Staining a concrete pool deck is one of the highest-impact upgrades you can make to an outdoor space — and it's a very doable DIY. This guide walks the whole process: choosing the right stain, protecting your pool, prepping the surface, applying color, and sealing it with a slip-resistant finish.
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Step 1: Choose your stain
Our top picks are Antiquing™ Stain and EasyTint™ Tinted Sealer, or PaveWave™ and Portico™ for paver pool decks. All are favored for easy application, wide color options, and a natural, semi-transparent finish.
Antiquing™ is a spray-on, quick-dry colorant that creates an aged, mottled look — great on stamped concrete. EasyTint™ is thicker and more solid-looking, ideal for broom-finished concrete, with excellent coverage.
Test your color first. Try an Antiquing™ or EasyTint™ Trial Kit (or a Portico™/PaveWave™ kit for pavers) on a small area. Samples take minutes to apply with a foam brush and remove later with a stiff brush and xylene. Always use the sealer in the kit to see the true, sealed color.
An Antiquing™ trial kit color test — always seal the sample to judge true color.
Step 2: Protect your pool
Before any stain or sealer goes down, keep it out of the water:
- Cover the pool edge with heavy plastic sheeting, secured with painter's tape and weighed down in wind.
- Work in small sections with a roller or sponge — slow and steady near the edge.
- Use a pool cover or lean boards at the waterline as a splash guard.
- Have someone watch for drips and wipe them before they dry.
- If anything enters the pool, scoop out solids and ask your pool supply store about re-balancing the water.
Step 3: Prepare the surface
Prep is where projects succeed or fail:
- New concrete must cure 30 days before staining.
- Remove old paint or sealer with a stripper.
- Power-wash or scrub with ProClean Degreaser™ to remove oil, dirt, and debris.
- Test absorption: pour a cup of water in a few spots. If it doesn't soak in within 5 minutes, etch with CitrusEtch™, neutralize with ProClean Neutralizer™, and rinse well.
- Let the surface dry completely, and mask coping and expansion joints.
New concrete needs a full 30-day cure before it will take stain.
Step 4: Apply the stain
Antiquing™: remove all sprayer filters and apply two saturated coats with a pump-up sprayer — no wait needed between coats.
EasyTint™: spray or roll. To spray, shake well, remove filters, and apply thin coats in slightly circular, irregularly overlapping motions; shake the tank often so color stays suspended. To roll, use a 3/8″ nap roller in one direction with no pressure (pressure causes streaking). Either way, wait 8 hours between coats and thumbnail-test for cure before recoating.
Applying Antiquing™ with a pump-up sprayer — filters removed, two saturated coats.
Step 5: Seal the surface
Once the stain has dried, seal with EasySeal™ or HydroCryl™. Remove sprayer filters, then spray a thin coat starting from a far corner in slightly circular motions; let it dry before the second coat. For slip resistance, mix OxiGrip™ into the final coat — add it while stirring the sealer.
Pro tips: start at a far corner so you keep a clear path out; if sealer pools or looks uneven, backroll with a wetted, wrung-out 3/8″ nap roller; and before releasing the sprayer trigger, dip the tip into a bucket to avoid drips.
A sealed EasyTint™ pool deck — even color and a durable, low-sheen finish.
Step 6: Enjoy
After the final coat of sealer cures for 24 hours, your pool deck is ready — fresh color, slip-resistant finish, and a backyard that looks better than ever.
What's next
- Need color ideas? → Stained Concrete Pool Deck Ideas & Real Projects
- Sealer questions? → Concrete Pool Deck Sealer Guide
- Saltwater pool? → Saltwater Pool Deck Sealer FAQs
- Shop the products → Pool Deck Stains & Sealers
- Talk to us → Contact Direct Colors
Direct Colors. Shawnee, OK. Manufacturing the full decorative concrete system since 1997.
