Mike: Gone are the days when the concrete floor was just a boring expansive gray. With a little staining and engraving, a slab can be decorated with borders, stars, horses, and even custom designs. Here’s how it happens. To ensure all construction materials are removed prior to staining, the crew first cleans the bare concrete slab with solvent cleaners like paint stripper, adhesive removers, a floor buffer, and sanding pads. Cleaning is the most critical step in acid stain. The stain is translucent so any marking or stain on the concrete will show through. The cleaning is important on both new or older homes that have excessive building materials on the concrete. They created T-tone pattern in the dining room and the utility room. The crew scores the floor for a border. First they measure and mark the pattern with chalk lines. Then they use a board as a guide for the cut. Using a circular saw with a diamond blade, they score the floor to the depth of 1/8 of an inch for a slight impression while the web vac sucks up the cutting dust. Next, they tape, wrap and double tape all the walls and stairs to protect them from the acid stain. The staining process can be completed on remodel jobs as well as new construction. The crew mixes the chemical acids stain outside and test the acid water ratio. For this project, they use and acid to water ratio of one to one. They stain the border first applying the acid stain with a paint brush. Cindy Hamm of The Ultimate Edge explains how the stain works.
Cindy: Acid stain reacts with the mineral and lime content within the concrete so each mineral and lime and sand and everything that’s involved is going to change the color in the variation with and your flooring. You’re gonna get two to four shade variants within 1 color.
Mike: To stop the reaction of the acid stain with the concrete, the crew neutralizes the acid using ammonia and water. Then the floors are either mopped or buffed and the web vac removes the excess water. The floors are allowed to dry before they’re sealed. After the floors are completely clean of all residue, the stain borders are sealed with an acrylic urethane sealer and left to dry for 48 hours. The sealing brings out the rich luster and depth of the color. Here in the utility room, the sealer protects the borders from bleed over when the second color of acid stain is applied to the rest of the floor. The acid stain is applied with a plastic garden sprayer which takes about 30 minutes per 1500 square feet. The stain should be applied wet to wet and is sprayed in a circular motion. This voids the appearance of lines in the finish. Safety precautions are taken due to the hazardous materials that are being used.
Cindy: The neighbor that comes in three months later that loves your floors wants floors exactly like that, it’s not gonna happen because each floor is uniquely different because of minerals and lime contents within the concrete. And the acid stain will give you the natural modeling and effects of a natural stone versus a man-made flooring material.
Mike: The crew builds frames in the utility room and powder room for poured in place countertops with color mixed into the concrete. Based on the homeowners design, a variety of shapes or forms can be poured and add personality with variations of color and texture. The homeowner built a beautiful back patio and they didn’t want it to be all laid up with just some plain gray concrete on this huge surface. So they went with an acid stain that’s nearly indestructible. It’s great for high traffic and it’s very low maintenance. To add a little local flavor, they went with the horse motif that they actually engraved into the concrete itself. They went through the stain, down just a little level. They made some templates laid, on top and work their way through it. So it ties in with the horses they got out back. A very beautiful patio that’s nearly indestructible. We are using the engraver kit system with this particular application. The engraver can create a template from any pattern, logo, or picture. That image is engraved into the acid stain surface following the template. The installer uses a large engraving tool with metal impactors. Engraving both lines and fill areas, he removes a very small layer of the concrete, the gray concrete underneath is exposed and becomes the design. He joins the template lines with a smaller hand engraver. The engraving process gives the pattern a 3D effect.
Cindy: Similar applications can be done as a do-it-yourself project or for more detailed applications as the ones you’re seeing in this project, should be done by an acid staining professional with years of experience. However, we have created an acid stain solutions video that will train anyone from a homeowner, builder or contractor in the steps of the acid staining process so that you can learn how to do the process. Simple maintenance from the homeowner as far as mopping their floors, just a damp mop will take care of everyday dust and any dirt that’s on the floor. Other than that we recommend as a professional installer that they wax their floors at least twice a year.
Mike: The horse lovers in this ranch house now have a luxurious looking floor that will last a lifetime with very little maintenance. The chemical acids stain concrete provides multi-hued variations. They look perfectly aged and compliments their casual lifestyle. For more information on converting your concrete slab into a beautifully decorated floor indoor or out, visit kemiko.com.
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