Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q. I would like to put C.C. in my own home, will I be able to produce quality countertops on my first try? 
A. Yes,- Its definitely possible but the equipment that you use and the amount of practice you have will greatly influence your end result. Make a coffee table, end table, lazy suzen, or something to practice on first. It's a very good idea to get a feel for the tools and how they are used before diving into your countertops. Don't go out and buy the cheapest tools possible and try to squeak by. The quality of your countertops will suffer.

Q. Can I use a normal grinder for polishing my countertops? 
A. In most cases, no. Polishing pads are made to run under 4,000 rpms, In fact, 2,000-3,000 is much more ideal. Almost all standard single speed grinders run at around 10,000 rpms. At these speeds, the Velcro is unable to hold to the backer and ends up flying off. If you do by chance manage to keep them on the backer pad, you will definitely wear your pads out much quicker.

Q. I have a variable speed grinder, can I just run a hose on the concrete to polish wet? 
A. Sure, but, on the contrary to what some concrete countertop training centers teach, I wouldn't recommend it. Water polishers are double insulated to keep the water out and extend the life of the machine. They are also GFCI protected which prevents you from getting shocked. If that isn't enough, your pads will wear unevenly. The outside of the pad simply spits away the water and the inside of the pad doesn't get enough water. This causes the inside of the pad to heat up and wear much quicker than the outside.

Q. I buy pads from a guy in a van down the street for $8.00 each, Why would I pay more? 
A. We have polishing pads to compete with the Chinese market that has hit our industry but you're really not saving money. There is definitely a different level of quality from one pad to another, in the end, you get what you paid for. We have customers that buy the most inexpensive pads possible but over time, spend more money because they go through so many more pads.

Q. I only want to do my kitchen, can I just buy hand pads to do my polishing with them. 
A. Yes but it will take a ton of elbow grease. You will spend so much more time with each grit and never even come close to the same flat, smooth, shiny surface that you would get with a polisher.

Q. I would like to use a router bit to profile my edges but do I have to actually buy a router? 
A. No. We have router bits that are designed for routers such as the Sector, X-Treme, and the KS-80 that will remove material at incredible speeds. But, we also have profile bits that can be run on water fed polishers such as the Makita PW5001C, Flex LW603VR, and the Alpha VSP110. Using these profilers blows doors on older conventional methods of edge profiling.

Q. Intertool's DS-301 is kind of expensive, will it actually speed up the process that much? 
A. Yes, yes, and more yes.
The 301 will polish 5-6 times quicker than a hand polisher. And honestly takes a lot of skill out of it. You don't have to concentrate on staying flat, the machine will take care of that for you. Not only will it speed up the process but the quality of your polish will be much better. Five minutes of using this machine and you will be wondering how you managed without it.

Q. I just want to expose the aggregate and polish from there. Can I skip the 50 grit and go right to the 800? 
A. No.
The 50 grit will make the surface ruff, skip to the 800 grit will ruin your pad because the surface was prepared for it.

Q. I like the idea of using an air polisher, will my 2hp air compressor be big enough? 
A. No.
Most Air Polishers need about 16cfm at around 90 psi. of continuous air. You will need at least a 5hp. Rotary screw or 7.5hp piston type compressor. Using anything less will bog down your polisher and shorten the life of your compressor.

Q. I bought some equipment on eBay but have no idea how to use it, can you help me? 
A. Sorry no.