ᐅ So, which is it: cost-effective or expensive exposed screed?
Created on: 20 Mar 2015 11:05
W
Willem81
Hello everyone!
My family and I are currently planning to build our own home. We have found a nice and affordable plot of land and are in the process of purchasing it. We have found a great architect who wants to bring our partly very concrete ideas to life. Since the planning has just begun, but I already enjoy dealing with details, I have a question for you.
To briefly explain:
Over the past few years, I have read a lot about architecture, especially on how to build cost-effectively without compromising on quality. Great books on this topic are, for example, "Attractive Building on a Small Budget" by Achim Linhardt and "The Wooden House of the Future" by Marc Lettau and Markus Mosimann. The discussions often lead to more philosophical questions like: What do I actually need? For whom am I building? Do I focus on outward appearance or coziness? Where do I set priorities? What is really important to me? Do I have to build the way “it is usually done,” or can unconventional solutions that save money also have a special appeal?
Besides these fundamental questions, which relate to construction type, concept, floor plan, and features, material choice is also a very important aspect. The general advice is: avoid mixing materials and allow unconventional solutions (for example, do bathrooms and kitchens always have to be tiled?).
One thing that kept coming up is polished screed flooring. Many books and magazines mention that a flowable screed treated with epoxy resin or other materials can be a very affordable floor covering. However, it is actually hard to find much information about it online. No one really quotes realistic prices; you mostly just read that polished screed is very expensive. In forums, some say the floor cost about 150 euros per square meter (about 14 USD per square foot), while others claim to have installed such floors for 7 euros per square meter (about 0.65 USD per square foot). So the range is very wide. Has anyone here had experience with this? I'm not looking for sugar-coated answers—if it’s too expensive, it’s not an option. I just find it interesting that the information varies so much. I look forward to hearing your experiences.
My family and I are currently planning to build our own home. We have found a nice and affordable plot of land and are in the process of purchasing it. We have found a great architect who wants to bring our partly very concrete ideas to life. Since the planning has just begun, but I already enjoy dealing with details, I have a question for you.
To briefly explain:
Over the past few years, I have read a lot about architecture, especially on how to build cost-effectively without compromising on quality. Great books on this topic are, for example, "Attractive Building on a Small Budget" by Achim Linhardt and "The Wooden House of the Future" by Marc Lettau and Markus Mosimann. The discussions often lead to more philosophical questions like: What do I actually need? For whom am I building? Do I focus on outward appearance or coziness? Where do I set priorities? What is really important to me? Do I have to build the way “it is usually done,” or can unconventional solutions that save money also have a special appeal?
Besides these fundamental questions, which relate to construction type, concept, floor plan, and features, material choice is also a very important aspect. The general advice is: avoid mixing materials and allow unconventional solutions (for example, do bathrooms and kitchens always have to be tiled?).
One thing that kept coming up is polished screed flooring. Many books and magazines mention that a flowable screed treated with epoxy resin or other materials can be a very affordable floor covering. However, it is actually hard to find much information about it online. No one really quotes realistic prices; you mostly just read that polished screed is very expensive. In forums, some say the floor cost about 150 euros per square meter (about 14 USD per square foot), while others claim to have installed such floors for 7 euros per square meter (about 0.65 USD per square foot). So the range is very wide. Has anyone here had experience with this? I'm not looking for sugar-coated answers—if it’s too expensive, it’s not an option. I just find it interesting that the information varies so much. I look forward to hearing your experiences.
Arifas schrieb:
... the kids even ride their Bobby Cars on it. The kids do that on hardwood floors, tiles, laminate, and carpet as well without causing damage. Often, the interior doors suffer more.
Hello "Willem81".
There are indeed many uncertainties when it comes to the topic of "exposed screeds" (sometimes also called unique floors). Even among professionals in my field, opinions vary.
So-called exposed screeds are screeds used directly as the finished surface (meaning: without any floor covering), which require high standards for their aesthetic qualities. The range spans from high-end, multiple-ground screeds—sometimes embedded with glass shards or metal pieces and also colored—priced around €350/m² (about $370 per sq ft), to terrazzo screeds at €120/m² (about $127 per sq ft), down to decorative leveling compounds available for approximately €65/m² (about $69 per sq ft). The simplest solution, a concrete paint at €3.50/m² (about $3.70 per sq ft) on a cement screed ≥ CT-C35, I won’t even get into here!
So there is a huge variety of options with a price range that you are rightly surprised about, as you were previously unfamiliar with the background.
Before considering doing this surface yourself (except for concrete paint), I strongly advise against it! I have had to assess many areas installed by professional companies.
These practical experiences led me years ago to publish a technical article titled "How Much Uniqueness Can the Builder Handle?"
It is difficult to create a unique floor that also meets demands for an attractive appearance.
-----------------
Regards, KlaRa
There are indeed many uncertainties when it comes to the topic of "exposed screeds" (sometimes also called unique floors). Even among professionals in my field, opinions vary.
So-called exposed screeds are screeds used directly as the finished surface (meaning: without any floor covering), which require high standards for their aesthetic qualities. The range spans from high-end, multiple-ground screeds—sometimes embedded with glass shards or metal pieces and also colored—priced around €350/m² (about $370 per sq ft), to terrazzo screeds at €120/m² (about $127 per sq ft), down to decorative leveling compounds available for approximately €65/m² (about $69 per sq ft). The simplest solution, a concrete paint at €3.50/m² (about $3.70 per sq ft) on a cement screed ≥ CT-C35, I won’t even get into here!
So there is a huge variety of options with a price range that you are rightly surprised about, as you were previously unfamiliar with the background.
Before considering doing this surface yourself (except for concrete paint), I strongly advise against it! I have had to assess many areas installed by professional companies.
These practical experiences led me years ago to publish a technical article titled "How Much Uniqueness Can the Builder Handle?"
It is difficult to create a unique floor that also meets demands for an attractive appearance.
-----------------
Regards, KlaRa
Hmm, we are currently considering just leaving the utility room with the screed. However, we naively assumed that it wouldn’t need any further treatment since it’s not a living space and doesn’t have to look nice. But apparently, some type of covering is still required. We’ll see...
Müllerin schrieb:
Hmm, we’re currently considering just leaving the utility room floor as screed. But we naively thought it wouldn’t need any further treatment—it’s not meant to look nice since it’s not a living space.
However, it seems that “some” kind of covering is still necessary. We’ll see…Would it be possible to apply concrete paint over it? I think I need to ask some acquaintances again what exactly they have. Unlike tiles, it’s hardly possible to see and compare screed floors anywhere, right?
Müllerin schrieb:
hm we are currently considering just leaving the utility room with screed. We naively thought it wouldn’t need any further treatment – it doesn’t have to look nice, after all, it’s not a living space.
But apparently, some kind of covering is still required. Let’s see… We did the same for our technical room. At the specialty store, we were sold a concrete paint. About 60 euros for a single coat. It was the same paint usually used on floors and walls when embedding the oil tank. Beforehand, we sanded once and primed with an adhesion primer. The main challenge was properly sealing the edge joints.
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