ARDEX SD-M Designer Floor Finish, Self-drying, Trowelable Finishing Underlayment for Concrete, Terrazzo and Ceramic, Gray, 10 lbs Bag (12483)

Product Features:

• Cement-Based Designer Floor Finish: Delivers the look of polished concrete with a durable, decorative surface for interior commercial, industrial, and residential floors.
• Self-Drying Formulation: Allows for quick hardening and reduced downtime during installation, with the surface becoming walkable in approximately 2 hours.
• Thin Resurfacing Layer: Applies easily over interior concrete and properly prepared substrates, including terrazzo, ceramic, quarry, and porcelain tile.
• Excellent Bond Strength: Ensures long-lasting adhesion, resists cracking, and withstands heavy foot traffic while creating a hard, stable wearing surface.
• Versatile Applications: Ideal for showrooms, retail stores, offices, lofts, and residential interiors, plus warehouses, utility rooms, and light manufacturing.
• Customizable Finish: Can be integrally colored, stained, or burnished to achieve unique decorative effects and a polished concrete appearance.
• Easy to Apply: Mixes with water to a smooth consistency for effortless trowel or squeegee application, with no additional liquid additives required.
• Durable Performance: Transforms worn or stained concrete into sleek, attractive, and resilient surfaces that resist mold, mildew, and daily wear.
• High-Strength Performance: Reaches approximately 5,000 psi compressive strength and 1,200 psi flexural strength at 28 days for reliable structural performance.
• Efficient Two-Coat Coverage: One 10 lb. bag covers approximately 80 to 100 sq. ft. in two coats, helping installers plan total material needs accurately.

Product Description:

ARDEX SD-M Designer Floor Finish is a premium self-drying, Portland cement-based topping formulated for fast-track resurfacing, smoothing, and decorative finishing of interior concrete, terrazzo, ceramic tile, quarry tile, and porcelain tile. Engineered for commercial, industrial, and residential flooring applications, this designer floor finish creates the modern appearance of polished concrete while delivering a hard, flat, smooth, and permanent wearing surface. It mixes easily with water only, requiring no additives, and develops a smooth, creamy consistency that spreads efficiently with a steel trowel or squeegee. Its excellent workability, outstanding coverage, and dependable bond make it suitable for professional contractors, flooring installers, renovation specialists, and experienced DIY home improvement projects.

ARDEX SD-M can resurface old, worn, stained, or prepared concrete substrates and transform them into sleek, decorative, and durable interior floors. It is ideal for warehouses, utility rooms, light manufacturing areas, retail stores, showrooms, offices, lofts, foyers, hallways, kitchens, dining areas, and other residential or commercial interiors. Once applied, it creates a thin, smooth cementitious topping that can be burnished and polished to achieve a high-performance designer finish with the appearance of polished concrete. It can also be integrally colored or stained to create customized decorative concrete flooring that complements modern room decor, commercial designs, and residential remodeling projects.

Designed with ARDEX self-drying technology, this cement-based concrete resurfacer hardens quickly without extended curing times, helping minimize downtime and support faster project completion. The surface is walkable in approximately 2 hours, with processing, burnishing, or polishing generally beginning within 24 to 72 hours, depending on installation and jobsite conditions. It reaches an initial set in approximately 45 minutes and a final set in approximately 90 minutes. At 28 days, it develops compressive strength of approximately 5,000 psi and flexural strength of approximately 1,200 psi, providing the durability, stability, and wear resistance needed for light industrial environments, retail renovations, commercial flooring upgrades, and frequently used residential spaces.

ARDEX SD-M provides excellent bond strength, resists cracking, and produces a durable, mold and mildew-resistant finish that withstands regular foot traffic and daily use. In addition to full-surface resurfacing, it can be used as a pinhole filler for polished concrete and ARDEX Polished Concrete Systems applications. For standard scratch and finish coats, mix one 10 lb. bag with 2 quarts of clean water. Smaller batches can be mixed using approximately 2.5 parts powder to 1 part water by volume, while pop-outs and spalls can be filled using approximately 3.5 parts powder to 1 part water. One 10 lb. bag covers approximately 80 to 100 sq. ft. in two coats, although actual coverage varies with substrate texture, application thickness, and surface conditions.

Available in gray and white, ARDEX SD-M is packaged in a convenient 10 lb. bag and contains 0 VOC for interior flooring installations. Whether used as a decorative concrete floor finish, polished concrete topping, concrete resurfacer, smoothing layer, or pinhole filler, it provides a smooth, attractive, and long-lasting result without requiring additional liquid additives. Store unopened bags in a cool, dry area away from direct sunlight. Remove excess air and seal partially used bags tightly to protect the remaining material. The unopened product has a shelf life of approximately 6 months.