One of the most common methods for curing concrete is to hose it down frequently with water—five to 10 times per day, or as often as you can—for the first seven days. Known as “moist curing,” this allows the moisture in the concrete to evaporate slowly.
For general purposes, you can clean concrete with a mixture of part distilled white vinegar to part water. The ratio of water to vinegar depends on how deep the stain is that you need to remove from your concrete. Mix equal parts of water to vinegar if you need to remove light to medium stains.
Vinegar or baking soda: These natural cleaners work well to clean cement patios with stubborn charcoal or rust spots. Mix equal parts vinegar and water, scrub the patio with the mixture, then give it a good rinse. If stains don't dissolve, try undiluted vinegar.
Pressure washing is one of the fastest, most effective ways to get your concrete white again. Concrete can change color over time due to pollen, algae, or dirt buildup, but a good pressure wash can easily remove dirt and stains and make your concrete look new again.
Steps to recolor faded stamped concrete:
Apply additional coats of stain without waiting for the first coat to dry. Allow the final coat of antiquing stain to dry for at least 8 hours. Once the stain has fully dried, apply a solvent-based acrylic concrete sealer to protect the color from fading in the future.
You just mix up some sand, a little hydrated lime and Portland cement and trowel this onto the concrete. To get this stucco to bond permanently to the spalled concrete, the old concrete must be clean and solid, with all the loose concrete chipped away.
The best product for sealing and repairing cracks is a flexible caulk-based product like Quikrete Concrete Repair. This acrylic-based caulk is matte gray, textured to blend in with surrounding concrete. All it takes to apply this product is a caulk gun and a utility knife to cut the tip.
Concrete that is not moist-cured at all dries too rapidly, and reaches less than half its potential design strength. It will also have a greater number of shrinkage cracks.
Does concrete take 100 years to cure? No, this is a bit of a myth with the concrete industry. While concrete does continue to harden indefinitely, pore moisture has to drop below a certain level at some point and this isn't typically 100 years.
Up to about 300 °C, the concrete undergoes normal thermal expansion. Above that temperature, shrinkage occurs due to water loss; however, the aggregate continues expanding, which causes internal stresses. Up to about 500 °C, the major structural changes are carbonatation and coarsening of pores.
Concrete does not adhere to: Concrete – Dried concrete doesn't have any natural bonding agents, so in order to get wet concrete to bond to existing concrete, a bonding agent will need to be used. Molds – Most concrete molds are made from urethane rubbers, which are designed to be resistant to concrete bonding.
Top it with a decorative overlay.
These products — typically a blend of cement, aggregates and polymer resins — go on like a super thick paint to smooth surfaces and add color. With some overlay systems, you can customize the look by staining, dying, scoring, stenciling or even stamping the surface.
Diamond polishing is one of the most common methods used to get a shiny glass-like surface. It uses industrial diamonds to smooth, grind, and ultimately polish the surface. The grit you use determines the level of sheen you'll get on your floors. The finer the abrasive grit, the better.
The best resurfacing product for cracks is a product by Kilz. Kilz Over Armor can handle any minor cracks your concrete can throw at it. The product has a thinner consistency so it wouldn't be a good fit for more extensive damage. Over Armor can handle cracks that are up to 1/4" in depth.
Apply the Resurfacer
The easiest method for applying concrete resurfacer is to pour a small amount on the surface, then immediately begin spreading it evenly with a light, long-handled squeegee. Resurfacer can also be applied with a trowel or brush. Work in segments of no more than about 144 square feet at a time.
Sometimes a concrete slab is just too unstable or too badly damaged to make resurfacing possible. But when the problem is just superficial cracking, discoloring, or minor chipping or spalling, resurfacing is a very good option.
Simply fill a spray bottle with equal parts water and vinegar (or water and baking soda), and add a little bit of liquid dish detergent. Spray the mixture on your concrete surface and let it sit for about 30 minutes. Then scrub and rinse your concrete.
Apply a small amount of dishwashing liquid to the surface area and scrub it down using a push broom. Rinse the concrete floor down with water to remove residue. Finally, allow the surface to dry completely.