Recently I was on vacation traveling the orient. When I went into Hong Kong’s MRT (Mass Rapid Transportation System)  I was amazed to see the use of terrazzo tile. As you may notice from the photo that the station was very clean and I believe they choose terrazzo to execute the vision of freshness, similar to why Thailand’s new international airport choose to use exposed concrete and terrazzo flooring. Of course terrazzo is the easiest floor system to maintain, proven statistics prove that. Initially it is the most expensive flooring system to install but to maintain in a life cycle it the cheapest. Plus terrazzo lasts for ever! Go to Venice Italy or Pompeii Italy and see for yourself.

Here in the United States, this beautiful floor is used in many states. Especially here in South Florida. As the owner of Colonial Floor Care, I have seen the historical beauty of this durable floor in many of the the homes in South Florida. In the 1920’s through the 1960’s, many of the homes being built had this type of floor included into the homes design. This was called the Mid Modern” floor. Many great architects such as Frank Loyd Wright use natural elements in their design. Terrazzo, being made of marble and Portland cement, brought that natural feel to this floors. Bringing in the natural flow of nature into the home, and also lending these homes a way to stay cool before air conditioning during the humid summers that are famous in Miami and other surrounding cities. These floors were also very durable and added color and beauty to what otherwise would be a wooden floor. Because of the high humidity, wooden floors could be damaged if they became wet. Where as, with Terrazzo, even after a flood from the tropical storms and hurricanes, would be able to be cleaned back to its original condition.

Most of the home were built with concrete block and still stand today after decades of sever weather. However in the 1970’s, what I call the great Terrazzo cover-up occurred” when new materials, such as shag carpet and vinyl flooring,” were used to cover up these beautiful floors. However, in the 1980’s, these old flooring materials started to be taken up to reveal the Terrazzo again. Many people unfamiliar with this floor wondered why their foundation floors had color in them. And soon found out that what they had was a hidden treasure that could be restored, and made beautiful again. Colonial Floor Care has been restoring these historical floors for over 20 years, for far less than a new Terrazzo installation. If you are one of the fortunate homeowners to have Terrazzo, we can help keep your floor remain beautiful with our special proprietary methods of cleaning and polishing. Call for a free estimate today.