Schools Get Wise about Concrete Floors

Durability and economy make concrete floors the smart choice for schools and museums

By Anne Balogh, ConcreteNetwork.com columnist

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Although educational institutions and museums are places where people go to learn and explore, they also experience a punishing amount of foot traffic, as students and patrons stroll from one exhibit to another or scurry through the halls to get to their next class. These facilities, often taxpayer-funded, also are hampered by restricted budgets that require them to cut costs wherever they can.

Browse photos of school & museum flooring.

By baring their existing concrete floors and renewing them by polishing or applying a decorative overlay, more schools and museums are discovering that they can get the benefits of a nearly indestructible walking surface at a minimal cost. Concrete floors also are easy to maintain, improve indoor air quality and can even reduce energy costs by maximizing light reflectivity. Here are examples of how schools and museums of all types are using concrete floors to enhance their facilities.

Health Sciences Center Restores Ailing FloorsThe University of Colorado Health Sciences Center needed to revive their existing concrete floors. The remedy they chose -- concrete polishing and dyeing -- worked wonders. There was no need to overlay the concrete, maintenance would be easy, the floors are durable, and the cost fit their budget. See the amazing results.

School Goes Green with Polished ConcreteBenjamin Franklin Elementary School in Kirkland, Wash., has gone green with the addition of a polished concrete floor. Not only will the concrete outlast the floor coverings typically used in schools, such as carpet or vinyl, it offers better indoor air quality and reflects natural daylight.

Decorative Concrete Overlays Create a Fantasy Landscape Inside the Children's Museum of Phoenix, a koi pond floor mural created with a decorative stained and dyed concrete overlay has shining water so realistic it baffles the children who try to splash in it. On the museum’s second floor, children can step onto clouds and dance along rainbows.

Black Polished Floor Creates a Dramatic ImpactThe Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center in Skokie, Ill., chose to use polished concrete floors dyed solid black for dramatic impact and to convey the emotional weight evoked by the building’s architecture and interior design.

Polished Floor Flatters Antique Car CollectionFormerly a warehouse, this museum displaying a private collection of antique vehicles and vintage signs needed a low-maintenance floor that would showcase the beauty of the cars. The existing concrete floor, left a natural gray, was ground to a gleaming finish that replicates polished chrome. See the results.

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