SoFL Home Buyers: Terrazzo or Carpet? (Miami, Sarasota: hardwood floor, apartment, house)

[carolinadreamin]

I'm happy to report that we've had 2 other estimates from companies that can and will restore our floor and while they won't guarantee perfect stain-free results (the usual disclaimer), they were both very confident that we will get results we're happy with, so very good news for the terrazzo living room!

I am only confused now about whether to use crystalllization or not. Two of our three estimates do not use this process and one does. What we're told by those who won't do it is that crystallization is a chemical addition to the diamond grinding process that's risky and could give a less-than-good result. Conversations with all seemed to suggest that floors using the crystallization process need more upkeep and additional regular treatments than those not using this method. We're not planning to be here more than another 6-8 months, so long lasting results is less important to us. However, we still want to choose the best overall process.

If anyone knows anything about which method is best we'd appreciate it. The costs for both are close, maybe a couple hundred difference.

Thanks for the inspiration!

[tallrick]

Not sure what they mean by "crystallization" - is that the application of a calcium or potassium silicate? It usually is not necessary as it was originally done when the floor was installed. If they use a dry diamond grinding it's important for them to control heat build up to avoid loosening aggregate. Most stains can be bleached out or steamed out. Stains must be removed before grinding, if possible. In your case a grind, and epoxy treatment may be all that's needed.

[macool68]

is it possible to apply a stain to the cement in the terrazzo while maintaining the chips? I've seen companies that offer a stain, but not sure if thats only during the installation. My wife and I plan on chipping up the tile the previous owner laid over the terrazzo. Any suggestions?

[carolinadreamin]

I am not informed enough about this process to tell you what it is. I've read that it's a coating of some kind. You will see the word printed in all kinds of marble restoration companies ads. I only was concerned that doing it would not harm the floor. I was told by the sales rep for a large company based in Ft Lauderdale that crystallization does not harm terrazzo.

Our quote went down $300 opting for this over the more complete non-crystallization process, so I'm left to assume it simply involves less work and less man hours on the job. That's fine with us.

They will also say that the results last less time: 2-3 years versus 10-12 years. With us on our way out within 1 year, 2-3 years is more than enough.

All natural stone floors require upkeep so maybe the crystallized floors need professional touch-ups more often. Either way, we're excited to have found someone reputable who will do it and hopefully upgrade the value of the house. Yay!

I'll be back later with some more pix...

I'd love to see some pix of your terrazzo if you have any.

Originally Posted by tallrick

Not sure what they mean by "crystallization" - is that the application of a calcium or potassium silicate? It usually is not necessary as it was originally done when the floor was installed. If they use a dry diamond grinding it's important for them to control heat build up to avoid loosening aggregate. Most stains can be bleached out or steamed out. Stains must be removed before grinding, if possible. In your case a grind, and epoxy treatment may be all that's needed.

[plantlover]

My house was built in 1956. My floors are all terrazzo. I love it! It feels so cool to the touch and this is especially nice in our hot long summers! Go with terrazzo, please don't cover it. Just my opinion.

[XXXXXX]

I live in one of the mid century homes and I restored the Terrazzo and it looks nice, when it is done right it is mirror polished and you can actually see your own reflection etc.. It also feels good to walk on it barefoot compared to tile.

A proper restoration is a lot of work and requires water,etc.. they have to use diamond polishers from coarse down to ultra-fine, then they have to polish anc crystalize the surface etc..

Originally Posted by carolinadreamin

I'm going to try adding "before" pix of our floor. We're not getting good feedback so far from local professionals mainly due to stains of unknown age and origin. They want to charge up to $1000. and offer no guarantee the stains will come out. It's starting to sound like an expensive gamble. I'm still hopeful but cursing whoever put this glue down on terrazzo when it wasn't necessary. They may have ruined a perfectly good floor.
From what I hear, this is fairly common and happened a lot. It's sort of like hacking up a hardwood floor with an axe before installing carpet. Not much thought for future homeowners and what they may want to do.
We're having 2 more opinions before either going ahead with it or caving in to laminate.
On second thought we're taking such a hit on the house in this market that the existing carpet and Dry-Chem guy may have to suffice.

Thats why Flipping homes is not a good investment. Homes are to live in them not trade like equities. Better money and much much more liquidity in the market. And homes in sofla are gonna take a 10% extra hit this year, you cannot command todays prices at the average sofla salary so the market will equalize.

Historically over the years homes only make about 3% a year after inflation, this bubble was an anomaly of mega proportions. I would not be surprised if homes go back to 2002 prices.

[eshapir]

Originally Posted by carolinadreamin

I'll be back later with some more pix...

Any updates? My wife and I are considering ripping up our tile to do the same as you, Carolinadreamin. Its a huge gamble in my opinion because we have no idea about the condition (both level and appearance) of the terrazzo underneath the tile. Our basis for going on this fishing expedition is the air conditioning closet in our hallway. I snapped the pics below of the flooring underneath the tile and the transition.

What do you all think we should do as far as weighing the feasibility of ripping up tile to investigate if this is even possible? Does anyone see anything in these pics that gives hope or should stop us in our tracks? Also, does anyone have a guesstimate as to what the cost and time is for this if we decide to take on this challenge? We have about 2,000 sq ft. of tiled over terrazzo that we'd rip up. We've got perfectly good tile that just needs a grout cleaning (which we currently have scheduled for this Sunday).

[carolinadreamin]

Well, we had the living room terrazzo restored last Friday and the results were positive but also mixed. It came out shiny and very smooth but much of the staining remained even though it was a shade or two lighter in appearance throughout.

The company we hired is trying to improve on that by applying a poultice which will work on the stains. They lay it down with a trowel and cover it with clear plastic then let it sit for 2-3 days. Before they came to do the work I had been lightening spots using household hydrogen peroxide covered with saran wrap and it did a great job lightening the discolorations.

So I don't have any nice after pix yet but hope to soon!

To eshapir, you're looking at about $1 per square foot to remove the ceramic tile and although I can't tell you what the estimates will be to restore your terrazzo, our cost was $1000 for about 375 square feet. It's not cheap but carpet would have been the same and both lamintae and hardwood would have been more. We already had the floor installed so we felt it was worth trying to refinish it.

From what I'm told, the thinset used to lay ceramic tile is not hard to remove successfully and if we were staying in this house we would probably take out all the ceramic and restore the terrazzo. It does leave a gridwork pattern where the tiles were positioned but that is removed when the floor is diamond grinded. As you said, however, you don't know what else has been done to your terrazzo aside from laying ceramic. If you have areas of rust, as visible in your pix, that's harder to remove. We had only carpet where we wanted to restore the floor so that was easy to look underneath and see the condition of the entire area.

If you don't have referrals, just get 3-4 estimates from companies in the yellow pages and ask to see pix of their work.

Grout cleaning is the next step for us, so let us know how that turned out and if you would recommend the company doing it.

[gmohring]

Hi Carolinadreamin,

Can you tell me which company you used to restore your terrazzo, and if you would recommend the company? I have the same floor as you do, complete with shag carpeting glue. I'm about to get my first quote tomorrow, so any help would be great. Also, to the reading population, has anyone had experience with patterns cut into the terrazzo? Mine has a diamond/box pattern etched into it.

[Marinero52]

Hello, I have the most beautiful modern design for a relatively simple marble inlaid terrazzo floor. I plan to make this a do-it-yourself project. Does anyone have DIY experience with mixing and pouring the epoxy and grinding the terrazzo surface? What are the delicate parts? Have you seen any writings or guides for this work? Can anyone share names of skilled contractors in South Florida? I would be happy to share the design and photos taken (publicly) from a Guide Michelin three star restaurant in New York. Please email marinero52@gmail.com Thanks!