Five Decorative Concrete Resurfacing Techniques

Aug 27, 2010
Kelly Smith

Stamped Concrete Tile Floor - Lusi

Resurfacing concrete patios, driveways, and garden paths will add curb appeal and equity to the home in the economic recession and real estate downturn.

With housing starts down, job layoffs continuing, and a flat real estate market, many homeowners are deciding to make home improvements rather than sell and move up to a more expensive home. The trick is to identify home renovations that bring the most return on investment.

Concrete resurfacing is a popular improvement today. For example, it makes more economic sense to update a backyard cement patio rather than rip it out and dive into backyard deck design fundamentals. Not only is the update cheaper, but future maintenance will be minimal compared to annual deck refinishing.

Different Ways to Resurface Concrete

There are more resurfacing techniques than ever before. It's a classic case of demand driving innovation. Here are five of them:

Limecoat. Also referred to as lime coat, this finish may be applied to both horizontal and vertical surfaces. Although it was first developed as a building restoration method, it is now commonly used for cosmetic purposes. A thin coating (or veneer) of a mixture of hardened limestone and crushed quartz stone is applied and then a pattern is either hand-carved or made with with a stamp or pattern tool.
Epoxy floor finishes. These are mostly used in garages and are rapidly gaining in popularity. So much so that project kits are available at home improvement stores such as Home Depot. As a DIY project, an epoxy floor can be installed on a tight remodeling budget. Variations on the theme of garage flooring finishing are vinyl sheet goods and rubber tiles.
Stamped concrete. The salesman may call this method imprinted or patterned concrete, but it's really the same thing. This method is very popular for upgrading swimming pool decks, entryways, and patios. There are many patterns available, in fact they are virtually endless. Many, such as the clay brick paver pattern, look so close to the original thing that only an expert could tell the difference.
Concrete dyes and chemical stains. These are becoming popular not only for residential interior home floor finishes but also for commercial applications. Why? Two reasons; beauty and ease of maintenance. Many concrete contractors that specialize in these techniques are as much artists as they are blue collar workers.

Well Maintained Concrete is Important

Finally, it should be mentioned that concrete resurfacing is not only done for cosmetic reasons. For example, when minor cracks show up, the homeowner can make a walkway or driveway look as good as new using a mixture of Portland cement, sand, and water, or simply using a pre-blended commercial concrete product.