If you are considering decorating your interiors or exteriors, decorative concreting offers some nice options you might want to consider. There are various methods of decorative concreting these include.

Stained concrete

Staining concrete is a method of coloring it to your desire. If you need patterns, stencils or scored lines can be applied with the staining. The three ways concrete can be stained are:

Acid staining

In this method, acid is used to color the concrete. The acid reacts with the concrete and gives it a different color. Acid stains produce a nice grainy look, not very different from marble.  It requires caution, since it is acid and it will make defects in the concrete more apparent.

Water-based concrete stains

These work more like dyes as they are absorbed by the concrete. They give a more even and semi-translucent look throughout the concrete. They can be used to refine the effect of acid stains to give the concrete a unique look.

Acrylic Based concrete stains

These work like water based concrete paints but come with a greater selection of colors. The way the paint looks before use is how the concrete will end up looking so it gives you the real picture and you can easily choose. The main advantage of staining concrete is that the color reaches into cracks, something which ordinary paints cannot. Stained concrete works better if a protective coating is added and it can be used with other styles of decorating concrete like stamping.  

Stamped concrete

This is where impressions or patterns are made on the concrete. This means that the concrete should be wet enough for the impressions to be made. Stamping can also be done even if the concrete is not fresh provided that a layer of concrete or overlay mixture has been added on top. The weakness with an overlay mixture is that it is a weaker material than concrete. There are several coloring options that can be used and one of them is integrated colors which are mixed with the concrete before it is poured. This means that even if the concrete chips in future, the color will remain the same.  

Scored concrete

This involves making cuts into the concrete to achieve a pattern. This method can be used in conjunction with staining. It can be done on both fresh and old concrete.  

Polished concrete

The concrete is scrubbed till it looks new and shiny. The inner layers may be exposed giving the concrete a unique look. You can stain polished concrete if you want it colored. When you are planning to have decorative concreting, talk to the company that offers it to know which options they have for you.