Cleaning Concrete For Acid Staining

Mop or rinse a couple of times with clean water.

Cleaning concrete for acid staining.

If applying acid stain indoors cover adjacent walls with plastic sheeting held in place by painter s tape and. Go over the area thoroughly with a wet mop and plenty of fresh clean water. Our concrete stain prep and our wax remover are both excellent concrete degreasers. Because acid stains need to penetrate into the concrete surface to work it s especially important that the concrete surface is completely clean.

This video discusses prep for an acid stain. A solution of tsp trisodium phosphate and a lot of elbow grease with a scrub brush would be your best bet. Clean the surface to be stained with a concrete cleaner labeled for use on the specific type of dirt or blemish you wish to remove. Acid etching is the process of applying hydrochloric muriatic or buffered phosphoric acid to a slab then rinsing it off with water.

Using a scrub brush with a long handle makes cleaning much easier. Floor prep is hard work it s messy and it takes some time but it s worth the effort to be sure your decorative concrete installation lasts. How to acid stain a concrete floor step 1. The stain will not take at all if you use acid as a cleaner.

For final cleaning you should do a good scrub down using t s p. To achieve the best results with an acid stain be sure to adhere to these dos and don ts when preparing your concrete canvas. The second step in the process is also very important. Allow the surface to dry completely before proceeding with acid staining.

Use a stiff straw scrub brush or a floor buffing machine with the aggressive scrubbing pads. I applied a special etching solution. For many years it was a standard method of concrete preparation used by nearly all industrial commercial and institutional floor coating installers depending on the floor size and system to be installed. Do remove any materials that may inhibit concrete stain penetration such as grease oil coatings or curing membranes.

Another option would be to use a pressure washer to clean the concrete slab.