Walk into an older HDB flat, shophouse or 1970s landed home and there is a good chance you will find terrazzo underfoot. Terrazzo flooring in Singapore was hugely popular for decades because it is tough, cool and almost impossible to wear out. Today, many owners love the retro look and choose to restore it. Others want something new on top without the noise, dust and cost of hacking.
If you are in the second group, the good news is that terrazzo can be an excellent base for a new floor. It just needs the right preparation.
Should You Hack It or Cover It?
Hacking old terrazzo is loud, messy and expensive. It also adds days to a renovation and needs the right approvals. Covering it with new overlay flooring is often faster and cheaper. The catch is that terrazzo is dense and smooth, so most adhesives and levelling compounds will not bond to it properly without a primer.
Flooring over tiles and terrazzo is common in HDB and landed renovations. Covering makes sense when the terrazzo is:
- Firmly bonded with no hollow sounding areas
- Free from large cracks or broken sections
- Reasonably dry, especially on the ground floor
- At a level where the extra height still works with doors and thresholds
Step-by-Step Preparation
1. Check the bond
Tap the floor with a rubber mallet or the handle of a tool. Hollow sounds mean the terrazzo or the screed below it has lost its bond. Those areas must be cut out and repaired before anything goes on top. Small defects can be filled with a patching compound.
2. Clean and degrease
Old terrazzo is often coated in decades of polish, wax and household cleaners. All of that must go. Scrub with a strong degreaser and rinse well. Light mechanical abrasion helps remove polish and opens up the surface.
3. Check for moisture
Ground floor terrazzo, particularly in older landed homes and shophouses, can sit on slabs with no damp proofing at all. Moisture coming up through the floor will eventually attack any adhesive on top. Our guide on testing a concrete slab for moisture walks you through the options.
4. Choose the right primer
This is where most terrazzo jobs succeed or fail. The right primer for terrazzo depends mainly on whether the floor is dry or damp.
- Dry terrazzo: Cemimax DP80 is made for non-absorbent surfaces like terrazzo, ceramic tiles and stone. It dries to the touch in 15 to 20 minutes and creates a surface that levelling compounds can grip.
- Damp terrazzo: Cemimax DP200 is suitable for ceramic, terrazzo and stone subfloors and can be used where residual moisture is up to 6% CM. Two to three coats give you a moisture barrier as well as a primer. Finish with quartz sand or a coat of DP80 before levelling.
5. Level the surface
Terrazzo floors often have slight dips and old joint lines. A smoothing compound such as DL24 evens these out so thin vinyl or carpet does not show the pattern underneath. Where you need more build-up or a harder surface, DL59 is the stronger option.
6. Install the new floor
Once everything is dry, lay your vinyl, carpet, SPC or timber using the right adhesive for that covering.
What If You Want to Keep the Terrazzo Look?
Some owners decide to restore the terrazzo rather than cover it. Grinding and polishing can bring old terrazzo back to life. If the original floor is too damaged, a cement-based decorative finish can give a similar seamless feel. Our article on self levelling mistakes is worth reading before any pour over an existing hard floor.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can vinyl flooring be laid over terrazzo?
Yes, if the terrazzo is well bonded, clean and dry. It needs the right primer and usually a thin smoothing layer first.
Which primer works on terrazzo?
DP80 is designed for dry non-absorbent surfaces like terrazzo. If the floor is damp, DP200 can act as both primer and moisture barrier.
Do I need to remove polish from terrazzo before priming?
Yes. Wax and polish stop primers from bonding. Degrease the floor and lightly abrade it before priming.
Planning to cover or refresh an old terrazzo floor? Get in touch with Cemimax and tell us about the space. We will help you choose the right preparation system for it.