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Archive for 2011


Repairing Damaged Laminated Flooring Is Not Easy, But There Is A Solution To The Woes

Silikal Offers Another Solution For Those Damaged Laminate Floors

A boy dressed as an executive gives a judgmental look over rim framed glasses.

Truly laminated floors that have been damaged are downright heartbreaking. The biggest reason for the heartbreak is that repairing damaged laminate flooring is next to impossible. The problem is that laminate flooring looks great immediately after putting it down, but as soon as it gets scratched by moving furniture, or even delivery of perhaps a dishwasher, or refrigerator, it can easily get scratches on it, that undoubtedly make it appear terrible.

There are some “fillers” that may work great with miniscule scratches and nicks, but definitely forget it if you have something that is considered a bit larger for your damage. These fillers work best if utilized on very tiny imperfections, but anything larger than the tiniest scratch will not work well and can unfortunately be easily seen. Semi trucks deliver the large laminate flooring when you first put it down, but delivering a ten-foot board piece will still cost you a large amount of money should someone put a very deep scratch in the laminate.

If you try to repair damaged laminate flooring, you could conceivably end up with laminate that is colored differently than the existing laminate, or have laminate that sits higher than the other laminate causing an irregularity that sticks out like the proverbial sore thumb. Having irregularly repaired laminate is unfortunately inviting falls, and perhaps lawsuits.

Sometimes the solutions are right in front of our face, but we don’t see them right away anyway. For instance, have you ever thought of sealing in that laminate that is not very damaged, and using Silikal transparent liquid to seal in that laminate?

When Silikal is applied directly over the laminate it will attach to that laminate and thus it will on no account ever permit penetration of any kinds of liquids since that product is totally impermeable and entirely pin-hole free. When the Silikal product is mounted with an essential cove base, that is when you will find that you then have a fully seamless, monolithic surface! As if that were not enough, Silikal will thus produce a fully slip-resistant coating directly over your damaged and dangerous laminate. Yet, with all this, you will still be able to inspect your beautiful laminate that is now totally protected against almost any punishment.

Laying a new laminate floor takes days, and so one may have to close up the business for the length of time that the repairs take. What most people are totally surprised with is that when using Silikal, the business will also need to shut down but only for a scant hour, for that is the length of time that Silikal takes to fully set. Of course, best yet is the fact that the Silikal is impervious to just about anything! Not only is it completely waterproof but it is totally UV resistant as well. Chances are the Silikal covering the laminate flooring will outlast the laminate flooring-even the building itself! The colors in the laminate will never fade because Silikal protects it completely. Talk about beauty and durability, it can’t be beat!

 

Silikal America Gives Back: A School’s Sports Program In Need Gets New Floors!!

All Star Kids Deserve All Star Flooring – ESPN “Rise Up” Thinks So Too, So we Decided to Help!

According to Chris Spielman, host of “RISE UP” an ESPN makeover show, Wellston High School, located at 200 Golden Rocket Drive in Wellston, Ohio whose proud colors are blue and gold, was given a gift through its community for their home team, the Golden Rockets, of a refurbished stadium as well as a brand new renovated athletic facility. The makeover as told by “Rise Up,” an ESPN project that helps needy high schools by receiving donations from large companies for not only the materials, but also the expertise as well as some of the sweat equity required for such a large project, brought nervous emotions as well as warm happy tears from the crowd.

Deanne Bell, the construction project manager who also happens to be the co-host of “RISE UP” was quoted as saying, “There were tears, there was laughter, there were screams … there was a whole gamut of emotions here tonight.”

This particular project was essentially led by Brenmar Construction whose part-owner, Andy Graham, is a Wellston graduate. He among many contractors and local businesses, such as Silikal America flooring, donated their time and effort to transform athletic facilities that are in desperate need of their miracle. So desperate in fact that many spoke of the chance those students would get hurt utilizing the old and truly decrepit equipment! Everything was in total disrepair with no hope of being able to afford to fix it.

It was not only the football team who were shocked at their new facilities, but the cheerleaders also who were totally awed by the new facilities. Tape and photos of the “old” facilities show broken down stadium seating, leaking facilities, and wrecked facilities for everyone, mostly from the ravages of simple old age. Wellston superintendent Karen Boch said “We are Wellston Rockets and we stick together no matter what,” and that’s really what this small town is like, they do all stick together, and do so very proudly but that’s very difficult when money is so scarce.

What Wellston ended up with was amazing. They now have a gorgeous functioning girls locker room, brand new equipment, new uniforms and even a new football field that actually features irrigation. No wonder the townspeople are so happy that many cried.

Those kids whose amazing makeover of their own athletic facility did not end there. The high school students got together to work on the playground located at their elementary school. They exerted most of the day re-mulching the entire playground in an effort to pass on the huge donations that were made to their own school by the community. Lesson well learned is the feeling those who watched the other makeovers of other schools. The lessons are not only heartwarming but speak very highly of each community involved. Simply put, Wellston gave back!

Wellston in Ohio shares the “RISE UP’ makeover with other schools as well such as Dorchester Academy located in Boston, Dyett in Chicago and Ingraham located in Seattle. “RISE UP” airs at 7 p.m. ET Tuesdays on ESPN. They give other schools the chance to rebuild, reach out, and rise up!

 

Acrylic Floor Cleaners, A Look Behind the Black Curtain

A hidden Look Behind the Black Curtain of Acrylic Floor Cleaners

Man uses heavy equipment with acrylic floor cleaners to clean industrial floor.Acrylic floor cleaners add sparkle to flooring example of different materials seamlessly displayed between floor, step, and wall.

Some of these acrylic floor cleaners are incredibly powerful, and unfortunately some of them even contain phosphates or alkalies. Some of the most common alkalies are sodium hydroxide, calcium hydroxide, and ammonia, all of which are difficult to work with. Other alkalies are sodium carbonate, sodium metasilicate and sodium hydroxide. Some contain acids, such as sulphuric acid and nitric acid. As unfortunate as it is, none of us are deeply into chemicals enough to realize what we are utilizing to clean our floors. The majority of our floor cleaners have some sort of surfactant which serves to not only loosen but suspend soil. What acrylic floor cleaners and finishers have in them is a chemical residue byproduct that remains on the floor to give it that extra shine.

Now, some acrylic floor cleaners leave the acrylic on the floor but chances are that it is not removed the next time the floor is cleaned. But, then another coating of acrylic goes on the floor because the same acrylic floor cleaner was utilized. What follows next is what many people responsible for cleaning floors refer to as the yellowing or build-up on the floor. This unfortunately will have to be removed by stripping the floor, which no one likes to have to do as it can more times than not be a lengthy, tedious, and messy process. Even attempting to place another new piece of linoleum over the old will not suffice as the acrylic byproduct will prevent the new from adhering to the old.

One should also realize that if one utilizes high quality acrylic floor cleaners that also have a polymer added, then that floor will have tremendous resistance against heel markings, scuffing, dirt and such, but again there is that build up. There is however an answer to this puzzling problem of low maintenance flooring that can still weather the effects of time.

Acrylic floor resins are the answer, which have been impregnated throughout the flooring such as concrete. Silikal is considered the world’s best acrylic floor resins. You see, they use MMA reactive resin coatings for floors. This kind of flooring never needs stripping, never needs polishing, and more importantly it is totally water resistant, and it can even be applied so that it is also slip resistant.

Many designers as well as architects dearly love designing using Silikal. You see, those floors can mimic even the “in” floors one sees today, such as a natural pebble stone look. Very posh indeed, and as aesthetically an artistic floor as anyone would desire. Finally consider the fact that a Silikal floor can be laid and utilized a short hour later. It also is completely free of VOCs. None at all, thus this means that it can even be laid while there are other people in the building too!

 

Colored Concrete In Today’s New Building Age

Colored Concrete In A New Building Age of Today

New building colored concrete concept with concrete pool and tree inside day care.Modern colored concrete design with shadows imprinted in floor.

Concrete today is no longer that drab gray coloring. There are companies out there who do nothing more than make colors for concrete. If you can imagine it, there are thousands upon thousands of different colored pigments, from chromium oxide greens, to cobalt blues, carbon blacks, black or brown iron oxides, as well as a plethora of different orange, yellow and synthetic reds. With the push today for “green” buildings, many of the colors actually come from some kind of recycled material, especially many of the iron oxide pigments. Thus there are many reasons to utilize colored concrete.

For countless enthusiasts of decorative concrete what seems to excite them the most is the fact that each and every installation is completely unique. Today, concrete can now take on any texture, pattern, design or even shape. We can go one step further, and subtly blend in with Mother Nature or at times make a dramatic bold design statement with colored concrete.

At the moment, unless the actual design calls for that plain gray color, any color can be attained by the use of colored concrete. To be honest some companies offer a truly bewildering palette of various shades for any designer to choose from, and it boggles the mind to see it all.

It may be true that colored concrete is going to cost a bit more than the plain gray color, but the difference is totally amazing and most say that it is well worth the investment. The patios found outside today seem to simply harmonize with their adjacent landscapes, bringing a decorative effect that is almost a work of art in our present day.

If you are considering looking for colored concrete, be sure and pay a visit to Silikal. There you can see the effects of colored concrete, both inside and outside various buildings. You may even see what your logo might look like if imprinted deeply in the concrete floor of your office building.

Interestingly enough concrete can be utilized to “look like” any kind of surface, whether it is marble, wood, natural rock, or hundreds of other things, all because of the use of colored concrete. Some of the most beautiful driveways you’ve ever seen appear to be inlaid rocks but they are nothing more than colored concrete.

Colored concrete has been brought forth at such an amazing rate that today one’s entire house may be made of colored concrete yet be totally aesthetically pleasing. Silikal floors throughout can call forth some truly amazing beauty that will last beyond the life of the building those floors are in.

 

LEED Flooring Points & Credits For LEED Building

How To Obtain LEED Flooring Points for Green Building

United States Green Building Leed Points Logo displayed

SILIKAL AMERICA LEED FLOORING POINTS CHECK LIST

First you may wonder what LEED is. Well, the USGBC, which is the United States Green Building Council, is who developed LEED. That stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. What they have done is to create a rating system that gives out specific credits depending on how green a building is, what kinds of products were utilized, the installation techniques utilized and such. Of course, we all want to be as “green” as possible, and thus when points are given for flooring, that is important to any company. Although only buildings can become LEED certified, the earning of LEED flooring points can eventually lead to a building become LEED certified.

Some LEED flooring points may be given to a company which utilizes recycled contents for its flooring. This may be carpet backing or the actual carpet itself, as an example. Another instance may be the use of natural products such as wooden floors, or perhaps bamboo floors which are a self-replenishing source of flooring. LEED flooring points are given, however if a company utilizes adhesives or other solutions that emit low VOCs which are volatile organic compounds that smell with a very bad odor when utilized.

The very best LEED flooring points can come from utilizing Silikal for your flooring needs, no matter what business you are in, whether a medical business, a business that allows cars to enter into them such as car repairs, or if you have a business that works their floors very hard indeed such as a beer warehouse where the forklifts work day and night moving huge pallets of beer. Silikal can give you LEED flooring points. You see, its reactive resins are manufactured, developed and sold in conformity to some very strict environmental management systems.

In addition, Silikal is not a “low VOC” flooring, it is a no VOC flooring. That in itself makes it a very superior product green wise. In addition, whereas other products for flooring may require a business to shut down for 12 hours, a day, or even a long 3 day weekend, Silikal has no such requirements. Silikal sets up and bonds completely with the flooring beneath it so that one can ride a forklift on it one hour after it is laid.

Additional points are given for Silikal because it can extend the life of any building in which it is installed. This is because the Silikal flooring frequently outlasts the life of any building. That means no repairs and no reinstallation of flooring is necessary.