Glass Fiber Reinforced  Concrete has become the go to material for precasters the world over. The combination of cement, sand, and fiber at specific ratios, deliver unparalleled flexural and tensile strength, allowing for the production of a  larger, stronger, and lighter overall design! For most specifiers and architects, the use of high early strength concrete, can open doors to create elaborate structural high strength concrete designs. The use of Xtreme Series GFRC as your “high early strength concrete mix“, gives you the opportunity to reduce weight and material costs without losing any other attributes.

Xtreme GFRC is the “Next Generation” in cementitious composites.  The patented mix design provides solutions to typical obstacles and inconsistencies found in traditional GFRC formulas.

Looking at Xtreme Series GFRC Formula (high early strength concrete mix)

The Xtreme Series technology  is a high early strength pre-blended concrete mix that is made up of: sand, cement, and fiber and completely free of polymer and acrylic . Three types of fibers: PVA, Glass AR, and Nano are combined together for the first time in GFRC. These elements deliver the strongest commercial grade, flexural and tensile strengths available today.  NO polymers and NO acrylics in finally solve the issue of temperature sensitivity in delivery of the raw materials and during application. Experience the ability to mix and spray Xtreme Series GFRC in temperature ranges of 40-90° F.

Xtreme Series GFRC takes human error out of the mixing equation. The two component formula allows for faster mixing, more accurate formula consistency including control of color across an entire project. Faster start up time with a cleaner mix area are also achieved. Use Xtreme Series GFRC to open the door to smarter productivity and better use of your facility.

The combination of PVA and Glass AR fiber with the perfect ratio of cement and sand gives Xtreme Series GFRC the ability to span longer distances in between support. That translates to a decrease in total weight and early high strength precast concrete. Create a lighter and stronger piece without sacrificing flexural or tensile strength. This attribute allows the fabricator to minimize how many seams the piece is required to have increasing the overall aesthetic appeal.  Installation is easier and lighter, requiring less time, labor, and man power.  The end result is an increase in profit margins on every project!

Using GFRC for Architectural Trim & Cladding

Utilizing balanced amounts of PVA, Glass AR and nano fibers, Xtreme Series GFRC can open up NEW and creative design opportunities for Architects and Designers. You can create pieces that are larger, stronger and lighter than ever before. The use of the Xtreme Series technology for your high early strength GFRC mix ,allows the fabricator the ability to reduce and eliminate unnecessary weight and waste on all of their projects. These combined attributes deliver a environmentally friendly or “GREEN” process to your fabrication!

If this sounds to good to be true ,well we thought that also till we tried the product. We encourage you to look at this website and make yourself a believer www.SureCreteDesign.com

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Advancements in GFRC (Glass Fiber Reinforced Concrete) Mix Designs

Why use GFRC? – Residential Bathroom Makeover, New Jersey

Location: New Jersey

Project: Remodeling a Master bathroom with Spa

Installation by: J&M Lifestyles

Material Supplier: SureCrete Design

Total Sq Ft: 80 sq ft

Products Used: Xtreme GFRC Face Mix, Xtreme GFRC Backer, Xtreme Slurry, ARS 400, custom shower drain, blum drawer slides

So put yourself in this homeowner’s shoes. You have gutted your master bathroom with the intention of creating a European style oasis. Your search begins for the right look, color and design for your countertops, sinks and bath surround. As you exhaust yourself looking at  granite   and other natural stone you realize nothing is matching the look in your mind.

Six months have passed and well, tensions are rising over getting this project finished. And thats when they found the perfect medium to custom create the design in their minds. The solution was GFRC, glass fiber reinforced concrete. Immediately they fell in love with the diversity of designs, colors and could now create a functional master bath with clean lines and useful applications. Let’s t take a look at how this project unfolded.

The team at J&M Lifestyles, in New Jersey, had the task of integrating the stand-up shower, tub surround and match that with the countertop and other surfaces in the room. After templating each area, they realized that they were in need of material that could help in making this design come to life by reducing the amount of seams that would be visible. J&M Lifestyles choose the Xtreme Series GFRC mix design.

They began the process by creating their mold and casting surface. Incorporating a custom color blend from SureCrete with the Xtreme Series GFRC Face mix, they sprayed the cream coat on to all the surfaces. After letting that setup for about 10 minutes they followed behind the candy shell surface with the same custom color mixed in the Xtreme Series Backer mix. This material provides  the structural and flexural strength to the ultra smooth, pinhole free surface of the GFRC face coat.

With each piece finally casted and made, it was allowed to sit and cure. The Xtreme Series GFRC is the ideal mix design for Glass fiber reinforced concrete users, as it allows for a faster cure and demold time, as little as 6 hours. And delivers the ability to begin the next stage of design, secondary coloring or sealing within 8-10 hours after pouring. Additional positive attributes of Xtreme GFRC is it’s ability to save time and labor on each project by allowing you to maximize the tables you cast on and increasing the down time between the next station or stage.

The next important step was to apply the appropriate sealer. With many quality choices out there, the team at J&M Lifestyles chose ARS 400. A break through in nano-technology sealers, ARS 400 is an excellent GFRC sealer, and has the ability to penetrate and bond to the almost 11,000 PSI surface of the Xtreme GFRC.

The installation of the precast GFRC panels and GFRC countertop vanity was down with  multiple products. The vanity was installed with standard wall mount bracket. The GFRC wall panels for the tub surround were installed with an acrylic mastic.

GFRC – Glass Fiber Reinforced Concrete has become the technology of choice when it comes to unique and manufacture-able concrete designs. GFRC allows for stronger, faster curing and lighter weight concrete pieces. With many fabricators and contractors leaning towards those attributes, the difficulty comes in choosing a GFRC Mix Design. Although you can find a variety of GFRC formulas, it seems there are four factors that seem to stumble applicators with this technology.

First is the amount of companies you deal with for the raw materials to make up your GFRC mix Design. The second is the issue with temperature of shipping out some of the key components along with the temperature during the application process. The third obstacle is the inconsistency from batch to batch, this occurs due to the personal measurements of the multiple raw materials and the polymers and rosins for GFRC formulas that require a specific temperature to work correctly.  The last factor can be the startup cost. With so many raw materials needed from different companies it can be an expensive trial to see if you like that particular GFRC formula. Although these can be concerns, the results of GFRC have convinced applicators to deal with these situations, at least until now.

SureCrete Design unveiled at 4 different trade shows in 2010: such as World of Concrete, International Builder Show and The Decorative Concrete Show the first preblended GFRC Mix design. This new hybrid GFRC technology utilizes the latest in concrete technology. The Xtreme Series GFRC delivers over 10,000 PSI, a demold time of 6 hours and a non- temperature sensitive mix design!

The real question is how does it help provide solutions to GFRC applicators?

First off, it simplifies the process of the mix design. Xtreme GFRC is a 2 component system, comprised of a “face mix” and a fiber infused “backer mix”. Based on the current technology behind the Xtreme Series Product lineup, the Xtreme GFRC Face Mix provides a 50lb bag that has white cement, a fine sand and a specific blend of fibers that are not seen in the Face mix but adds to its strength and flexibility. You combine that with 1 gallon of modifier.

This unique design has NO polymers and NO acrylics providing a solution to  temperature  issues with GFRC. In addition, you have one company,  that supplies all of the components needed for GFRC, and it is preblended in a bag, simplifying your time and labor in your shop. It also takes your startup cost from an average of $500.00 to around $58.00.

The Xtreme Series GFRC system is a user friendly version of typical GFRC mix designs, most applications only require the use of a hopper gun and an air compressor however for larger commercial applications and higher fiber loading a commercial pump is applicable.

The Xtreme Series GFRC simplifies and speeds up the process of fabricating all concrete pieces whether it is a concrete countertop, fireplace, shower surrounds, wall panels or furniture. Allowing them to be made thinner and therefore lighter with less time required for mixing and measuring components as seen with other GFRC formulas.

Look for the next article when we will feature the versatility of SureCrete’s Xtreme Series Backer Mix and we look at some job profiles where this new GFRC technology has been used.

GFRC Technical Data Sheet – Click Here

GFRC Pre Cast Catalog - Click here