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Owner's Guide |
Maintenance Precautions | Cleaning
Procedures | Portland Cement
Resinous Type Terrazzo |
MAINTENANCE PRECAUTIONS:
Harsh cleaners and sealers can damage Terrazzo;
thus, only materials that are neutral with a PH
Factor between 7 and 10 should be used when scrubbing
or mopping floors. Avoid all-purpose cleaners or
soaps containing water soluble, inorganic, or crystallizing
salts, harmful alkali or acids. Sweeping compounds
contain oil, which is not only a fire hazard, but
will penetrate and could permanently discolor your
floor. Many of these compounds contain sand, which
is hard to sweep, and can abrade your floor if
not removed. Most owners want to see a high sheen
on their floors. Since safety in all buildings
is a concern, use a water-based sealer in the acrylic
family especially designed for Terrazzo use. The
Underwriters Laboratories classification of this
sealer should include a slip resistance with a
coefficient of friction rating of minimum 0.5.
Solvent-based sealers have a tendency to discolor
with age and pose a removal problem for the user,
especially when wear patterns develop or discoloration
dictates stripping the surface. This Association
sells no product and uses generic terms in our
suggestions. We do recommend acrylic water based
sealers mopped on, in one or more coats, in accordance
with the instructions of the manufacturer. This
can also be followed by an acrylic water-based
finish for daily or weekly buffing if a high sheen
is desired.
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CLEANING PROCEDURES:
Neutral cleaners are designed to react only in
solution with clean water, mixed in accordance
to the manufacturer instructions, and allowed to
remain on the floor surface for several minutes.
This provides the necessary time for the grime
dissolving action to take place. Then rinse the
dirt-laden solution from the surface by squeegee,
vacuum, or mopping. Rinse with ample clean water.
It is important to keep the floor wet during this
entire cleaning process so the dirt does not reabsorb
in the floor. The frequently asked question, “How
often must we sweep or scrub this floor?” is
answered by the amount of traffic that moves across
the floor daily. But, it is normal that daily dust
mopping is a requirement in most public buildings.
Daily dust mopping removes both the dust and the
grit tracked into the building. The grit acts as
an abrasive on your hard surface.
ATTENTION!!!
TAKE THE NECESSARY TIME TO LEARN WHICH TERRAZZO
SYSTEM YOU ARE MAINTAINING.
There are three types of binders used to anchor
marble chips or other aggregate in your Terrazzo
Floor. One is a Portland Cement product; the second
is a Polyacrylic modified Portland Cement which
includes an acrylic additive. The third is an Epoxy
or Polyester system, often referred to as a resinous
thin-set system. Although each system has the role
of anchoring the aggregate into the topping, the
treatment of each does vary. Terrazzo floors have
ease of maintenance, but this does not mean that
NO CARE IS REQUIRED. Once you understand the care
requirements in the early stages of a new Terrazzo
floor, you avoid possible problems, and recognize
the economy of care and the aesthetic values of
this product.
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PORTLAND CEMENT SYSTEMS:
A Terrazzo surface has a minimum 70% density marble
chip surface exposure. The marble chips have a
low porosity of absorption; thus, the portion of
this floor system that needs protection is the
Portland Cement binder that has 30% or less surface
exposure. This is why our specification requires
a penetrating type sealer applied to this surface
immediately following the final polishing. This
helps inhibit the penetration of spilled materials
upon initial contact with the Terrazzo floor. Spills
must be cleaned up immediately in order to prevent
stains caused by repeated or long-term exposure.
Even standing water can dissolve some sealers.
Since it is a penetrating liquid material, it is
not expected to produce a high gloss sheen to the
floor surface. Once the owner occupies the building,
he must strip and re-seal the surface, and if desired,
apply finish coats to produce a higher sheen.
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RESINOUS TYPE TERRAZZO SYSTEMS (Epoxy and Polyester):
Since the matrix in these systems becomes a non-porous
surface, no penetrating-type sealer is used on
this floor. Use only surface sealers, as mentioned
in the contents of these instructions. |
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