Durability and Maintenance
Your terrazzo floors can be easily maintained. This does not mean that your terrazzo floors are maintenance free. It is important to understand the care requirements in the early stages of your new terrazzo floor installation in order to get it to look its best and realize the long-term benefits of its low maintenance cost.
Your terrazzo floor has been sealed with a penetrating sealer to provide you with the time to clean up any spills or other foreign matter without the floor staining or being adversely affected. As long as you maintain your terrazzo floor according to these instructions, this sealer does not need to be applied again.
We recommend that you do not wax your terrazzo floor. If you choose to wax your terrazzo floor, then you should refer to the wax manufacturer’s maintenance procedures for maintaining your waxed floor.
Your floor was manufactured by your terrazzo contractor at your facility. It is a combination of a binder of either epoxy or cement with various aggregate. Most of the aggregate and fillers are made from natural marble stone. This maintenance procedure will still apply if your floor contains glass, mother of pearl or other aggregates.
PRECAUTIONS
CLEANERS: Harsh cleaners can damage your terrazzo floor. Only products that have a neutral pH (factor of 7.0) should be used to clean your floor.
SEALERS: Permanent sealers can damage your terrazzo floor. If you determine that you want to apply another sealer to your terrazzo floor, then the best sealer is a water-based sealer.
ICE MELTS: Rock Salt, Calcium Chloride, Magnesium Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Ammonium Sulphate and Urea can damage your terrazzo floor. These compounds are made from harsh chemicals that react with the marble aggregate in your terrazzo floor.
A salt known as Calcium Magnesium Acetate is more environmentally friendly and less damaging to stone, terrazzo and masonry surfaces.
WALK-OFF MATS: It is helpful to provide a walk-off mat at the entrances to your facility to capture any grit and moisture before it ends up on your terrazzo floor. Well maintained walk-off mats can capture up to 70% of all dirt that enters a building.
CLEANING PROCEDURES
DAILY: Sweep or dust mop you floors daily to eliminate dust and grit that act like abrasives on your hard surface floor. No sprays are required on dust mop.
WEEKLY: Your terrazzo floor must be scrubbed or mopped with a neutral pH cleaner every week for normal traffic areas. You can also buff your terrazzo floor to encourage and enhance the natural patina that will develop over time if your floor has a honed finish. If your terrazzo floor has a high polish finish, then buffing your floor regularly will maintain its high polish. Utilizing a cleaner/conditioner on your terrazzo floor will aid in maintaining its luster.
No other buffing agents need to be utilized.
FIRST SIX MONTHS AND FOR DURATION IN HEAVY TRAFFIC AREAS: Your new terrazzo floor was manufactured in your facility. In order to bring it to its best appearance, it is important to scrub your floor daily for the first six months. If your terrazzo floor is heavily travelled then this routine should be followed for the life of your floor.
CLEANING EQUIPMENT, SUPPLIES AND PRODUCTS
MACHINES: The best floor scrubbing machines for your terrazzo floor will have a circular rotating scrubbing head that can accommodate various types (colors) of circular scrubbing pads attached to it.
The scrubber can be automatic or simple walk-behind scrubber.
Do not use scrubbers with square plates that only oscillate back and forth.
PADS: Red pads are required if your floor is used on a regular basis.
CLEAN WATER: Many automatic scrubbing machines contain a cleaning solution reservoir and a clean rinse water reservoir which applies the cleaning solution while the floor is scrubbed and then applies a clear rinse to extract the cleaning solution and dirt.
It is important to scrub your terrazzo floor with a neutral cleaning solution in clean water. If the water becomes cloudy, it must be changed each time to avoid mopping dirty water back onto your floor. A clean water rinse after scrubbing or mopping is ideal.
CLEANERS: Neutral pH cleaners are readily available. You should contact your cleaning supply company for recommendations. Examples of cleaners that are suited for terrazzo floors are:
EcoLab (Stone Medic)—TCC Terrazzo Cleaner/Conditioner
Diversey—Stride Cleaner
Majestic Stone Care—Stone Soap
Buckeye—Crossbow, Straight-Up or True Seven
Spartan—Damp Mop or Marble Mop
TERRAZZO CONTRACTOR
We are available to assist you with any questions you might have regarding your terrazzo floor.
Printable version: Caring For Your Terrazzo Floor