The lighter salt and pepper grays of the aggregate blend with the dark gray matrix of the cement paste.
Adding color to concrete floors.
In general there are three ways to think about adding color to a concrete installation.
We will make a youtube play button out of red concrete.
For the most accurate integral concrete color choose ready mix cement with around 10 fly ash and no more than 20.
Color and concrete have evolved during the past decade but especially within the past year.
Adding a minimal premium for a tint is a simple way to add value to the project.
We will use cement sand gravel w.
If you have concrete floors in your basement garage or screened in patio you don t.
This approach is desirable for many projects since the customer is already paying for a clear sealer.
Many property owners will add a dark integral color to parking area concrete and then expose the aggregate in the concrete by sandblasting medium to heavy or by using a surface retarder.
The first as noted above is to add a color pigment to the original mix.
While there are structural benefits of adding fly ash to concrete a higher rate of fly ash results in a lighter final appearance of the concrete slab which makes predicting color more difficult.
We use colored concrete for stamped concrete patios stamped concrete driveways and interior concrete floors all the time.
You will see how to prepare color concrete with a concrete mixer.
Another option for coloring concrete is to apply a color hardener to the top layer of concrete after it has been poured.
The integral color works great on its own or it can be used as a back drop to be accented with concrete stain or concrete dye.
Step 4 add a little more warm water than usual to the mix so it will pour easier into the bottle.
Roll curbs can be treated the same way.
In a small container mix the concrete coloring pigment with water and then add to the concrete according to the instructions on the bag.
While a color hardener can produce more vibrant colors than adding colorant to the mix any dings or edges in the finished slab will show since the color is only on the surface of the concrete.
In the early years when one talked about adding color in conjunction with polishing first it was integral colors or dry shake hardeners then acid stains crept to the forefront as it became viable to combine densifying and acid stains.