Exposed concrete - Advantages / Disadvantages?

Hello,

can someone tell me something about the advantages/disadvantages of exposed concrete?
How does it look price-wise?

It would be nice if someone has experience, this would also interest us

Hello, yesterday our ground floor was erected (yeah!!!). The wall on which our staircase will be mounted remains as smooth formwork reinforced concrete, without plaster. At least that is what we would like, but the surface of the wall is somewhat patchy. I don't find it bad, but my wife would like it to be more even. By the way, the wall was explicitly sold to us as NOT exposed concrete quality, so everything is fine so far. Now to my question: does anyone know if I can sand the wall, for example with a drywall sander, without ruining the surface with its beautiful small pores and air inclusions? Anyone with experience in sanding concrete?

Good evening,

The wall to which our staircase will be attached remains as smooth steel concrete without plaster.
At least we would like it that way, but the wall is somewhat spotty on the surface.
I don't find it bad, but my wife would like it a bit more even.

So your wife wants the "jack of all trades"...

But now to my question: does anyone know if I can sand the wall, e.g. with a drywall sander, without spoiling the surface with its beautiful small pores and air inclusions? Anyone experienced with sanding concrete?

Cast concrete is comparable to natural stone - you either like it or you don't, because each one is unique. Keep your hands off all sanding aids - you can only make cast concrete worse when trying to improve it. Exposed concrete is a totally different and much more expensive option.

Rhenish greetings

Thank you for the reply. My wife is not looking for the jack of all trades, she would just like to get rid of the stains. These stains have really only formed superficially where the walls were placed next to each other after pouring. So they don't directly have anything to do with the concrete itself, because in other places it looks wonderful. I'll try washing it off.

So, after the damp spots have dried, the wall looks significantly better. Tomorrow I will rub off the mortar residues that have meanwhile formed with some water and wait to see how the wall looks then.