|
A concrete floor is a lovely sight to behold. What am I saying? Most everyone has seen a bare concrete floor, and they know that the dull grey, blotchy color of a concrete floor really is not pleasant to look at. Still, when you think of a concrete floor as a blank canvass, and you use acid stain to give the floor a new color, you might just find that a concrete floor can be lovely. Flooring is an important part of creating a house. With pretty much any flooring choice that you choose, you will be looking to find a balance of functionality, durability, and beauty. Carpets are probably the most pleasant floors to walk on. They always feel warmer to walk on than a bare tile floor, but they are not proof against stains, and there is a constant need to vacuum floors. Wood floors are nice, but they are liable to dents and scratches. Also, it is sometimes necessary to refinish a wood floor. Tile floors won't dent, but it is possible to scratch or break floor tiles. You can't simply refinish a scratched tiled and a broken tile can be difficult to replace. While all of these flooring options are functional in their own right, none of them are as durable as a concrete floor. But concrete is ugly, you say. When you use acid stain, you can make concrete floor something beautiful. Acid stain is not just a paint or surface stain. When you use paint, all you are really doing is creating a thin film on the surface of your concrete. No matter how durable your paint claims to be, it will eventually wear out, leaving ugly patches. Once these patches start, you can't just repaint the patches because you will have ugly borders around the patches where the paint has worn out before. A wood stain works by soaking into the wood and staining the grain of the wood a new color. These stains will not soak into concrete like they will wood, so they will have a minimal effect on your wood floors. Acid stain is different than paint or wood stain, so when you use it, you will have much better results. Acid stain changes the color of a concrete floor through a chemical reaction. It is important to note that when you buy an acid stain to use on your floor, the color of your stain when you buy it will not be the color it will leave behind once the chemical reaction has occurred. Before applying acid stain, it is necessary to thoroughly clean your concrete floor. Any globs of construction glue or drywall compound will create blemishes on you floor, so you will want to completely remove such debris before you start the staining process. Acid stain must sit for a while to allow the chemical reaction to take place. Once you have allowed sufficient time for the acid stain to do its thing, you will have excess stain left on your concrete. You will first have to neutralize the acid with a base, then you can remove the excess stain with a wet-dry vac. Once you are done, your concrete floor will be dull and grey no more. Concrete acid stain is an effective way to permanently change the color of a concrete floor. When you are done, your floor will look like it was made from one slab of natural rock. To add a little more depth to the color, you will want to cover your floor with a seal coat. With the right approach you can use two or more colors to add texture to the color of your floor or to create mosaic patterns on your floor. acid stain is a valid flooring option.
Related Articles -
acid, stain,
|
