If you are remodelling your home or place of business you may be looking at flooring options. As a homeowner renovating with stained concrete floors can be a really innovative and affordable way to bring design and insultation to your home.

If you are running a business with heavy footfall an outdoor concrete stain floor is also a good idea for durability and design. However, you need to consider all aspects of your choice. In this article we bring you 3 important things to note about concrete floors to help you decide.

3 Things You Should Know About Stained Concrete Floors

Stained concrete flooring is a relatively new idea when it comes to stylish, fashion-forward flooring. A technique called Acid-Etch staining is used to embed paint into the concrete rather than applying it over the surface. This technique gives a lot of depth to the floor and allows it to mimic other types of flooring, like stained wood or polished marble. This beautiful effect is slowly allowing stained concrete to catch some wind in the interior design world. If you’re ever looking to change the way your house is floored, then try to dive into other options.

There are so many options for you to consider that it is worth consulting your professional flooring expert to find the right solution for you. Here are 3 things you need to know about stained concrete floors.

Price Point 

Believe it or not, stained concrete flooring is much cheaper than stained wood or polished marble. On average, a stained concrete floor is around 3 times cheaper than a stained wooden floor. A normal stain job will set you back about $2-$4 per square foot. This is because this is the most basic kind of stain job where you apply just one color, a final sealer coat, and minimal slab preparation. You could get a proper upgraded stain job done for a price around $8-$15. This is with multiple color build-ups and complex-sawed patterns all over it.

One thing we also need to take into consideration is how durable the concrete is. With proper sealing and care, a well-done stain job can last for years on end without requiring any replacement. Concrete is a much more solid material than tiles and wood, so there are a lot fewer maintenance costs involved, other than the few crack fillings you might have to do every now and then. 

Versatility and style in concrete staining

We explained a little bit about how much you can do with a concrete floor. It can more or less be treated like a canvas because of the detail you can add to the designs.

There are two different types of stain-jobs, water-based and acid-based staining. Water-based staining is mostly used for a solid color formation, while acid-based staining gives a much more translucent and stronger effect. Mimicking the texture of a polished marble floor or even a tanned leather look is done through acid-based staining. Water-based staining allows us to play around with a lot of colors rather than textures and this site can explain all the different uses and applications of stained concrete.

One thing to also consider regarding these detailed works of art is how long they can last as well. As explained earlier, the stain is embedded into the concrete rather than layered on the surface, allowing the richness of its color and texture to remain intact for many years.

Functionality

Stained concrete is one of the most energy-efficient and durable flooring options available. If you’re someone who likes socialising this flooring is a good idea. Or if you run a business with footfall like a cinema, for example, concrete flooring is a good option. The energy efficiency comes from how good an insulator concrete is.

Concrete is generally considered as a cold flooring option, but because it releases heat very slowly, one can minimize the usage of their air conditioners and heaters as well. This property also gives people the option to install their wires inside their flooring to create heated flooring. Stained concrete is an especially good option if you’re in a place that operates heavy machinery or flammable material because the flooring is fire-resistant and could end up saving people’s lives. Scratches and cracks are very normal due to the material being porous in nature, but a simple wax solution easily fixes those. So renovating with stained concrete floors can be a good idea.

Final thoughts on renovating with stained concrete flooring

The flooring does have a few issues associated with it. Just like everything else, it is not perfect. The floor sometimes ends up being too hard and too durable. For in-house use, this means any glass you drop will shatter into pieces as soon as it touches the ground. This can be an issue for people with very young kids or older adults living with them.

Apart from that, it’s a very heavy material. This makes it a very difficult material to use it on the upper floors of the building. You will need structural engineers to ensure it is safe for the residents to have a concrete floor above their heads. Concrete is also less environmentally friendly compared to other types of flooring. This is due to the amount of carbon dioxide produced while making it.

Final  reflection on stained concrete flooring

Other than these particular features, stained concrete is a wonderful option for your floors.  All these considerations are important when you are weighing up your options. However, the style of flooring can be very attractive. And it is available at a fraction of the cost of marble or stained wood flooring.

REFERENCE ARTICLES ON FLOORS & HOME REFURBISHMENT FOR HOME OWNERS

At Housesitmatch.com we like to offer our readers articles related to the blog they have found online. Please find a selection of blogs on similar topics to the one you have been reading. These articles have been curated for you in our list below:

Choose flooring to upgrade a room

Why select a parquet floor for home?

Why expand your home kitchen – Great ideas

Housesitters keep pets safe at home and save money

Preparing a home for a house or pet sitter