You want to deliver excellent results to your clients, and that includes making sure your polished concrete project maintains its sheen, smoothness, and coating for as long as possible, but you also want to minimize unnecessary steps and get the work done more quickly. We are frequently asked if applying Concrete Guard is necessary or if it’s a step that can be skipped, and since there’s no “yes” or “no” answer, we wanted to provide a bit more detail as to when you should use it and when you can omit it from the polishing process.

What Does Concrete Guard Do?

Guard, also called Stain Guard or Concrete Guard, is a water-based protective coating that blends polyurethane and acrylic to create a hard, resilient film over the concrete to prevent stains and boost the gloss of the concrete. Its generally applied via a microfiber mop pad as the final step of the process.

Is It Necessary to Apply Stain Guard to Concrete?

If the polished concrete is in a place where chemicals, oil, or water can permeate and stain the concrete, then yes, we would definitely recommend you apply a good quality stain guard, like Smith’s Surface Guard. On the other hand, if there is minimal chance there will be staining, we would recommend skipping the step.

One thing to factor in is that some people who work in surface preparation will “cheat” the results with a stain guard because they do increase gloss by around 15 points while hiding scratches. The issue is that poor polish work can be covered up somewhat with a stain guard, but realistically, experienced surface preparation contractors and those experienced in concrete polishing will get good results no matter what, then apply Guard as needed.

What to Look for In Concrete Guard

If you do choose to apply Guard to the polished slab, make sure you’re using a quality product that offers the following features:

  • A sheen or gloss that aligns with the outcome of the polished concrete.
  • UV Light resistant;
  • Fast cure time;
  • Inter-coat adhesion;
  • Non-yellowing;
  • Low VOC;

Order Your Surface Guard Today

In addition to Smith’s Surface Guard, we also carry a wide variety of floor coatings and colorants to help you achieve the exact look you want in your concrete slab. To learn more about our products or get a free quote, call us today at (815)472-9744 or fill out a contact form to get started!