Applying Microcement on Walls: guide for vertical surfaces

Where you can apply microcement on walls: recommended rooms and spaces

Applying microcement on walls is becoming more and more common compared with other surfaces. Besides being a very simple and quick surface to coat, there is a wide range of walls to experiment on. Let’s see if you had already thought of any of the ones below.

• Living rooms: the perfect setting for an endless synergy between comfort and modernity. Can you picture yourself reading a book surrounded by walls that let you dream?

• Entryways: you only get one chance to make a good first impression, and the entrance of your home is no different. A well-kept, elegant entryway will say a lot about you to your guests in just a few seconds. Which sides of your personality would you like it to reflect?
  

• Home offices and studies: whether you have a whole room for working from home or a small area set up in your living room, applying microcement on the walls of these spaces is the ideal way to clearly separate your work area from your rest area.
  

• Hallways: coating your hallway walls with microcement will add that touch of spaciousness you didn’t know you were looking for.
  
• Bathrooms: a space where the water resistance of this material really shows. Imagine a spa-like bathroom with seamless lines that wraps you in a sensory experience you won’t want to escape from... If you want inspiration from real projects, take a look at these ideas for microcement walls in the bathroom.
  

• Kitchens: the place where you can enjoy the beauty of microcement while you are in MasterChef mode. And not only that: by applying microcement on your kitchen walls, you make it a more hygienic space, resistant to humidity and less prone to mold.
  
• Commercial spaces: microcement applied on the walls of a commercial space plays a double role: it brings beauty and elegance while providing durability and easy cleaning. Very useful things in high-traffic areas.

How to apply microcement on walls in 5 steps

It is not difficult, but it does require a certain skill when applying it on walls, handling the tools and also when mixing the components of the microcement (surprise! Yes, some microcements need to be mixed, but don’t worry, we will get to that). If you are set on having a microcement wall at home but don’t know where to start, stay with us, because we are going to reveal it all, coat by coat.

Throughout this section we will explain the general process of how to apply microcement on walls, so you have the step-by-step application as a reference and don’t get lost between stages (we know you won’t). Once you have this down, we will detail the particularities of the different spaces in your home, because depending on the room where the wall you want to decorate with microcement is located, the application process will vary slightly. Applying it on a bathroom or kitchen wall, exposed to high levels of ambient humidity, is not the same as applying it on a bedroom or living room wall, for example. Pay attention, here we go!

1. Preparing the wall to be coated

Shall we start with the groundwork? For the result of applying microcement on walls to be a dream and not a nightmare, it is essential that these surfaces are in optimal condition, which means: free of dust, grease, damp or any kind of damage. If that is not the case, it must be repaired first.

If the wall you want to coat with microcement is made of ceramic tiles, mosaic tiles, terrazzo or porcelain, you will most likely have grout joints to say goodbye to before applying it.

2. Priming: the key step for microcement adhesion

To make sure the microcement bonds correctly to the wall, you need to take a roller and apply a primer that acts as a “bridge”. Here it is essential to choose it according to the type of material of the surface you are going to coat.

At this point of the application, every professional has their own method: some still place a fiberglass mesh after the primer, but on walls, unlike floors, it is not always compulsory. In fact, most microcement manufacturers offer wall systems that do not use it.

3. Now for the good part... applying the base microcement

That was the warm-up, now the real work begins! You will need to keep in mind that there are several types of microcement: two-component, one-component and ready-to-use.

Depending on whether you have chosen a two-component or a one-component microcement, you will have to combine it differently: with resin and then adding the pigment in the first case, or mixing it with water and then pigmenting it if you have opted for a one-component system. If, on the other hand, you have gone for the ready-to-use option, you won’t have to combine it with anything because it comes prepared (what a great advantage, right?).

Once the base microcement is mixed (if it needs it), it is time to apply 2 thin coats, letting each coat dry for approximately 6–8 hours (depending on the type of material, the manufacturer may indicate more or fewer drying hours) and sanding each one afterwards with 40-grit sandpaper.

4. Next up: the finishing microcement

After the second coat of base microcement, it is the turn of the finishing microcement. Here too, keep in mind that depending on the type of coating you have chosen, the components will need to be mixed and, following the manufacturer’s instructions, two or three coats are applied. Remember they must be thin, spreading them very well with the trowel and letting each one dry for about 6–8 hours as well. Remember that sanding each coat once it is fully dry is essential. Do it with sandpaper between 80 and 220 grit if you are sanding by hand; if you opt for machine sanding, the disc could be 120 grit for the finishing microcement, for example.

5. Sealing and protection with the varnish

Applying the microcement sealer is the culmination of the microcement application on walls; it is like putting the cherry on the cake. This is the step where we give this decorative coating its maximum sheen and protection so it can shine in all its splendor. Sheen and resistance, why choose when you can have both?

You will need to apply 2 or 3 coats of varnish with the roller, depending on what each manufacturer indicates, and leave a drying margin of at least around 4 hours between coats. This drying time will vary according to each manufacturer’s recommendations, since there are varnishes that, depending on their composition, take 6 hours to dry, others 8 hours, others 12 or 14 hours, and we can even find varnishes that need 24 hours. In some cases, as indicated in the factory recommendations, each coat of varnish will also need to be sanded.

PROTECT YOUR WALLS

Why is it easier to apply microcement on walls than on other surfaces?

The application of microcement on walls has become very popular in recent years, and with good reason. Its characteristics make it fantastic for integrating into your home. And you know what? Applying microcement on walls is an excellent option for getting started with this decorative coating. In fact, introductory courses aimed at professionals usually teach how to apply it on walls. There must be a reason, don’t you think? Keep reading, because we know we have sparked your curiosity...

To give you an idea: an aggregate is a small particle or grain that a material can contain. Sometimes it will be much finer, almost a powder, and other times coarser, like fine gravel. Knowing this, we can now tell you that microcement for walls has a finer aggregate than others. This means that, being composed of such fine mineral particles and applied in very thin coats, it provides resistance with a much smoother, seamless and silky finish, unlike a floor, which needs a coarser, less flexible aggregate. A microcement wall is, as Andrea Bocelli and Marta Sánchez (or Karol G, if you prefer) would say, a muse that invites you to touch it softly.

Do you remember that paralyzing “Don’t step on the floor, I’ve just mopped it!”? Well, if you apply microcement on a floor, those words will echo in your head (a lot), because a floor coated with microcement cannot be stepped on for at least 72 hours. A wall... do you step on it? Exactly: you apply it and enjoy it from the very moment you finish the last coat of varnish, watching it dry.

Last but not least, microcement applied on a wall makes cleaning and maintenance much easier than on a floor. Do you know why? Because a wall (except for a kitchen wall) is less exposed to liquid spills and, therefore, its hygiene needs are less demanding. If a disaster of catastrophic proportions were to happen, such as your coffee cup flying off and staining the wall, or a little artist at home letting their creativity flow all over it, you will be able to clean it with a damp cloth and neutral soap (or, if you prefer, a specific product such as Smart Cleaner). See how easy?

How to apply microcement on walls with the roller technique

We have become experts at browsing Pinterest for ideas, learning the names of the materials to use and even training our eye to spot trends worth following, such as using ready-to-use microcement in home renovations: the perfect microcement for getting started with DIY makeovers. And we will tell you why!

Ready-to-use microcement is the easiest coating in the world to apply because it comes prepared to open, stir and use: it does not need to be mixed or pigmented with any other component. We assure you that this material will win you over every time you see it in your home, not only for its beauty but also for how easy it is to apply.

It is designed so that anyone can apply it without technical knowledge or previous experience and, in addition, the fact that almost the entire application uses the roller technique makes it much easier to apply.

The roller technique has been gaining popularity thanks to how much easier it makes the application of microcement, especially on walls. Want to know its advantages? Keep scrolling, because we will tell you in no time:

• Faster and simpler application: applying it with a roller is almost like applying a paint: you cover many more square meters in much less time, coating far more surface quickly and easily than with other tools. And we all know what that means, right? The sooner a space is coated, the sooner you can move on to other things.
  
• Uniform finish: unlike other tools such as trowels, with which you can pick up more material than needed and apply too much, when you load a roller with the material it absorbs it evenly and, when applying the product, it deposits just the right amount. (Psst, psst, here is a spoiler: with ready-to-use microcement you won’t use the trowel to apply it but to smooth what you put on with the roller.)
  
• Impeccable finish without professional experience: whether or not you have experience using a roller, the way to use it is simple: dip, drain and apply. Easy, right?

Now that you know the advantages of the roller technique, widely used in the application of ready-to-use microcement, let us tell you the step-by-step application of Smartcret’s ready-to-use system and which products to use in each step. Put some music on and enjoy the moment, because it is going to be a piece of cake! Or rather... apply and sing along.

1. Clean the surface and, if your surface has joints, take a spatula and fill them with Smart Jointer.
   
2. Apply the primer coat. Bear in mind at this step that, if your walls are made of plaster, plasterboard, cement or concrete, you should use a primer designed for absorbent surfaces such as Smart Primer ABS and if, instead, the surface you are going to coat is ceramic tile, mosaic tile, floor tile, ceramic or porcelain, you should choose a primer suitable for non-absorbent surfaces, such as Smart Primer PLUS.
   
3. Forget about the trowel for applying ready-to-use microcement! You will only need it to smooth the coats of microcement you apply. (Both the two coats of Smart Base and the other two of Smart Liso can be applied with the ease of the polyamide roller.) As simple as this: load the roller with the base or finishing microcement (whichever comes next) and smooth it with the trowel. P.S.: we haven’t forgotten about the mesh, it’s just that Smartcret microcement doesn’t need it!
4. Finish the application with the varnish! If the wall you are going to decorate with microcement is in a damp area such as the bathroom or kitchen, you will need to add Smart Booster to the Smart Varnish, shake and apply. If your wall is in the living room, a bedroom or the hallway, applying only Smart Varnish will be enough.

As you have seen, the answer to how microcement is applied on walls is simpler than it seems: faster and easier with ready-to-use microcement. Just as you follow a route on Google Maps to explore a trail without getting lost, following Smartcret’s interactive guide will take you to the perfect result without straying off the path in the process of applying microcement on walls.

SEE WALL KITS

They are rooms with different levels of ambient humidity and it is because of this particularity that the application process differs a little. Don’t let the sudden realization of this small detail overwhelm you, because the steps are very simple in both cases. You will just need to take into account some particular considerations inherent to more specific walls, such as bathroom and tiled walls. We will tell you about them right away.