Red Concrete floor question

[59imp]

so the floor in my shop is red, i've washed it with industrial degreaser and it's clean now but there are some light splotchy spots. what can i use to even out the color and then something to seal it??

thanks in advance, mo

 

[Bonehead]

Red floor paint, or red cement? I used a floor paint on my garage, and it works well. I have also used a stain on raw cement with great luck.

 

[babyface]

Sealer

and then something to seal it??

Mo,
I use concrete sealer from Home Depot or they have similar products at real paint stores.

Babyface

 

[Willowbilly3]

There are several products. The polurathane floor paint works ok, I think runs arount $25-$30 a gallon but it does wear off in high traffic areas. The 2 part urethane paint is much better but also a lot more expensive.
It may have been acid stained and that also does wear down over time, it is extremely hard to get good uniformity due to the surface variations in concrete, best to be prepared for a marbling effect. I wouldn't re apply acid etch stain but you can if you like blotchy.
Most of the acrylic sealers go down easily with a roller and those do wear off pretty fast in high traffic areas and need a yearly touch up.
The most critical part to any concrete treatment is the preperation. We used to wet mop until the water was clean, do the last pass in socks and back out the door as you worked. Even the cleanest of shoes will leave footprints that only appear after the stuff has dried (especially the acid etch).

 

[Sniper]

Sounds like the floor was poured with the red tint in it in the first place. Nothing wrong with that, in fact it's the better deal. Have seen some jobs where the job was done on the cheap, and the top layer is colored while the rest of the concrete underneath is the natural color. (If the top is chipped you get a big white bulleye) There is a paste wax available with the color in it that is going to match the original color used. (Red is the most popular, green and blue next, never seen anybody use the yellow.) It will even out the blotches and seal the surface as well. It also makes the floor extremly slippery if you have snow on your shoes and try to walk across it. Water just beads up and can be squeegied off quite easy. I used an old household floor buffer ( yard sale find for $5.00 ) to buff it. Wears off in high traffic areas after 3 or 4 weeks. Check concrete contractors, concrete suppliers, in your area, they should know where to get it, may even sell it themselves. Sniper

 

[59imp]

ok thanks guys, the red is not painted on, i seem to remember the crew throwing red powder in the top layer as they finished the job and then smoothed it in. i don't want a blotchy surface, i'd like to even out the color and then seal it if possible. i live in a real small town, i don't think the guys that did the job are around anymore, but i'll check at the local lumber yard, no big box stores here.

mo

 

[Willowbilly3]

We used to get those products from a concrete supplier, not sure if the hardware store would carry anything. The powder dies are pretty durable but do only die the sureface as a rule. We did have some versions we mixed in the truck but most often sprinkled on as you mentioned. I didn't think of that treatment right away because we only used it in conjuction with stencils.