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Started By
Message
Staining/dying concrete yourself
Posted on 2/8/15 at 11:31 am
Posted on 2/8/15 at 11:31 am
This will be in my husband's music room ... does NOT need to be perfect by any stretch (his words). The steps seem pretty tedious and numerous! For those who have done it yourselves, since it's not in the house itself are there any steps that can be skipped? Thanks.
5
Posted on 2/8/15 at 11:55 am to tiger91
Posted on 2/8/15 at 12:56 pm to tiger91
Pics of you to ascertain the precise logistical constraints involved.
It's just my job ma'am, trust me I derive exactly ZERO personal pleasure from this process.
We await your timely response. Thanks.
It's just my job ma'am, trust me I derive exactly ZERO personal pleasure from this process.
We await your timely response. Thanks.
Posted on 2/8/15 at 1:39 pm to tiger91
I did this on both our living room and my music room (about 3 years after the living room). Absolutely love it. It looks awesome and is quite resilient. And of course if you're not happy with the results you can always cover it with tile/wood/carpet or whatever.
Here are the steps I took:
Prep work - In the living room there was carpet before and the builders had just left drywall mud and paint on the concrete so I rented an orbital floor buffer/sander to clean it. My music room was new construction, so we just put it on.
Guard your walls - be sure to cover the bottom 2-3 feet of your walls with plastic drop cloth, because that acid-etching stain is strong acid. It will tear up your baseboards / door frame / sheetrock.
Spray on the acid - wear goggles and keep moving along! Both times, I ran out of acid stain because I camped out in a spot early on. No worries, though; you can always run out and buy another gallon of stain.
Neutralize - You have to give the acid a day or two to do its work. The neutralization step (baking soda and water) is by far the most obnoxious step, but it's not really hard. You just scrub an area with the solution until it stops bubbling. The tough part is making sure a friend is manning a shop vac to ensure you're not getting water to your baseboards.
LET IT DRY! - Do NOT rush this step. You have to give it at least 3 days, if not more. If you rush this step and put the epoxy on (especially if you have any cracks) it will make the epoxy milky white. Take your time.
If you have patience, you'll come out with a great product. I love our floors and we've gotten plenty of complements on it.
TL;DR version: It's not too tough and it comes out awesome.
Here are the steps I took:
Prep work - In the living room there was carpet before and the builders had just left drywall mud and paint on the concrete so I rented an orbital floor buffer/sander to clean it. My music room was new construction, so we just put it on.
Guard your walls - be sure to cover the bottom 2-3 feet of your walls with plastic drop cloth, because that acid-etching stain is strong acid. It will tear up your baseboards / door frame / sheetrock.
Spray on the acid - wear goggles and keep moving along! Both times, I ran out of acid stain because I camped out in a spot early on. No worries, though; you can always run out and buy another gallon of stain.
Neutralize - You have to give the acid a day or two to do its work. The neutralization step (baking soda and water) is by far the most obnoxious step, but it's not really hard. You just scrub an area with the solution until it stops bubbling. The tough part is making sure a friend is manning a shop vac to ensure you're not getting water to your baseboards.
LET IT DRY! - Do NOT rush this step. You have to give it at least 3 days, if not more. If you rush this step and put the epoxy on (especially if you have any cracks) it will make the epoxy milky white. Take your time.
If you have patience, you'll come out with a great product. I love our floors and we've gotten plenty of complements on it.
TL;DR version: It's not too tough and it comes out awesome.
This post was edited on 2/8/15 at 1:40 pm
Posted on 2/8/15 at 3:41 pm to tiger91
Why are you asking how to half-arse his room? Laziness?
Posted on 2/8/15 at 3:54 pm to tiger91
Huck Finn is pretty close on the mark. Urethane versus epoxy. Wax the urethane after to ensure you never have scratches or scuffs.
Posted on 2/8/15 at 8:36 pm to fillmoregandt
It's not lazy ... he's not worrying about it being perfect and is wondering if there are any steps that really don't need to be done is all.
Posted on 2/8/15 at 8:38 pm to tiger91
Thanks a bunch ... the walls aren't even painted yet ... sheetrock mud/whatever is almost dry and ready for painting. Appreciate the help!
Posted on 2/8/15 at 9:24 pm to tiger91
pretty easy really.
Clean the concrete.
get a garden sprayer.
use it to apply the stain
let dry. will form a dust on top.
clean up the dust.
apply topcoat
Clean the concrete.
get a garden sprayer.
use it to apply the stain
let dry. will form a dust on top.
clean up the dust.
apply topcoat
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