Concrete Floor
COLOR Here are some images of uncolored concrete floors: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1onm-7qfAUTBLAg5DH9ef5NA4OqgKF6xY
I've never seen it in real life, but it looks good on pics. I think te trick to get away from the "garage floor" or "too cold and sleek" look is to combine it with warm natural materials—like earth and wood. Next year we should refinish the walls and trim as the next step on HabLab upgrade.
FINISHING Polishing is the best option. But it has 2 drawbacks: 1) it's labor intensive (you go over the entire floor with an increasingly finer grit to get that wet/shiny look); 2) the concrete needs to be cured (this website says at least 28 days after pour, which is the standard time for concrete curing).
So, it sounds like it's too late for polishing. The good news is that, since this is basically sanding, it can be done at any point later on, even if the floor has already been sealed.
So I thought we'd apply a clear concrete sealer instead. I found one that looks good in terms of shine (glossy), price/coverage, drying time, and ease of application. However, this too says "Concrete must have cured for a minimum of 30 days."
This makes sense: a concrete sealer does just that. So any water/moisture still in the concrete will remain there forever or be trapped right below the sealer. This would compromise both the concrete (it wouldn't reach maximum strength) and the sealer (it would look milky and dull instead of clear and shiny). If we had 2 or 3 weeks, I'd risk it, but we'd have to apply it Wednesday at the latest (only 5 days after concrete pour), so that definitely won't work. Unless self-leveling concrete is different. I asked Gary to find out but haven't heard back yet.
TLDR: We may need to put a scum bag on it for the training.
In the mean time, here is a really good resource about concrete sealers: https://concretesealerreviews.com https://concretesealerreviews.com/what-does-a-concrete-sealer-do/ https://concretesealerreviews.com/best-concrete-floor-sealers/ https://concretesealerreviews.com/how-to-seal-concrete/
Sample Pictures
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1onm-7qfAUTBLAg5DH9ef5NA4OqgKF6xY
