The short answer for a plant: weigh it, and do not assume one pump setting covers the line. Viscosity across the seven colors runs from about 500 to 60,000 cps — a spread of more than a hundred to one — so the color you set the equipment up on is not representative of the next one.
The viscosity spread
Published nominal values, in centipoise:
| Code | Color | Viscosity, cps |
|---|---|---|
| 101 | Red | 500 – 8,000 |
| 102 | Carbon Black | 30,000 |
| 119 | Yellow | 500 – 15,000 |
| 201 | Blue | 60,000 |
| 204 | Chromium Green | 6,000 |
| 205 | White | 6,000 – 8,000 |
| 206 | Charcoal | 500 – 10,000 |
- 101 Red — 500 – 8,000
- 102 Carbon Black — 30,000
- 119 Yellow — 500 – 15,000
- 201 Blue — 60,000
- 204 Chromium Green — 6,000
- 205 White — 6,000 – 8,000
- 206 Charcoal — 500 – 10,000
201 Blue at 60,000 cps and 102 Carbon Black at 30,000 cps are in a different world from 101 Red or 206 Charcoal, which can run as low as 500. Any line, pump, dispenser or hose sized around a thin color will struggle on a thick one, and a metering setting calibrated on one will not deliver the same mass of the other.
Weight is the unit, whatever the delivery method
The dose is defined in pounds of paste per 94 lb sack of cement. That does not change because the paste arrives through a pump. If you meter by volume you are converting through a density that varies by roughly a factor of two across the line and is published as a range — and for 204 Chromium Green is not published at all. Verify by weight, whatever meters it.
- Check the delivered mass on a scale against the target for at least the first batch of any color change.
- Recalibrate on every color change, not just on every product change.
- Do not dilute to improve flow. Dispersible in water is a property, not an instruction, and thinning changes both the dose and the water in the mix.
- Account for what stays in the line. Paste left in a hose or on the walls of a pack is dose that never reached the batch — rinse the container into the mix.
What has to be held constant
Direct Colors publishes no mixing time for this line. Establish it on a trial batch and then hold it — same batch sequence, same mixer, same mixing time, same materials on every load. Under-mixing is a common cause of streaking and mottling, and a plant that changes one variable per shift will not hold color across a job.
Before you commit a production run
Two conversations are worth having first. Call 405-275-6657 with the mix design, the equipment and the colors you intend to run, particularly if a pump needs a viscosity held to a tolerance. And approve the color from a cured panel made with the plant’s own materials — see how to make and approve a test panel.
Common questions
Can I pump ColorBlast Pro pigment paste?
Direct Colors publishes viscosity values but no pumping specification, so the equipment question belongs with your supplier and with us. What matters most is that viscosity runs from about 500 to 60,000 cps across the seven colors, so one setup will not suit all of them.
Which colors are the thickest?
Blue 201 at about 60,000 cps and Carbon Black 102 at about 30,000 cps. Red 101, Yellow 119 and Charcoal 206 can run as low as 500 cps. That is a spread of more than a hundred to one.
Can I meter by volume if I am running a pump?
Verify by weight. The dose is defined in pounds of paste per sack, and converting through volume means converting through a density that varies by roughly a factor of two across the line, is published as a range, and for 204 Chromium Green is not published at all.
Can I thin the paste to improve flow?
No. Do not dilute it. That it disperses in water is a property of the material rather than an instruction, and thinning changes both the dose and the water in the mix.
What mixing time should the plant run?
There is no published mixing time for this line. Establish it on a trial batch, confirm the color is uniform through the batch, and then hold that time and sequence on every load.
How should a yard store it?
Above 37 degrees Fahrenheit, and never allowed to freeze — in transit, in storage or on site. Shelf life is six months from purchase unopened. If a pack arrives frozen, raise it within 24 hours of delivery with the order number and photographs.
What’s Next
- Weight not volume → Weight or Volume?
- Quantities → How Much Liquid Concrete Pigment
- Mixing it → How to Use Liquid Concrete Pigment
- Approve the color → How to Make and Approve a Test Panel
- Questions → 405-275-6657
Direct Colors. Shawnee, OK. Manufacturing the full decorative concrete system since 1997.
