I see there are 2 types. reactive and non-reactive. Has anyone done either? How hard/easy was it? I live in a condo. with a patio about 5 ft by 10 ft. If I do it myself, I am guessing I cannot have the polished concrete. What I read you need a diamond sander. or something like that. I do like these images: http://www.acidstaindesigns.com/images/gallery/golden4.jpg
Greg.. when we were starting the house .. I spoke to the concrete suppliers.. he told me how to order it ( without air) still not sure what that does... then the finishers did oiwer trowel finish...very smooth... 3 days later we scored the slab... as the walls went up we covered with rolls of cardboard to protect from chips and any glues or mud getting on them. When we were ready to stain.. we cleaned with tsp.... rinsed and let dry for 2 days.. then we stained, nuetralized, and began cleaning the residue... that was pretty much an all day project for three people. ( There were several hours in there that we were waiting around between stages)...we let the slab dry for another 2 days then sealed... 2 coats ... then finish coat...
Like I said.. we were doing 3500 ft.... my brother had a dining room, hall and bedroom done ... they started on it Sat morning.. and had it cleaned and drying by early afternoon..
If you have older concrete you may have to do an overlay .. the acid stain reacts with the lime.. and that may not be in abundance with an older slab... I have read about some products that you wash on that help with that issue...
Posts: 2926 | Location: Texas | Registered: Mar 29, 2007
air's protection against freezing temps for critical surfaces (eg, we never used air for conc hgwys but did for bdge decks),,, steel fibers're added for placing a 'superplate' (extremely hard),,, NEVER use air w/steel fibers.
if that job went well, your brother was lucky,,, 2 days for us + another 1/2 day to seal.
lime is an ingredient of cement (cee-ment down south)[limestone, iron, silica, aluminum - lisa],,, it is always present in concrete,,, occasionally some contaminents/surfaces may interfere w/acid-stain reaction but its rare if you clean as beck did.
none of these posts're a substitute for experience,,, you learn by doing - its like operating a backhoe,,, all the posts, forums, books, & videos help you do is get excited
,,, but even i can't get 5gal of wtr into a 4gal bucket
acid-reactive stain changes free lime by chemical reaction of the acid's mineral salts; conc stain could be either latex acrylic or a penetrating dye; paint adheres mechanically; epoxies're used as interior coating the 1st 2 - for best results, its usually also coated w/urethane.
,,, but even i can't get 5gal of wtr into a 4gal bucket
there's more, too quik answer - if you ' paint ' something/anything outside, it shouldn't be conc,,, you either COAT, STAIN, or OVERLAY conc,,, THEN you seal it.
,,, but even i can't get 5gal of wtr into a 4gal bucket
