Term: Decorative concrete
Concrete Statues
– Concrete statues are made by pouring concrete into a latex mold.
– They are often painted and sold as garden ornaments.
– The most popular designs are bird baths and garden gnomes.
Stamped Concrete
– Stamped concrete is the process of adding texture and color to concrete to make it resemble natural materials like stone, brick, and wood.
– It is a popular choice for new construction and renovation projects due to its durability and lower cost compared to natural products.
– Installation involves pressing molds into the concrete while it is still in its plastic state.
– Color can be achieved through various methods such as dry shakes, color hardeners, and acid stains.
– Stamped concrete can be used on driveways, patios, commercial roads, parking lots, and interior floors.
Concrete Dyes
– Concrete dyes come in different forms and compositions and can be used on both residential and commercial concrete applications.
– Early concrete dyes consisted of generic printing inks dissolved in mild solutions of alcohol.
– Alcohol-based dyes were more commonly used for interior applications without direct sunlight.
– Manufacturers later dissolved printing inks in different carriers like acetone to achieve increased penetration levels.
– Colored concrete can be obtained from many ready mix concrete companies with available color charts.
Acid Staining
– Acid staining is a chemical reaction that creates new earth tone colors on the concrete surface.
– It involves applying a mixture of water, mineral salts, and a small amount of muriatic acid to the concrete.
– The reaction occurs over a period of one to four hours and creates a variegated or mottled appearance unique to each slab.
– The concrete surface is later scrubbed to remove excess stain and neutralized with a basic solution.
– Acid staining may not work as well on older exterior concrete surfaces or concrete with exposed aggregate.
Water-based Staining
– Water-based stains can achieve a translucent or opaque color effect on concrete.
– Unlike acid stains, they bond with the concrete without changing its physical makeup.
– There are various types of water-based stains available, including polymer-based, acrylic, and epoxy stains.
– Water-based stains offer different performance characteristics and variations in the decorative concrete industry.
– They can be used to achieve different looks and effects on concrete surfaces.
Additional Concepts:
– Epoxy coating: Applied over acid stained, dyes, and/or overlays to seal and protect. Some epoxies are also colored.
– Polishing: Concrete can be polished with mechanical grinders and diamond pads of increasing grit sizes. Sodium silicate or lithium silicate can be added as a concrete hardener to achieve a higher shine.
– Engraving: Existing concrete can be remodeled by cutting lines and grooves into its surface. Intricate designs can be engraved using a portable CNC concrete engraving system or a CNC driven router system.
– Form liner: Concrete can be cast into unique and detailed designs using urethane form liner. These projects can be seen on sound/retaining walls, building exteriors, and bridges.
– Industry publications: Concrete Decor is a leading magazine on decorative concrete, providing information, ideas, product news, and training for professionals in the field. It has a high readership and is considered the most-read and influential magazine covering decorative concrete worldwide.
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Decorative concrete is the use of concrete as not simply a utilitarian medium for construction but as an aesthetic enhancement to a structure, while still serving its function as an integral part of the building itself such as floors, walls, driveways, and patios.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/04/Stampedconcrete1.jpg/220px-Stampedconcrete1.jpg)
The transformation of concrete into decorative concrete is achieved through the use of a variety of materials that may be applied during the pouring process or after the concrete is cured, these materials and/or systems include but are not limited to stamped concrete, acid staining, decorative overlays, polished concrete, concrete countertops, vertical overlays and more.