I love the look of polished concrete topped with big faded Persian rugs. Are you a rug person?

Does slate still need frequent resealing? People we knew who had it spoke of needing to air out the fumes and that was the not environmentally friendly aspect of it that made us decide against it but things might have changed since then. I don't generally like polished concrete floors but they can work depending on the overall decor, and I like bigreader's suggestion of rugs to soften the look. I've also seen pictures of concrete floors with different colours and textures so if you are yet to have the concrete poured maybe you can look at what can be incorporated to give that different appearance? (As an aside, while I applaud the reuse of old materials the sight of recycled bricks complete with characterful splodges of old paint always makes me wonder about lead and other nasties.)

Polished concrete or sandstone tile would be my preference.

You should definitely investigate the concrete option further. Highly polished terrazzo may feel even more “shopping centre”, but you can certainly have your concrete tinted a warmer colour and have a softer looking, more matte finish.

You can get oversized or rectified tiles for minimal grout.

You could have brick or paver if you don’t mind a rougher texture and mortar joins.

Don’t get something you truly hate.

Burnished concrete may be a look you might prefer to the standard polished?

What about some epoxy stuff :)

Would never use epoxy highly toxic stuff you would be breathing in for years.

I looked pretty Heavily into PCM it gives its heat off in a 6 hour cycle at least the product available here do. Whereas concrete is 8-10 hours which is closer what you need to even out the day / night cycle.

Thanks for the heads Macyjean up about lead in recycled bricks I will look into it!

I think there is low VOC sealers for Slate. I am struggling to find a good local supplier of slate.

I love the idea of the faded rugs I think that would work well.

I am going to look into the colour options

Thanks so much everyone

"Thanks for the heads Macyjean up about lead in recycled bricks I will look into it!"

I'm not aware of anything generally in bricks themselves and I think it's great to reuse them, but if they haven't been thoroughly cleaned I wonder about old paint which contains lead, and also asbestos from old sheeting during demolition.

To us you need to work from the finished finish back to construction details, If considering polished concrete, discuss before building with a concrete polisher.

The usual slab is of 25mpa concrete and will have and show cracks, a higher cement concrete 32 mpa or greater cement is required. A heavier mesh may also be required,

Concrete is one of the best materials for flooring. Because concrete is very strong and, most importantly, durable. It is also important that the concrete is properly poured because the quality of the floor depends on it. I absolutely do not know how to build, so when I had to pour concrete, I turned for help to concreteservicesdenver.com and did not regret it. These guys are real professionals who have worked in this field for a long time. They did the job fairly quickly and at a reasonable price.

Maxwell Rainwater No doubt ur recommend of a business in the US will be helpful for someone who asked a question in Australia two years ago.

Old post please stop Elnaz T

Just want to note epoxy is horrible for human health ( VOCs) for YEARS please don't use it in your homes !!!!

Please don't use epoxy in your homes it is horrible for human health for years ( VOC exposure)