Coloring your Polished Concrete
Have you ever wondered why there are concrete floors that have colors in it? How was it possible that a grey concrete was able to have a color or a design in it? These questions are answered and made possible through the process of staining on concrete polishing. Concrete stains are solutions to achieve a decorative concrete surface. Concrete stains come in different types and applications.
Probably one of the famous methods of coloring a concrete surface is through the use of colorants which are added to the concrete prior to the drying process. Colorants are combined with the concrete aggregates until it dries thus forming a colored concrete surface. Colorants such as these are commonly called iron oxide pigments. Iron Oxide pigments come in variety of colors and are first used in prehistoric cave dwellings.
Acid staining is a process of concrete coloring that are widely being used nowadays because of its aesthetic appeal and economic savings. The color is produced by combining an acid solution of water, acid and salt onto the newly prepared concrete surface. The acid solution reacts with the concrete (preferably the lime content in it) thus producing a unique marble-like color in the surface.
Before the acid staining process, the concrete is thoroughly prepared to be able to accept the acid mixture. Newly poured concrete needs not to be prepared. Old concrete needs to be grounded down to reveal a polished surface. Loose aggregates and cracks should also be removed as they do not accept acid staining. An old concrete should also be void of previously acid stained surface as it does not accept acid stain either.
Water based stains are not like acid stains though they both produce color on a concrete surface. While acid staining merely reacts with the concrete to produce color, water based stains are tints that ultimately create a solid surface color. Water based stains can create from translucent to opaque hues. These types of stains are commonly used when a specific color due to decorative purposes is needed to be achieved.
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