Microtopping in Santa Monica — What It Is and Who Installs It
Santa Monica's design-forward community was among the first in Los Angeles to adopt microtopping as a residential finish. Architecture firms and interior designers across the city specify it regularly for bathroom renovations, floor installations, and feature walls. If you've encountered the term in a project document or design brief, you're in the right place.
Microtopping = Microcement. They are the same product with two names. Microtopping is used in architectural documents, finish schedules, and contractor specifications. Microcement is the consumer term. LA Microcement installs both throughout Santa Monica and all of Los Angeles — CA Contractor License #1092421.
What Microtopping Does
Microtopping is a cement-based coating system applied at 2–3mm over virtually any existing surface — tile, concrete, wood, plaster, or drywall. The result is a completely seamless surface with no grout lines, no joints, and no visible transition points. It can be applied in any color and finished to varying degrees of texture, from silky smooth to lightly textured.
Floors
Applied over existing tile or concrete floors. No demolition. Creates a continuous surface from wall to wall that feels and looks like polished stone.
Bathrooms
Fully waterproof when sealed. Applied over existing tile on floors, walls, and shower surrounds. Eliminates grout lines completely — the most requested application in Santa Monica.
Walls
Feature walls, kitchen splashbacks, fireplace surrounds. Applied in any color. Creates a textured, concrete-look surface that no paint or wallpaper can replicate.
Showers
Grout-free shower walls and floors. Fully waterproof. The most hygienic shower surface available — nothing for mold to penetrate or accumulate in.
Countertops
Kitchen counters and bathroom vanities in microtopping. Heat-resistant when properly sealed. Seamless across the full surface including backsplash.
Outdoor
Pool decks, covered patios, outdoor kitchens. UV-stable and slip-resistant options available. The only micro coating rated for exterior use.
Why Santa Monica Homeowners Choose Microtopping
- No grout lines — the defining quality of microtopping. One continuous surface from wall to wall, floor to ceiling. Nothing to crack, mold, or discolor.
- No demolition — applied directly over existing tile, saving the cost, time, and mess of a full demo. Most Santa Monica bathrooms complete in 3–5 days.
- Fully waterproof — sealed microtopping is used in showers, wet rooms, and pool areas across Santa Monica and greater Los Angeles.
- Architect-specified — microtopping appears in high-end renovation specifications throughout Santa Monica because it delivers a finish quality that tile cannot match.
- 15–25 year lifespan — with proper maintenance and periodic resealing, microtopping outlasts most tile installations.
- Licensed CA contractor — LA Microcement holds CA Contractor License #1092421, fully bonded and insured for all installations in Santa Monica.