This is not a product review or technical evaluation. What I am about to describe is an application of Mapei Ultratop PC that failed miserably in my opinion. This was our first and only experience using a Mapei product. We consulted the local representative extensively and followed the installation instructions to the letter. In the end we had to install the floor again using another material; at our expense.
My name is Robin leigh and I own a small company that specializes in decorative concrete finishes, based in Connecticut. We were approached by a delightful young lady in New Milford CT early this year. She was in the process of renovating a lake house and her contractor had left a pitted concrete floor after removing some old tiles. During our product research we came across an advert for Mapei Ultratop PC. A self leveling, high performance, polishable topping. We contacted the local representative and he sent me some samples. We made some tests in our workshop and decided to go ahead with the installation.
First of all we thoroughly cleaned the floor. We the applied a coating of Mapei Eco Prim Grip primer, as instructed by Mapei. The next day we mixed some Mapei Ultratop PC with a dark gray colorant and coated the floor to 3/8″. The material went down well, self leveled and looked great.
Four days later we sanded/honed the floor using a buffing machine with a 120 grit sanding disc. This brought the floor to a nice shine and smooth finish. We then sealed the floor using Trinic NanoSeal. This is a spray on/microfiber wipe coating with excellent stain resistance and longevity.
At this stage both the client and us were very pleased with the result. I wish it ended hear but a week later the client called to say the floor was cracking.
She was correct. The floor had hundreds of fine crack lines. All random and everywhere.
We took some photos and sent them with an urgent help request to Mapei. Several reminders and follow up calls resulted in a response about a month later. They had no idea what the problem could be and have never come across it before.
About as much help as an ejector seat in a helicopter!
So, there you have it. My Mapei experience. I will probably never use one of their products again.
Since posting this information I have received several calls from other contractors that have experienced the same problem. In all cases Mapei seem to blame the contractor or site conditions.
In future I will post the names of the other installers here. If your would like to be added to this list, please forward me your contact details.
December 2015 – Level Tech Concrete – http://leveltechconcrete.com
