Concrete Decor's Current Articles

Building owners are asking contractors around the country to create decorative outdoor concrete features on areas not normally associated with concrete surfaces such as decks and roofs.

Viridian Architectural Design initially wanted to resurface the ground floor of the circa 1875-1895 Fulton County Courthouse in Rochester, Indiana, with terrazzo but the money for the pricey topping wasn’t in the budget. Still, the county wanted that stone look to complement the other floors in the building and polishing was deemed the next best thing.

For those of us who work in the U.S., Canada and Western Europe, we take for granted the quality of our everyday materials, let alone how easy they are to obtain. In developing countries, the amount of time and cost involved in getting everything needed for a job can be staggering. But staggering to who?

While a mechanical — or other — method of preparing concrete for an overlay will generally remove whatever is on the existing surface and open it up for the new application, it’s not always enough.

Just about any coloring material or tool can potentially be useful on a restoration job. However, some manufacturers have targeted this growing niche with specially marketed materials. Here are a few of those products, with some descriptions from their suppliers.

The finish on this water feature was achieved using a handful of soy-based products. It’s a great way to get a more earth-friendly surface that boasts deep, rich colors to boot. As an additional plus, the concrete is profiled with garnet abrasives, which not only ensure a low-dust blasting experience, but also give the finished surface a reliably nonslip surface.

Evil allows you to appreciate good. The occasional really bad customer makes you appreciate all the more the even more occasional really good customer. Night makes you appreciate the day. Cool makes you appreciate warm.

Cheng Concrete has reinvented its annual concrete design challenge with the first contest of a new series — the Kitchen & Bath Concrete Maker Challenge. The company announced the 2013 winners in November.

Registration is open for the American Concrete Institute’s Spring 2018 Convention and Exposition March 25-29 at the Grand America and Little America hotels in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. This year’s theme is Concrete Elevated.

In recent years the decorative concrete and coatings market has made its way over to the retail market. Retailers have unique needs that they have to address, and decorative concrete and coatings are becoming a more and more popular method for filling those needs.

One thing I noticed is that it seemed like a lot of the wet-cast apron-front sinks I cast had developed very fine hairline cracks in the corners. The cracks never opened up but would show up when the sinks got wet. I don’t know if the sinks cracked during striping and handling or from concrete shrinkage later — all I knew was I had to stop them.

Second-story decks are popular outdoor spaces in both residential and commercial buildings, In order to help combat moisture problems below these decks, Westcoat Specialty Coating  Systems offers two popular and proven waterproofing coating systems: ALX and MACoat.

Decorative concrete overlays, stampings, fountains and countertops created from scratch. And the best part of all was that the majority of the work the artisans created are to become a permanent working part of Walla Walla County Fairgrounds.

Keeping up with the newest trends in the concrete curbing market. Take a look at four awesome concrete curbing machines.

Avoiding certain pitfalls can mean the difference between a struggling hobby and a thriving business. When it comes to countertops, here are a few of the most common mistakes we at the Concrete Countertop Institute think are the biggest stumbling blocks for aspiring concrete countertop contractors.

Using a little bit of research, a dash of cunning and a lot of experimentation, developing your own mix designs can save you from many decorative concrete pitfalls.

Are you content with installing decorative concrete countertops, overlays and stamped concrete, or do you have what it takes to rise to the occasion?

The Crack-Chaser Blade from Pearl Abrasive Company was designed for more efficient cleaning, routing and repairing of cracks in concrete. The diamond segments are sintered to the core in a V-shaped pattern, leaving a clean groove for filling.

Each new edition of Concrete Decor provides invaluable insights and perspective from our industry columnists. The magazine also contains focuses on projects that constantly aim to unlock the best practices for turning ordinary concrete into finishes that challenge traditional building and finishing methods.

Jimmy McGhee, who handles sales and technical support for Versatile Building Products, here offers his own unique tips and techniques for distributing mica flake on a flooring job.

The hardscape around the Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center at 535 Barnhill Drive is a beautiful addition to the Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) campus.