Resealing your Stamped Concrete

The industry standard for maintenance of exterior stamped concrete seems to be some variation of the following: Reseal every one to three years, depending on environment and type of traffic, using the same sealer as was originally applied. Reseal in the spring when the threat of cold weather has passed. While this is pretty general, with room for interpretation, it pretty much covers all the key points. What it fails to mention is that maintenance should be going on in those one to three years.

Stamped concrete is an investment that often costs two to five times what its plain gray counterpart costs. If an end user wants to keep their investment looking its best, they have to take ownership of and responsibility for that investment. This is where the disconnect often takes place.

Pay $15,000 for a new car and you know that regular maintenance (oil, tires, fluids, etc.) is part of the deal for the life of the car. Now have someone pay that same $15,000 for a new stamped concrete patio. They see concrete with no maintenance. It's colored, resembles stone or tile, and costs more to install, but in the end it's concrete.

Unfortunately this is bred into our society, as all concrete is lumped together in a category of materials that last forever, serve a purpose and require no maintenance. This is why it is so important that the we as the installer, sell stamped concrete as the high-end investment it is. That includes presenting detailed maintenance guidelines before the contract is signed and work begins.

A few of the key maintenance guidelines for stamped concrete:

Keep it clean. Sand, dirt and grit are what really eat up sealers on exterior stamped concrete. The small razor-sharp edges act like sandpaper every time someone walks across the surface or the wind blows. Regular sweeping or light soap-and-water washes can make a huge difference in extending the life span of the sealer.

Easy on the salt. While salt itself is not the culprit, what it does to water is. Salt reduces the freezing temperature of water, increasing the number of freeze-thaw cycles. This increased number of water expansions and contractions affects the concrete. You want to minimize the amount of standing water on the concrete during the cold freeze-thaw months to minimize the potential for damage.

Encourage shoveling instead of salting, and if salt must be used, sweep off the excess salt and melt water once the snow has melted. I even encourage owners who use salt to hose down their stamped concrete on those occasional warm days in the winter. Absolutely NO SALT on concrete less than 12 months old

Think thin on the reseal. When the time comes to actually reseal, go thin. The sealer should go further than the stated coverage rate on any reseal. Remember, you are not applying a base coat - you're reinforcing what is already down on the surface. Don't reseal every year as a matter of rule, but rather as needed when the old sealer has worn down.

Strip the old to make room for the new. In time, all good things come to an end. This holds true for properly applied sealer on stamped concrete. After many years and multiple reseals, dirt and contamination will naturally get ground into the sealer to the extent that regular cleaning will no longer get it out. At this point the stamped concrete will not look good, even after resealing. This signals the time when stripping off the old layers of sealer must be done so you can start over from a clean concrete substrate. Stripping sealers from stamped concrete sucks, and that is an understatement, but over a long time and many reseals it may become necessary.

Concrete Makeovers provides complete restoration services for all of your stamped concrete and decorative concrete surfaces. We will come to your home or business and determine the extent of your resealing or recoloring needs.

Call Artcon Concrete today for your free stamped concrete evaluation.

(603) 820-6364

visit us online at: www.artcon-concrete.com