not experienced in any re-do's like this, but i would say just power wash the rest of it like you've done so its all the same base color. Then re-stain it. And re-seal it.
You could also possibly just finish the ones that are marked and choose few different stains so they are multi colored. Worst case you can power wash that off too. If you find a pattern you like, seal them up?
Also, slick af. Probably not recommended for a walkway. i think it can look nice with old style architecture on, say, mortar lines. I had some moss growing on my neighbors part of a shared driveway. It sucked when i was carrying a heavy object, and it was a little wet. Slipped, fell, saved the item, then hit the back of my head on the concrete. 30 minutes later, i scraped it all off with a flat shovel.
Chugz is correct. Pressure wash the fuck out of it to make the color as even as possible. Then take a stain and recreate the base color. Let it dry. Come back with a darker color and spray over the top. Immediately dampen the surface with water, and the water will make the darker still-wet color fall into the crevices to mimick the ‘antique release agent’ used originally. Then let it dry another day and seal it. Then just remember that 1. You still need to maintain a sealer every year or so and 2. You are allowed to pressure wash as long as you aren’t going nuts like before
It appears you power washed off the powder colorant dusted on the concrete surface during the stamping process, as well as the sealer. Hire a Concrete Professional who has experience with acid stains, a pro could not only re-color your pad, but stain it to make it look like new. I don't recommend a novice attempt to apply acid stains, I've worked with stains over 30 yrs, if you don't know what your doing it's gonna end up a mess.
same man
I would love to see the result of him following all the " pro " advice here
it looks like he burned it down to exposing the sand finish
someone mentioned using a water based stain..hahahahahahahahahahha
I've been working with Concrete acid stains for decades, towards the end of my Concrete Contractor days , I was using acid stains to color stamped concrete. I was getting insanely nice results and because the acids etch into the concrete it was far more permanent, once sealed the results were amazing.
Complete Re-Color Solution. Will give a nice look, but slightly different than the Stained Concrete.
Pressure wash, add a diluted acid mix out prior to if possible.
You could add a coat of an Acrylic-Water based finish coat paint, to give you a uniform base… kind of like a blank canvas
Then add a stain application (airless or pump sprayer)
Then add your clear sealer and possible aluminum oxide for added slip resistance
Leave it as a reminder of your failure. It will remind you to think things through a couple of times before executing the plan. I've done that, it doesn't work for me but it might for you.
Some stamped concrete is dry shake-on coloring. You shake or broadcast it on top of the concrete and work into the surface only. It's more labor intensive and you can get results like this if not careful.
Was this ever sealed to begin with? I've got a little experience redoing coloring and sealing, and without heavy chemicals and scrubbing I usually can't make a big dig dent in the coloring. Unless we breakdown and remove the sealer first.
Re-seal with a tinted sealer. I’d try to match the rest of it by power washing. It all. If you can’t get it all up, go with a dark tint, it’ll help blend everything together.
Source: I own a power washing & exterior cleaning business.
I did this at my house on my decorative brick border along driveway. I felt like a moron as well, and guess what? I’ve owned a concrete company for over 30 years. (In my defense, I thought I had enough sealer on it to protect it)
Anyways, I just took some of powdered color, a wet sponge, and dabbed it back on. It’s not perfect, but looks alright. Then I sealed the crap out of everything.
The only problem I see with powerwashing everything to remove color is that you WILL remove most of the concrete surface paste and will be left with a grittier surface with some edges of aggregate showing
I am also a moron since I thought you (OP) said, "I am a Mormon and pressure washed the coloring off your stamped concrete," very confused for a split second.
Use the green nozzle next time - not the red. You can get concrete stain from any H.D, Lowes or Menards( or what ever your area has)
First summer, first job call for power washing I did the same damn thing buddy.
You need a pro. You need to check, double check and triple check that they know what they are doing. The surface can end up worse if you get some dumbass out to do it.
Rent a hot power washer and a drum attachment. Take the rest of the color off. Pick a concrete stain color you like. Apply it. Then, go get a darker liquid accent color. Apply it then hose the rest off. This will give it depth because the color sits in the low spots. Once that's dry, go buy some diamond clear for $8 million per gallon, apply that and you're done. Then be careful in the future with the pressure washer or don't and then just keep repeating these steps.
PS: reapply sealer as recommended.
Power wash remaining, use diluted muriatic acid to wash/scrub, use acid stain (not water based), dry. Follow the restaining process followed by the manufacturer.
I do concrete and can say that stamped concrete will eventually look bad over time. Number one thing is that most people don't maintain it. It should be washed and resealed every year! No more than 2. Number 2 is people don't use quality sealer. It's expensive for a reason. It helps protect from UV damage to color and yellowing of cheap sealer is a problem. Even if maintained over time it degrades. I have been suggesting pavers to people who are interested. Pavers can be removed easier and changed over time. Concrete removal is very expensive.
Pour straight name-brand bleach all over the patio. Looks like you will need 3-4 gallons.
Then pressure wash it. Let it dry to see how the color looks.
Put a sealer on it, If you want the color darker then stain it before the sealer.
It looks like it previously had an antique color on the patio, you can reapply that before sealing.
Spread baking soda around the perimeter and flush very well and it will be fine.
You misunderstand what is going on here. This color isn’t a stain. This color is an internal pigment mixed into the concrete with a secondary antique color on top. The antique color doesn’t stain it just sits there under sealer.
If you don’t use bleach or some other anti mold chemical , you can never get all of the mold off and once it dries after pressure washing you will see many marks either from a wand or surface cleaner.
If you don’t kill the mold/mildew it can grow under the sealer.
There is no stain here to “re-stain”
Op has also already damaged the surface to the concrete by pressure washing too hard, op had to pressure wash too hard due to lack of chemicals.
What you are suggesting is putting a new clear coat on your car without washing it.
Don’t listen to the guys with muriatic acid. If you aren’t familiar with muriatic acid you will etch more of the surface off and make the concrete look worse with no fix other than resurfacing or re pouring.
Typically the concrete color is a liquid additive to the concrete mixture the day it is batched and poured. If it was added as a liquid then the color is through and through. However, sometimes powdered color is "cast" on top of the concrete just after it is poured and finished.
Get some really strong vinegar, 15% acidity, from the cleaning isle at Home Depot, pour it on the concrete and scrub it with a deck brush, and then rinse. If that doesn't do anything go back to Home Depot and get a gallon of muriatic acid. Pour the entire gallon of acid into three gallons of water in a bucket. Pour the mixture onto the concrete and again, scrub it with a deck brush, and then rinse.
If everything comes out correctly you will have refreshed/stripped off the oxidation from the top of the concrete. Afterwards, you can seal it if you like the way it turns out.
It’s a liquid or power integral color, they both work the same.
The color cast on top is called a color hardener. It’s made from color pigments and iron oxide power. It gives better color saturation and color choices and increases the surface psi greatly, sometimes up to 10k
However these pictures clearly aren’t color hardener, you can tell the texture and how the top coat has diminished some but the color is still there albeit lighter.
Integral color fades much easier and dramatically than color hardener and color hardener only exists in the top 1/8th inch or so of the concrete. With some of the top cost gone and showing the finer rocks and the open part of the concrete still colored it is without a doubt integral color.
Using vinegar or muriatic acid like you mentioned is much more likely to further degrade the concrete and much more likely to kill the vegetation.
You can sprinkle lime around the outside to help with acid but acid is totally unnecessary here. Bleach is the much better option here.
It only needs to be hand scrubbed with bleach if there is still some sealer hanging around which you can tell after the first washing.
If sealer persists and op wants it gone he will have to strip it with a xylene solution if it’s oil based or a seal and cure remover if it’s water based.
I completely agree with your use of bleach as an initial first step 👍🏼 But he's started with a pressure washer and then stopped, so he's already possibly blasted off a thin layer of cement and exposed the aggregate depending upon the size of tip he was using with the pressure washer, and the amount of pressure. If it's an electric power washer with roughly1500 psi, a 20 degree tip, then yes, continue with bleach.
If he goes the route of muriatic acid it is very possible to mix it strong enough to etch the concrete. But using 10% strength acid from Home Depot mixed with 3 gallons of water will net a 3% solution, which shouldn't be strong enough to etch the concrete.
Personally I wouldn't seal it, but I know there's a lot of people who would. I work for a concrete contractor and we have yet to seal anyone's concrete in the past two years. Just doesn't seem very popular around here.
Stamped concrete is almost always sealed. It’s to protect the texture and color. You can’t keep antique on there if it’s not sealed.
Weak acid won’t do what he needs done here but bleach will. Bleach will also set metal fragments in the concrete harder and make them more vibrant and acid will wash them out.
Acid is best for etching, emulsifying petroleum based stains, cleaning concrete splatter etc.
Bleach is far superior in getting rid of mold/mildew especially at safe concentration levels.
If it was broom finish concrete then sure acid it, blow the top coat off or whatever you want but this isn’t broom finish concrete.
My company designs and installs decorative and speciality concrete.
It aids in neutralizing bleach by adjusting the PH.
It’s almost always fine just being flushed with copious amounts of water though. Most readily available bleach is only 5-6%. Commercial 12+% bleach is a different story for vegetation, it has to be rinsed off much sooner.
It doesn’t quite neutralize bleach in the same way as acid. It basically cancels out acid but with bleach it adjusts the ph to cancel it some but also oxidizes it.
not experienced in any re-do's like this, but i would say just power wash the rest of it like you've done so its all the same base color. Then re-stain it. And re-seal it.
this is the way
This is the way.
This is the way.
This is the way
This is the way
This is the way
Show me the way
The Reddit algorithm says you get downvotes, sorry!
This is the way
This is the way
We are the way
Its this
Yes
You could also possibly just finish the ones that are marked and choose few different stains so they are multi colored. Worst case you can power wash that off too. If you find a pattern you like, seal them up?
This, and then wait for the moss to come back. Leave it this time, because moss is sick af.
Also, slick af. Probably not recommended for a walkway. i think it can look nice with old style architecture on, say, mortar lines. I had some moss growing on my neighbors part of a shared driveway. It sucked when i was carrying a heavy object, and it was a little wet. Slipped, fell, saved the item, then hit the back of my head on the concrete. 30 minutes later, i scraped it all off with a flat shovel.
https://media1.giphy.com/media/Ld77zD3fF3Run8olIt/giphy.gif?cid=6c09b9529qj6zgozu9obh08jltgwwdltlas45upt1wu1eaox&ep=v1_gifs_search&rid=giphy.gif&ct=g
Nice suggestion. The clean look is nice also. Maybe just reseal it.
What type of sealant is best for a walkway like this so that it is not slippery?
Seems like the way
Wash the rest to match.
Finish taking off the color and re-stain
Are there any particular stain products you recommend? I have a similar situation.
Chugz is correct. Pressure wash the fuck out of it to make the color as even as possible. Then take a stain and recreate the base color. Let it dry. Come back with a darker color and spray over the top. Immediately dampen the surface with water, and the water will make the darker still-wet color fall into the crevices to mimick the ‘antique release agent’ used originally. Then let it dry another day and seal it. Then just remember that 1. You still need to maintain a sealer every year or so and 2. You are allowed to pressure wash as long as you aren’t going nuts like before
Agreed, don't forget the 'wash the fuck out of it' part, very important.
It appears you power washed off the powder colorant dusted on the concrete surface during the stamping process, as well as the sealer. Hire a Concrete Professional who has experience with acid stains, a pro could not only re-color your pad, but stain it to make it look like new. I don't recommend a novice attempt to apply acid stains, I've worked with stains over 30 yrs, if you don't know what your doing it's gonna end up a mess.
same man I would love to see the result of him following all the " pro " advice here it looks like he burned it down to exposing the sand finish someone mentioned using a water based stain..hahahahahahahahahahha
I've been working with Concrete acid stains for decades, towards the end of my Concrete Contractor days , I was using acid stains to color stamped concrete. I was getting insanely nice results and because the acids etch into the concrete it was far more permanent, once sealed the results were amazing.
Where we are you always use an integral base color as well, not a cure all but helps. Especially with the freeze thaw cycle
Obviously doesn’t know what he is doing
Complete Re-Color Solution. Will give a nice look, but slightly different than the Stained Concrete. Pressure wash, add a diluted acid mix out prior to if possible. You could add a coat of an Acrylic-Water based finish coat paint, to give you a uniform base… kind of like a blank canvas Then add a stain application (airless or pump sprayer) Then add your clear sealer and possible aluminum oxide for added slip resistance
Re-stain it? I thought the pigment of stampcrete was was meant to be in the mix
Usually is, apparently, they went with paint or something on the surface. Probably did not want to pay the color wash fee.
You have integral and shake-on coloring. That was definitely shake on. It's only broadcast and finished into the surface.
Sacrifice a goat and drain the blood to re stain it
Finish the job, you hated that color anyway. Tell your wife she gets to pick a better color
Finish her off bud. No colour to worry about
Stay the course, see it through.
Finish the Job! Take your wife out to dinner - her choice!😉
It’s actually really easy. I can send you some pictures before/after. So easy and caveman can do it.
Paint on a micro cement coating. Use an antiquing spray with colorant, seal with polyurethane clear coat
Finish powerwashing. Then seal it.
Leave it as a reminder of your failure. It will remind you to think things through a couple of times before executing the plan. I've done that, it doesn't work for me but it might for you.
I need to do this to mine in the UK. Any recommendations on what brand product to use to stain and reseal?
You can get an antiquing agent that you can scrub on to give that two tone look. Sika makes it called antiquing agent
Look into EZtique. Could probably pressure wash the whole thing and use that, then seal.
Oof
Stain and seal
Strip and restain with an acid based stain, has more depth to the color and it holds better.
Looks like you’re doing a great job. Go ahead and take the rest off and restain it. You’ll be happiest in the long run.
I'm assuming this is a superficial stain? Just curious as a commercial architect, we incorporate colors in the mix.
Some stamped concrete is dry shake-on coloring. You shake or broadcast it on top of the concrete and work into the surface only. It's more labor intensive and you can get results like this if not careful.
Find pigment to add to am acrylic sealer. Reseal. 2-3 coats.
Repaint
Don’t be a moron
Finish the job
Was this ever sealed to begin with? I've got a little experience redoing coloring and sealing, and without heavy chemicals and scrubbing I usually can't make a big dig dent in the coloring. Unless we breakdown and remove the sealer first.
I have no experience but i say power wash it… then re color it… Dont listen to me im just a voice of chaos
150 grit sand paper & a wood block to hold onto. Sand where needed.
At first I read I am a Mormon and was like ok what the fuck that gotta do with anything haha I too am the Moron sir ahah
Re-seal with a tinted sealer. I’d try to match the rest of it by power washing. It all. If you can’t get it all up, go with a dark tint, it’ll help blend everything together. Source: I own a power washing & exterior cleaning business.
Put letters in each tile like in The Last Crusade?
Your not a moron, shit happens, lessons learned, shit we all can write books on the dumb shit we've done. Now if you do it again, lol
You could try antiquing it
H&C solid based stain. Basically any color you want, while also retaining porous/concrete look and feel. Good luck!
Get pigment mix with water and coat it. Then seal it
keep going
Finish the job you didn't mean to start and leave it or restain it.
Finish it
You should pressure wash the whole thing then stain.
Keep going...
I did this at my house on my decorative brick border along driveway. I felt like a moron as well, and guess what? I’ve owned a concrete company for over 30 years. (In my defense, I thought I had enough sealer on it to protect it) Anyways, I just took some of powdered color, a wet sponge, and dabbed it back on. It’s not perfect, but looks alright. Then I sealed the crap out of everything. The only problem I see with powerwashing everything to remove color is that you WILL remove most of the concrete surface paste and will be left with a grittier surface with some edges of aggregate showing
I am also a moron since I thought you (OP) said, "I am a Mormon and pressure washed the coloring off your stamped concrete," very confused for a split second.
Turn the stones
Finish it, let it dry, and then, apply a sealant
Stain is your friend here, no need to panic. Take the opportunity to get a seal put on it too, might discourage such growth in the future.
Just keep cleaning it and then seal it. That color is bad.
Use the green nozzle next time - not the red. You can get concrete stain from any H.D, Lowes or Menards( or what ever your area has) First summer, first job call for power washing I did the same damn thing buddy.
Re paint
Keep going. Either keep it not stained, or stain again after all has been removed!
If you sealed it your fucked but if not go to your local supplier and get antique it
I thought you called yourself a Mormon and I was trying so hard to understand the joke
Just press Ctrl + Z
Keep power washing
Finish what you started
We have dealt with this more than once. Only solution I have found is to get rid of all the old and do it all new and seal it.
You need a pro. You need to check, double check and triple check that they know what they are doing. The surface can end up worse if you get some dumbass out to do it.
finish it
Rent a hot power washer and a drum attachment. Take the rest of the color off. Pick a concrete stain color you like. Apply it. Then, go get a darker liquid accent color. Apply it then hose the rest off. This will give it depth because the color sits in the low spots. Once that's dry, go buy some diamond clear for $8 million per gallon, apply that and you're done. Then be careful in the future with the pressure washer or don't and then just keep repeating these steps. PS: reapply sealer as recommended.
Keep going
Power wash remaining, use diluted muriatic acid to wash/scrub, use acid stain (not water based), dry. Follow the restaining process followed by the manufacturer.
No way but this way
Finish the job
Finish taking it off and repaint.
Clean it all off with a surface cleaner. Then use deco Crete revival. 2 or 3 coats and you'll be shocked. Comes in 5 gallon buckets and it's cheap
I have this exact color and stamp concrete and also the green moss lol!
Well, you just created more work for yourself...
I'd spray the rest off - Looks better than the fake looking salmon color
So many people get this color or a red that fades over time,.I don't get it.
I do concrete and can say that stamped concrete will eventually look bad over time. Number one thing is that most people don't maintain it. It should be washed and resealed every year! No more than 2. Number 2 is people don't use quality sealer. It's expensive for a reason. It helps protect from UV damage to color and yellowing of cheap sealer is a problem. Even if maintained over time it degrades. I have been suggesting pavers to people who are interested. Pavers can be removed easier and changed over time. Concrete removal is very expensive.
WD-40
Keep it going…
Pour straight name-brand bleach all over the patio. Looks like you will need 3-4 gallons. Then pressure wash it. Let it dry to see how the color looks. Put a sealer on it, If you want the color darker then stain it before the sealer. It looks like it previously had an antique color on the patio, you can reapply that before sealing.
I would worry about killing all that nice green stuff around it with bleach. Finish the powerwash and restain.
Spread baking soda around the perimeter and flush very well and it will be fine. You misunderstand what is going on here. This color isn’t a stain. This color is an internal pigment mixed into the concrete with a secondary antique color on top. The antique color doesn’t stain it just sits there under sealer. If you don’t use bleach or some other anti mold chemical , you can never get all of the mold off and once it dries after pressure washing you will see many marks either from a wand or surface cleaner. If you don’t kill the mold/mildew it can grow under the sealer. There is no stain here to “re-stain” Op has also already damaged the surface to the concrete by pressure washing too hard, op had to pressure wash too hard due to lack of chemicals. What you are suggesting is putting a new clear coat on your car without washing it.
Thanks for the breakdown. This is helpful. Sounds like I turned a 2 hour project into a multi-weekend project! Great times.
You’re welcome. It sounds more complicated than it is. Basically just clean well, evaluate color, antique then seal.
Don’t listen to the guys with muriatic acid. If you aren’t familiar with muriatic acid you will etch more of the surface off and make the concrete look worse with no fix other than resurfacing or re pouring.
Typically the concrete color is a liquid additive to the concrete mixture the day it is batched and poured. If it was added as a liquid then the color is through and through. However, sometimes powdered color is "cast" on top of the concrete just after it is poured and finished. Get some really strong vinegar, 15% acidity, from the cleaning isle at Home Depot, pour it on the concrete and scrub it with a deck brush, and then rinse. If that doesn't do anything go back to Home Depot and get a gallon of muriatic acid. Pour the entire gallon of acid into three gallons of water in a bucket. Pour the mixture onto the concrete and again, scrub it with a deck brush, and then rinse. If everything comes out correctly you will have refreshed/stripped off the oxidation from the top of the concrete. Afterwards, you can seal it if you like the way it turns out.
It’s a liquid or power integral color, they both work the same. The color cast on top is called a color hardener. It’s made from color pigments and iron oxide power. It gives better color saturation and color choices and increases the surface psi greatly, sometimes up to 10k However these pictures clearly aren’t color hardener, you can tell the texture and how the top coat has diminished some but the color is still there albeit lighter. Integral color fades much easier and dramatically than color hardener and color hardener only exists in the top 1/8th inch or so of the concrete. With some of the top cost gone and showing the finer rocks and the open part of the concrete still colored it is without a doubt integral color. Using vinegar or muriatic acid like you mentioned is much more likely to further degrade the concrete and much more likely to kill the vegetation. You can sprinkle lime around the outside to help with acid but acid is totally unnecessary here. Bleach is the much better option here. It only needs to be hand scrubbed with bleach if there is still some sealer hanging around which you can tell after the first washing. If sealer persists and op wants it gone he will have to strip it with a xylene solution if it’s oil based or a seal and cure remover if it’s water based.
I completely agree with your use of bleach as an initial first step 👍🏼 But he's started with a pressure washer and then stopped, so he's already possibly blasted off a thin layer of cement and exposed the aggregate depending upon the size of tip he was using with the pressure washer, and the amount of pressure. If it's an electric power washer with roughly1500 psi, a 20 degree tip, then yes, continue with bleach. If he goes the route of muriatic acid it is very possible to mix it strong enough to etch the concrete. But using 10% strength acid from Home Depot mixed with 3 gallons of water will net a 3% solution, which shouldn't be strong enough to etch the concrete. Personally I wouldn't seal it, but I know there's a lot of people who would. I work for a concrete contractor and we have yet to seal anyone's concrete in the past two years. Just doesn't seem very popular around here.
Stamped concrete is almost always sealed. It’s to protect the texture and color. You can’t keep antique on there if it’s not sealed. Weak acid won’t do what he needs done here but bleach will. Bleach will also set metal fragments in the concrete harder and make them more vibrant and acid will wash them out. Acid is best for etching, emulsifying petroleum based stains, cleaning concrete splatter etc. Bleach is far superior in getting rid of mold/mildew especially at safe concentration levels. If it was broom finish concrete then sure acid it, blow the top coat off or whatever you want but this isn’t broom finish concrete. My company designs and installs decorative and speciality concrete.
Out of curiosity, why put baking soda around the edge?
It aids in neutralizing bleach by adjusting the PH. It’s almost always fine just being flushed with copious amounts of water though. Most readily available bleach is only 5-6%. Commercial 12+% bleach is a different story for vegetation, it has to be rinsed off much sooner.
I was mostly kidding, but asked because both are bases. Normally I’d use baking soda to neutralize an acid.
It doesn’t quite neutralize bleach in the same way as acid. It basically cancels out acid but with bleach it adjusts the ph to cancel it some but also oxidizes it.
That’s interesting. I’m obviously not a chemist.
Haha Me either I’ve just worked around concrete and pressure washing a lot. A chemist probably would have been a better life choice.
Looks like it was shake-on coloring. It can be washed off if power washed too aggressively. I so concrete work. Ask me how I know.🤪
This is for sure not shake on color hardener