Smith’s Concrete Stain Concentrate
One quart bottle of Smith's Concrete Stain Concentrate for coloring interior and exterior concrete before sealing.
Specifications
- Type
- Concrete stain concentrate
- Sold as
- 1 quart
- System position
- Color coat on prepared concrete, sealed or topcoated after
- SKU
- 1385
Good to know
- This is a concentrate. It is diluted before use, so the coverage depends entirely on the dilution rate. Get the technical data sheet before you calculate how many bottles you need.
- Always sample on the actual slab. Stain reacts with the concrete itself, so two visually identical floors can take the same product very differently.
- Stain colors, it does not protect. Seal or topcoat the floor after the color is set and any residue has been removed.
- Mix all the material for a floor from the same batch and dilution. Mixing a second batch mid floor is the fastest way to get a visible color break.
- Ships as a regulated liquid under ground shipping rules. Call 817-676-6793 for shipping questions on quantity orders.
About the Smith’s Concrete Stain Concentrate
Smith's Concrete Stain Concentrate is a color concentrate for staining concrete, supplied in 1 quart bottles. Because it is a concentrate, the quart is not the finished product. It gets diluted and applied at whatever rate the manufacturer specifies, which is what makes a small bottle cover meaningful square footage and what makes color consistency a mixing discipline rather than a material property.
Stain sits in a different category from coating. A coating puts an opaque film on top of the slab and hides what is underneath. A stain colors the concrete itself and leaves the character of the slab showing through: the variation, the trowel patterns, the aggregate exposure from grinding. That is either exactly what the customer wants or exactly what they do not, and it is worth settling before the material is ordered.
Because the slab is part of the finish, sample first, every time, on the actual floor being stained. Two slabs poured the same week with the same mix take stain differently depending on curing, finishing and what has been spilled on them over the years. A test patch in an out of the way corner is 20 minutes that saves a full floor.
Stained concrete needs to be sealed or topcoated. The stain provides color, not protection, so a sealer or a clear topcoat goes over it once the color is set and any residue has been cleaned off. Dilution ratio, application method and cleanup instructions are on the technical data sheet, available on request. Call 817-676-6793 for the sheet and for help sizing the order to your square footage.
What it is used for
- Coloring interior concrete floors before sealing
- Decorative residential and retail slabs
- Refreshing color on an existing stained floor
- Accent and border work alongside coated areas
- Exterior patios and walkways where a film coating is not wanted
Before you order
Work out how much you need
The most common ordering mistake in this category is buying by the gallon instead of by the floor. Coverage changes with porosity, profile and whether the coat is a base, a broadcast or a topcoat. Put the slab dimensions in and get a range rather than a single number.
How much material do I need?
Enter the slab. We will give you a range, because porosity and surface profile change real coverage.
- Floor area
- 400 sq ft
- Base coat
- 3.1 to 3.4 gal
- Topcoat (1 pass)
- 3.1 to 3.4 gal
- Flake
- about 8 x 25 lb boxes
Base coat, flake broadcast to rejection, then a clear topcoat. Order roughly 10% over on a first job.
Questions about this product
How much does a quart of Smith's Concrete Stain Concentrate cover?
Smith's Concrete Stain Concentrate is a concentrate, so coverage depends entirely on the dilution ratio you use and how absorbent the slab is. We publish the manufacturer dilution and application rate rather than a fixed square footage. Call 817-676-6793 and we will send the technical data sheet.
Do I need to seal concrete after staining it?
Yes. Smith's Concrete Stain Concentrate provides color, not protection, so the floor needs a sealer or a clear topcoat over it once the color has set and any residue is cleaned off. Without a topcoat the color will wear in traffic lanes and the slab stays open to staining and spills.
What is the difference between staining and coating concrete?
Smith's Concrete Stain Concentrate colors the concrete itself and leaves the slab's own character visible, including trowel marks, variation and exposed aggregate. A coating like an epoxy or polyaspartic puts an opaque film over the slab and hides what is underneath, which is a completely different look.
Why does stained concrete look different from slab to slab?
Smith's Concrete Stain Concentrate reacts with the concrete, so the mix design, the finishing, the age of the slab and whatever has soaked into it over the years all change the result. Always run a test patch on the actual floor in an out of the way area before committing to the full job.
Goes well with
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