At the Royal Electric Bar and Public Eatery in Guelph, Ontario, the unique custom bar top has become a conversation piece as well as a focal point, as patrons marvel over the seamless joinery of concrete and maple wood.
Bow-tie shaped pieces of steel join the concrete and wood elements together while adding decorative interest.
The finished bar top was sealed with a two-component, hybrid urethane/acrylic sealer to protect it from stains, moisture and abrasion.
At the Royal Electric Bar and Public Eatery in Guelph, Ontario, the unique custom bar top has become a conversation piece as well as a focal point. Made of pieces of concrete and maple joined together with stainless steel ties, the design was a collaboration of bar owner Derek Boudreau and concrete artisan Dale Coughlin of Total Concrete Innovations, Cambridge, Ontario.
The concrete for the 45-foot by 36-inch bar top was cast in the shop in four sections and pigmented a dark charcoal gray. In order to produce a seamless effect, stainless steel bars were used to connect the four pieces. “The installation was a bit of a challenge, making sure that all the pieces lined up nicely,” says Coughlin. “We also incorporated stainless steel bow ties to join the concrete and wood together and to add a decorative element.”
Total Concrete Innovations specializes in custom concrete bar tops and countertops, as well as epoxy flooring and polished concrete. Mixing concrete with other materials is one of the approaches they take to make their products unique. “We have made a few projects with wood inlays. The combination of wood, glass, and steel are also popular with some of our designs. Some of the challenges involved with incorporating wood and concrete are controlling the moisture when polishing and sealing to prevent separation from the concrete and wood,” says Coughlin.
Materials used:
Concrete pigment: Charcoal gray, from Fishstone Concrete Countertop Supply
Sealer: U-Seal Concrete Sealer, from Fishstone
Concrete contractor:
Total Concrete Innovations, Cambridge, Ontario
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