Concrete staining has been around since the 1920’s but many folks have just discovered this inexpensive and durable flooring option. Whether it is for your exterior patio or an interior floor concrete stained flooring is allergen free, durable and low maintenance. Do it yourself concrete staining may just be your best bet to own one of these durable floors.
If you choose to install a concrete stained floor yourself you can save up to 80% over what a contractor will charge to install these beautiful floors. It’s not really hard to do and you only need a few things to install them.
We need to do a few tests to make sure the concrete slab you have is able to accept the concrete acid stain.
- Pour approximately 8 oz. of water in a 1′ x 1′ area and allow the water to stand for a few minutes
- If the water absorbs into the slab and changes the color of the slab by darkening it, it’s a pretty good bet that you will not need to do anything except proceed t cleaning and staining.
- If the water beads up on the surface then there is a sealer on the concrete which will not allow the stain to chemical react with the free lime in the concrete which changes the color of the concrete in the process.
- There are two courses of action a this point; the first being trying to find out what is on the concrete and second deciding whether to attempt to remove it.
If you decide to remove the sealer from the concrete it is best to use an industrial strength citrus based coatings remover. These type of products will remove acrylic sealers and sometimes solvent based acrylic sealers. They take some elbow grease but if you’re determined to stain your floor these is the most environmentally friendly way to do it. Follow the manufacturer’s directions.
At this point we will assume that you floor is ready to go. Clean the concrete with a pressure washer if it’s an exterior application or if it’s an interior floor you will want to use TSP(or a substitute) or a mild acid detergent such as Dyna Blue. Spray or bucket your cleaning solution onto the floor and scrub the floor with a stiff bristle broom of a buffer and a black pad.
Some people will tell you to mop up the water but for the best job and a much easier way to do it is a shop vac. This will also get all the dirt out of the pores.
When the concrete has dried spray your desired color of acid stain (dilution 1 to 1 with water) using a pump sprayer in a circular motion to ensure complete coverage over the entire floor. Wait for a hour or two until you can walk in stocking feet unto the floor to see if all areas have been covered. If all looks good wait for another hour and then start the cleanup process.
If you would like to add another color now is the time. Just repeat the above mentioned steps and you may just want to spray randomly for a marbled effect.
Introduce water to the floor and scrub with a medium stiffness broom and shop vac again. If you floor passes the white glove test you’re good to go. If not rinse and repeat until the floor passes the white glove test. Darker colors may require a second rinse. Leave a fan on overnight.
Wait until the next day to seal so as not to trap any moisture under the sealer which would cause white spots.
Seal the floor using a 3/8″ or 1/2″ nap roller and when you roll out the sealer go in one direction and then again at an angle to the first. This will help eliminate roller marks and ensure a beautiful floor.
Apply 2-3 coats of an acrylic floor finish with a rayon. A rayon mop is usually a white and blue string mop head. These can be found at any home improvement store or hardware store.
This is an essential step as this is how your protect your floors. The acrylic floor finish will act as a sacrificial lamb for the sealer and protect it. If you find you have small scratches in the floor after a few months another coat of floor finish will fill in the scratches and make the floor look new again.
Clean your floor with a neutral cleaner and this will ensure that your floor will accept another coat of floor finish.
Lastly. place walk off mats at the entrance to your home and your floors will last a lifetime.
