Terrazzo Flooring

Are you in the market for durable, low-maintenance flooring for your basement, patio, or any other place you have a concrete substrate in your home? If you don’t want to sacrifice on style, you should consider terrazzo floors.

Terrazzo has a similar appearance to polished marble or granite, however, it offers immense versatility by incorporating different design elements into the surface itself. Though common in schools, hospitals, and government buildings, terrazzo is steadily gaining popularity for residential applications.

How Terrazzo Combines Old-World Techniques with Modern-Day Designs?

Originating from the Mediterranean region hundreds of years ago, terrazzo (which translates to ‘terrace’ in Italian) was formed by pressing stone chips into the surface of natural clay. It was then sealed with goat’s milk to provide a mosaic-like appearance. Eventually, clay was switched out for cement, and bits of painted tile and glass made their way into the surface of this ornate flooring option.

Modern-Day Terrazzo

Modern-day terrazzo flooring is made of composite materials. It contains different mixtures of aggregate chips like marble or stone. It can be placed indoors or outdoors and is either laid in tiles or poured like concrete.

Even though it was primarily used in commercial buildings in the past, it has become a popular feature in many homes today not only as a flooring option, but also as a material for kitchen surfaces like countertops and backsplashes.

It should also be said that custom terrazzo installs over a solid concrete base. This makes it ideal for slab-on-grade homes. The process can take anywhere from a couple of days to a few weeks based on the size of one’s floor and the intricacy of the design involved.

Furthermore, terrazzo colors and flecks are highly customizable, which allows this flooring to offer a wide range of design options. Floors done with terrazzo are also comparatively light and durable.

Aesthetic Appeal

Terrazzo flooring is an excellent alternative to bland concrete flooring. It offers the same slick, quasi-industrial style setting but with some added textures and interests that make it seem more like a carpet.

Cutting Edge

Terrazzo is starting to come up again as a fantastic flooring option, so it could be the thing for you if you want to be seen as an interior design trend-setter.

Highly Customizable

Terrazzo comes in a wide range of colors and offers various aggregate options based on one’s style and preferences. It is also easy to pour into designs, enabling you to create a unique floor easily.

Versatile

Aside from pouring terrazzo into custom designs, it can also be molded into panels for your staircase or into custom shapes like countertops, sinks, bathtubs, and stone-like features.

Under-Floor Heating Friendly

Terrazzo flooring is ideal when combined with hydronic or radiant under-floor heating systems due to its incredible ability to retain heat.

Safe and Healthy

Properly sealed terrazzo is not porous, making it resistant to microbes and mold. As a result, it is considered to be a very safe flooring option.

Easy To Maintain

One of the primary benefits of terrazzo flooring is that you will barely need to do anything other than sweep and mop the surface from time to time after it’s put in place. This makes it easy and affordable to maintain.

Environmentally-Friendly

The production of terrazzo involves using recycled materials to make the aggregate. This is usually recycled porcelain, glass, and metals.

Durability

One of the main reasons terrazzo is used so much in institutional and commercial buildings is that it is very durable. This durability can be of great use to you as a homeowner.

Terrazzo Flooring For the Modern-Day Homeowner

Floors are a defining feature of any home, therefore, you need to consider the wide range of terrazzo options available when making your decision. This is the only way you will be able to make the best choice.

Even though some may see terrazzo as a classic material that dates back to the late 15th century, it looks as if it was designed for modern times. This is because it’s made by blending shards of other materials. This also means it can be formed using ‘imperfect’ and scrap components regularly used in the building industry. This makes it one of the most beautiful recycling methods. In addition, this inherently sustainable design allows terrazzo to incorporate all kinds of materials aside from conventional stone, thanks to the inclusion of epoxy resin.

Finally

Flooring is one of the most significant investments you will ever make as a homeowner, therefore, the possibilities become endless when you think of just how customizable terrazzo is. You can use it for your kitchen, bathroom, or living room. The fact that it can last almost a lifetime also means that you stand to gain a lot by investing in this sort of flooring in terms of savings on maintenance costs.

As we have established, terrazzo is one of the most economically and environmentally friendly flooring types out there. Since its creation, some have considered it as the first ‘green’ flooring option. Its resistance to fire damage, water damage, chemical spillage, and other stains just make it more appealing.

Now that you know all these facts, please contact us today at May River Flooring to get a quote on terrazzo flooring or any other flooring options.