New Concrete Floors

This new concrete floor restoration will take a few weeks to bring to life. The wine store was in need of an update to the original floors that had become worn and faded from the wear and tear of retail shoppers through its doors.

Prep work has begun with clearing the original floor and leveling low spots in the existing area.

Stay tuned as Hardscapes Inc. takes you through the process of resurrecting this old and dated flooring to a new a beautiful finish.

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Summer Concrete Project

backyard basketball courtOk, Christmas is over and we are already half way through the first month of the New Year. Time to start thinking of that outdoor project you promised the kids last fall.

Was it a new basketball court or maybe a tennis court? Possibly a new concrete patio to accent last year’s new deck.

Whatever your concrete project for this summer season, now is the time to put your plan in place.

Hardscapes Inc. can give you all the information you need for your new outdoor concrete project to make sure it looks great and lasts a lifetime.

Concrete Heaving

concrete heavingFrost can damage concrete in many ways. Two of the most prominent are, having the frozen ground heave because of ice crystals forming in the soil, and collapsing due to these ice crystals thawing in the spring. When the weather becomes cold in the winter, frost penetrates the ground and freezes water trapped in the pours of the earth. Water flows from wet to dry so water from below th frost line is drawn up. As it reaches the frost line it freezes. This eventually creates a thick layer of ice. The expansion caused by the freezing ice creates a layer that heaves the ground an equal distance of that layer. Finally the pressure below the concrete can no longer sustain its integrity and cracks.

Filling these cracks can leave ugly jagged lines in your concrete drives and walkways. Professionals like Hardscapes Inc. have many methods of repairing just this kind of winter damage and bring you concrete outdoor surfaces back to their original beauty.

Concrete Repair

stepsIs your driveway pitted and cracked? Is your front walk and steps sagged an broken? What about that cold concrete basement floor? Wouldn’t you want something stylish, different and heated?

Hardscapes Inc. has the solutions for all these problems.

Experts in the field of concrete, concrete repair and concrete floors Hardscapes can answer all your questions and fix all you cracking, flooring and pitting issues.

Epoxy Floor

Metallic epoxy flooring is growing in popularity for its beautiful effects. It has deep, rich mottled colours. We can create various looks using different colours and techniques to give you a durable floor that is unique to your project.
Call Hardscapes Inc. for your next project.

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Too Much Water

Pitted DrivewayAdding too much water weakens your concrete. When that happens your aggregate or rock that is in the concrete begins to sink lower in the poured area. That leaves the lighter weight cement and sand at the top. This can lead to very quick pitting and damage to your poured area especially things like concrete driveways.

Today there are is a great number of additives you can use to improve the strength of your concrete. Plastisizers, hardeners, helps it set quicker, fiberglass strands which add strength.

Hardscapes Inc. has all the answers to the question of how to create great solid concrete. Why not give us a call.

Hardscapes Inc. Floor Concrete Repair

This Reflector/Enhancer floor was completed in the flood area of Elbow Park in Calgary. Using Elite Crete E100-UV 1 and a blend of reflector enhancer colours, Hardscapes Inc. created this one of a kind basement floor finish.
These homeowners are very happy to be back in their home and have a dry basement this year!

If last years flooding left your basement floors cracked and heaved or just discoloured, give us a call to see how we can bring your floors back to life.

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It Won’t Last Forever

Pitted ConcreteModern concrete is designed to last 60 to 120 years but lack of maintenance and environmental conditions can greatly reduce those numbers.

Many city practices like salting city streets in the winter can lead to pitted and stained concrete driveways. As snow plows push the snow from the street onto sidewalks and driveways it also sends any vehicle waste like oils and engine fluids that have made their way to the street along with city particulates like salt and or grass control chemicals along with it.

Any or all of these waste products can have an effect on your sidewalks and driveways leaving them even more susceptible to the wear and tear of extreme weather and the fluctuations in temperature that cause cracking and flaking.

Hardscapes Inc. has solutions to every concrete restoration need and years of experience to make a repair that is beautiful and long lasting.

Concrete Tips

How to cure concrete.

Stopping freshly poured concrete from drying out too quickly is called curing. If left to dry out of its own accord, concrete will not develop the full bond between all of its ingredients. It will be weaker and crack mill crack more. The surface might not be as hard as it should be.

  • The form work itself, if left in place, or on the underneath of a suspended slab, stops the concrete drying out too quickly, and can be a curing agent.
  • Spray water onto the formation. A simpler way is to just keep water sprayed onto the slab with garden sprinklers or hand held hose pipes.
  • Use a plastic shield, which basically is a plastic sheet laid on top of the slab to stop the evaporation process. This is one of the most efficient methods of curing concrete.
  • Use concrete curing oils or curing compounds. These compounds and oils now come in a variety of types.

Preparing concrete is harder than it looks. A professional in the field is always a good idea. Hardscapes Inc. has the experts and can help you with all your concrete ideas.

Reflector Floor

Hardscapes Calgary Reflector FloorWe just put the finishing touches on a beautiful “Reflector” floor coating in the Kensington area this past week. The clients love it and have had many positive comments about their gorgeous floor!
It was a custom blend of two colours to create a truly “one of a kind” floor.
Reflector/Enhancer is a metallic powder that we mix with our “Elite Crete” epoxy to create amazing floors.

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