Microcement in Cardiff

Microcement in Cardiff is a thin cement based coating, trowelled over floors, walls and showers so the surface runs on with no grout lines and no joints. Zavoré installs it, and for the materials we sell we stock the lime built pastellone and beton stucco. We are based in Birmingham, where our Academy is. Seamless work is decided at the base, so the first step is a conversation about your floor, and a sample board to judge the look.

Terraces, extensions and what lies under the floor

Much of Cardiff is Victorian and Edwardian terrace, in Cathays, Roath, Canton, Grangetown and Splott, and the classic upgrade is a bathroom squeezed into the back bedroom or a kitchen diner opened up across the back of the house. Both are good microcement jobs. A small bathroom with a floor that turns up the wall and into the shower has no grout to go dark, and the room reads larger for it.

The floor underneath is the thing to understand. Suspended timber floors in older terraces flex, and a seamless finish will crack over a floor that still moves. Springy joists, loose tiles, a green screed and structural cracks all come through, and no coating bridges them. A new rear extension on a concrete slab is a far happier base. We survey for exactly this before pricing.

Cardiff Bay and the newer blocks near the city centre have flat screeded floors and plasterboard walls, which suit microcement well once the joints are reinforced and the right primer is on.

Where microcement works in a Cardiff property

Our microcement goes where the lack of joints earns its place.

• Shower walls and floors in a terrace bathroom or en suite.
• A kitchen diner floor that runs without a threshold into the hall.
• Worktops and splashbacks that need no grout line.
• Cardiff Bay flat floors, where one continuous colour calms an open plan room.
• Cafes, bars and shop floors in the city centre, with the right sealer for the traffic.

The sealer is what makes the surface waterproof and washable, not the cement itself. A job is only as good as its primer, mesh and sealer, which is why we do not rush any of the three. It is not the cheap alternative to tiling, and we will not pretend it is.

How a microcement job in Cardiff runs

We survey first. That means the substrate, flatness, cracks, damp, movement, how the room is used, access and protection, and we say plainly if a floor needs fixing or a wall needs stripping. Photos can answer small questions first. The sample board shows the grain and tone, and the material is tinted to the colour on the approved sample before it ships.

Cardiff is some way from Birmingham, so we plan the job in blocks of days. The team stays on site and works each layer in order, because a floor has to be laid wet and in one go. Dates are agreed once the sample and price are signed off. The microcement installation page covers the build in more detail.

Materials, trade and learning it

If you use your own decorator, the shop sells beton stucco and pastellone with tracked UK delivery. Those are the lime built relatives that give the same seamless look on walls and floors. Trade accounts exist, and the trade page explains them.

A floor or a bathroom is the one we would ask you to leave to us. A confident decorator can learn walls on a board. The microcement course runs at our Birmingham, London and Manchester centres, the same at each.

More finishes in Cardiff

For a wet room that wants a softer, older character, look at tadelakt in Cardiff. If you want the cool grey wall look without a floor, there is concrete effect plaster in Cardiff. Lime walls are covered by limewash in Cardiff, clay plaster in Cardiff and marmorino in Cardiff, and the shine of polished plaster in Cardiff or liquid metal in Cardiff suits feature walls. A decorative finishes specialist in Cardiff can plan a whole scheme, and Venetian plastering in Cardiff covers the classic range.

Questions about microcement in Cardiff

Can microcement go on a suspended timber floor in an old terrace?

Only if the floor is made rigid enough first. Flexing boards crack a seamless surface. We check the joists and boards at survey and say plainly if the floor needs stiffening or a board overlay.

Is microcement fully waterproof in a shower?

It is waterproof when it is properly built, with the right primer, mesh and sealer on a prepared, waterproofed wall. The sealer does the waterproofing, so the full system matters.

Will it work in a Cardiff Bay flat?

Usually yes, because the floors and walls are flat and modern. Plasterboard joints need reinforcing and the right primer. We confirm all of this at survey.

Do you sell microcement for me to apply?

We install microcement. For materials we sell the lime built beton stucco and pastellone. We say honestly which suits your wall or floor.

To talk it through, call 07592 929191 (Monday to Saturday, 9am to 6pm) or email sales@zavore.co.uk with photos, rough measurements and the postcode. The sample board is the place to start.