we prefer to use the 500. It is smaller and easy to set up and get started. The 500 is also the grinder of choice for residential work. The 800 will, in most cases, do a better job, but its 32 inch cut and 480 volt power requirement make it to problematic.
One of the toughest decision may be what grit to start with. It is easier to start at 40 or 80 and go down to a lower grit if need be. The problem is you may be several hours into the job before you realize you made a mistake. When grinding you can start with 40 grit metal bond diamonds and go up to 150 grit metal, than down to 100 grit resin bond, or you can go up to 80 grit metal then use 80 grit mixed resin diamonds. then use 100 grit mixed resin. If you use a lithium based densifier now is the time to densify. Then use 200 grit, 400 grit, 800 grit, 1500 grit and 3000 grit for a high shine.
This blog is meant for professional floor polishers only. There are hundreds of problems that can arise while polishing a floor. The only thing you have to rely on is experience. If you have little or none, then you WILL fail.
If you would like Safe Dry to give you a quote just give us a call at 877.824.0501 or log onto http://www.safedry.com/concrete_polishing.html

Carpet Rug & Upholstery Cleaning - Tampa, FL - Safe Dry Carpet Cleaning

2010-03-13T09:29:00.000-08:00

Carpet Rug & Upholstery Cleaning - Tampa, FL - Safe Dry Carpet Cleaning

What is Terrazzo and where Did it Come From?

2010-02-09T06:13:00.000-08:00

When I tell people that I restore terrazzo many respond, "what is terrazzo?" Terrazzo is seeing a big comeback these days. Every airport I have been to has terrazzo in some areas of the airport. Terrazzo owes its rebirth to its extreme durability, low maintenance and label as a green floor. With today's diamond polishing technology is is also very slip resistant.
Terrazzo's origin date back over five hundred years. the name Terrazzo comes from the word terrazza meaning terrace. Its origins date back to the 1400s when Venetian workers took scrap pieces left over from their work for use on their terraces. They would embed the chips into the clay. eventual the workers learned to embed the chips into mortar. Goat's milk was the sealer of choice. The process helped to reserve and also gave the surface a wet marble look.
Terrazzo was a preferred flooring in Florida from the mid 1950s to the early 1970s. I believe it was chosen for its cooling effect. terrazzo is much more energy efficient then tile or carpet. I have had many customers tell me their electric bill fell substantially after they pulled up their flooring and went back to the terrazzo.
Terrazzo today is made up of Portland cement often mixed with epoxy to accelerate the curing time. At a ratio of around 2-1 marble or other stone, shell or glass are added to the mix. This is poured as an overlay to cover the concrete foundation, The thickness is around 5/8 to 3/4 of an inch.
Safe Dry we restore terrazzo to a shine not possible in the 1950s-1970s. With today's technology we can create a floor that is slip resistant, low maintenance and beautiful. Give us a call and we can walk you through our multi step process. Log onto SafeDry.com or just give us a call. 877-824-0501

Terrazzo floor prep for polishing.

2010-02-07T11:10:00.000-08:00

Safe Dry is a terrazzo restoration and concrete polishing company. I want to inform others in the proper care of terrazzo and polished concrete as well as natural stone.

Cement based Terrazzo flooring is made of Portland cement and stone chips. The stones are often marble chips, but can be made from many other stones. Terrazzo was very popular in Florida homes built from the mid 1950s to the early 1970s. Unfortunately many were later covered with carpet, tile and vinyl flooring. Restoring these floors can be a difficult task. If you have flooring over your terrazzo here are a few tips that can help you safely remove whatever is covering your terrazzo flooring.

Vinyl flooring- Removal of vinyl flooring can be very difficult. Much care must be taken to insure you do not damage the floor. Remember any attempt to remove the vinyl flooring may result in damage, so pay attention to what you are doing and try not to score, or scrape the terrazzo. Most vinyl flooring should be removed with a floor scraper. If the floor is covered with vinyl tiles then you should consider the fact that you will most likely end up with a grid pattern when the polishing process is completed. Some vinyl can only be removed in chips the size of a quarter, so be prepared for a tough job. Remember no matter how carefully you work, you may cause damage to to the terrazzo.

Tile Removal- Tile removal can be much easier then vinyl removal, but it is a dusty proposition. You can rent a chipping hammer at The Home Depot. Rent the thin set removing attachment and only use it. You will want to work from under the tiles. Never use the tool to cut lines in the grout, as this will cut into the floor. Try to break a few tiles so you can start working through the room and push the thin set removal head between the thin set and the tile. You can also point the tool almost strait down to remove thew thin set. Be very carefully in doing this as it may damage the floor, but if done properly it can be done successfully.

Carpet Removal- Carpet removal is by far the easiest. We all know how to pull up and cut carpet and padding. The hard part, and the part that does the most damage, is tack strip removal and dealing with the nails.

Tack strip removal and nail cutting- I should start this segment by saying this is best left to a pro. Of all the things people do that causes damage to terrazzo the number one mistake they make is pulling up the nails that hold the tack strip to the floor. When pulled up they also remove large chunks of floor. The proper way to install tack strip in terrazzo is to drill holes in the floor and use aluminum nails. When these nails are pounded into the floor they form to the hole and do a great job holding the tack strip. Instead of pulling the nails it is best to cut them flush with an angle grinder. Again, this is not an easy process and I have seen many people damage a floor cutting nails.

The tack strip can be pulled up around the nail using a flat head screwdriver and a hammer. again this must be done with caution as you might also pull up nails and damage the floor in the process. One additional problem I often see is when the carpet installer does everything right, then goes around the room and adds small nails to help secure the tack strip. This is a waist of time and always causes damage. The nails are small, so they do nothing but chip the floor. It is also quite common that steel nails are used. They can rust and will not shine as well as aluminum nails do.

This segment was on floor prep for your terrazzo flooring. In future segments we will discuss. the rest of the process.

Safe Dry Carpet, Tile and Upholstery Cleaning

2010-02-07T09:40:00.000-08:00

At Safe Dry we strive to be the very best carpet cleaners. Our system is truck mounted, but we do not use a wand. We use rotary jet extraction instead. This system allows us to use much less water than a wand and extract more than they do.

We also pre-spray with a high temperature pre-spray and finish with a carpet rinse. The rinse acts like fabric softener to soften your carpet fibers. Our system agitates the carpet so it can work the soil out of the carpet. It leaves the carpet damp, so it does not force the dirt and spots down. One of the keys to a carpet staying clean the longest is how wet you leave it. If the carpet is left very wet then the dirt is forced down and residue re-surfaces as it drys. In addition because we rinse there is no residue left to attract dirt. Remember the function of a detergent is to attract dirt. If detergent is left on the carpet, it "Will"' re-soil more quickly.