Sealing stained concrete advise needed

[ruff]

I am going to do a stained concrete floor in our new home. We have done it previously and it looks great.

Would a stone sealer work well for stained concrete?
I have: 'Stone Pro'- 1) Ultimate Pro Granite Sealer (solvent base.) 2) Agua Pro (Water based).
Will any of these work?
Which is better?
Or should I get another product?

What finishing/sealing products work best with stained concrete in your experience.

Also in our home we sealed it with wax, works really well and feels nice, yet it scratches. To redo, do I need to strip the wax and re apply, or would buffing and adding another layer work?

Thanks for your advise.

 

[Mikey P]

If you're applying a floor (wax) finish why waste time and money on a penetrative?


if you want to be paranoid apply the Stone pro stuff, or better yet, Dry Treat Stain Proof.
Applebys will sell you some.

 

[Bee Busy]

check out www.prosoco.com

I'm no expert at concrete, but I know some guys that are big fans of Prosoco's stuff. For what it costs, I'm not sure Ultimate Pro would be a good idea, that's for very dense stones

 

[floorguy]

have you polished it??? or is it "as is"

 

[ruff]

If you're applying a floor (wax) finish why waste time and money on a penetrative?


if you want to be paranoid apply the Stone pro stuff, or better yet, Dry Treat Stain Proof.
Applebys will sell you some.

Mike, it is either wax or a sealer, trying to decide which option is better.
The wax has a nice feel to it yet it scratches, not sure how to renew.
If a sealer (teflon) which product is most suitable for stained concrete. I Never sealed stained concrete, so I am not sure how it will feel walking on it, if it's Teflon sealed. Does the teflon make it less gritty?

Bill, any specific sealer that your friends recommend? the LS Guard http://www.prosoco.com/ProductDetail.asp?ID={312A262C-A9F1-4E19-9EDB-48E4BD9D4EE9} sounds like it may be good.

 

[ruff]

Doug,
We haven't polished it and the intention is to stain as is.
It is an old house that we are going to pour this special concrete (sorry, forgot the name but I can find out) that goes over the entire floor. It can be very thin yet has a lot of strength.

If I do not polish, does that pretty much determines that I'll need the Wax? So that it does not feel gritty?

 

[floorguy]

or put a urethane on it....

here the thing.....

most of the sealers you talked about are "penetrating" meaning they seep in to the pores and fill it on a molecular level

The others are "topical" meaning they sit on top, and are more likely to scratch because they take the abuse of things

the 1st leaves you with the floor as you did it and need only be "refreshed" every so often

the 2nd will make a coating (the floor finish or "wax" wont really make it smooth) and may need to be taken off to be reapplied...hence strip and wax

if its a urethane, then that takes a big beating, and you can usually scuff and "touch-up" in extreme cases...

any other questions

 

[floorguy]

overlay is what its called.....heres some from a guy i went to school with
x]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aw08OdT8KRIx]

 

[Goomer]

overlay is what its called.....heres some from a guy i went to school with
4]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aw08OdT8KRI4]

That's pretty damn impressive stuff.

 

[ruff]

Thanks Doug.
So the impregnating sealer does not change (smooth) the rough feel of the concrete?

My recollection is that urethane is almost too shiny and gives more of a cold industrial look. However, if I understands you correctly, it can take a lot of abuse and be repaired?

 

[floorguy]

yes, and it is thick enough that it should "smooth" things out....