Concrete Patio Stain Ideas
Get inspired by our concrete patio photo gallery and create your own backyard retreat.
Do you have a front patio? Boost the curb appeal of your home with some concrete stain and sealer! Direct Colors has the right colored concrete solution for every type of concrete finish.
Scored Concrete Sanctuary
Concrete Porch Paradise
- Project Completed In: 5 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 70 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
I went to Lowe’s first because I wanted to stain my porch concrete to a dark color. I was guided to use Valspar semitransparent concrete stain. I chose the charcoal color for the most coverage, I thought. Being that part of my concrete is extremely porous, uneven and had used peroxide on it in the past it did not take well.
I then was referred to Direct Colors by a friend. I purchased the Antiquing black and russet stains to cover my porch and leave some contrast and design. Again the Antiquing black stain did not absorb in many areas, even after 2 layers. The russet seemed to cover very well but did not give me the look I wanted due to the Antiquing black not absorbing. So I was directed to use the russet all over, then given the black Portico to spray all over that x 2 layers. This is what finally worked and we love the look! Ty Direct Colors for your guidance, patience and generosity!
- Personal Tips:
The Russet Antiquing was the base layer I needed to absorb due to its larger pigments for my porous concrete. The Portico is what I needed instead of the Antiquing due to its double pigments. - Direct Colors Products Used:
Russet Antiquing
Black Antiquing
Black Portico
Acrylic Satin Sealer - Other Products Used:
Valspar SemiTransparent Concrete stain in Charcoal ( not not work well)
Hand Troweled Haven
Taking a Crack at Antiquing Stain
- Project Completed In: 4 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 200 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
I was googling for a concrete stain and really liked the look of direct colors. I watched a few videos, it is pretty self explanatory. So I purchased and stained the concrete antique black 2 coats and used a Walmart craft gold acrylic paint to paint the cracks. I applied the sealer, sprayed the first coat and rolled the second. Mine isn’t shiny the whole way across because my cement isn’t smooth but love the outcome. I really love that this product was easy to use, had good how to videos and fast shipment. If your looking for a good diy product this is the one.
- Personal Tips:
The sealer smell is really strong so just be aware of that. Watch the videos. Remember if your concrete is porous you are going to use more stain. Don’t use any weight on your roller when applying sealer. It’s actually easier than I thought. And don’t worry about messing up cause you can’t. A very easy product to apply my first time ever doing anything like this. - Direct Colors Products Used:
Black Antiquing Stain & Seal Kit - Other Products Used:
Walmart gold acrylic craft paint
Project Info:
- Project Completed In: 2 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 170 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
Front patio with brushed concrete. - Personal Tips:
Spray 100sq feet at a time so you use 1/2 gallon at a time. This way you know how much to spray without wasting any. Also you are able to keep the stain mixed up better in the sprayer.
Direct Colors Products Used:
Antiquing charcoal stain and EasySeal satin DIY kit
Farmhouse Patio Floor
Project Info:
- Project Completed In: 3 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 0.00 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
Antiquing stain on a broom finish concrete covered patio on my new construction farmhouse. - Personal Tips:
I sprayed the antiquing stain with a pump sprayer and rolled two coats of sealer with a wide roller.
Direct Colors Products Used:
Silver gray antiquing stain and satin solvent-based sealer.
Pole Barn Patio
Front Porch Patio Facelift
- Project Completed In: 3 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 200 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
Front porch and patio re-stain and seal. As you can see in the first picture, left side is faded and worn out, while lower right has been stained. The other pictures follows through to the completed job, looks fantastic, your products really did great! - Personal Tips:
Make sure to clean the area that will be stained and remove as much of the old clear coat (if any) that is on it to have a smooth finish! - Direct Colors Products Used:
Driftwood Antiquing Stain
Solvent-Based, High Gloss Acrylic Concrete Sealer
Just Like New Stamped Concrete
- Project Completed In: 2 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 400 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
Started off with Colorado weather damaged concrete, typical freeze and expand pitting, and warn faded coloring and sealant due to the strong sun we have. Used the Direct Colors concrete patching compound and some concrete pigment to patch all the pitted areas. Used a pump sprayer to apply the antiquing stain, which went on easily and consistently. Applied the two coats of acrylic sealer and the color popped! My patio looks brand new. We are extremely happy with the outcome, easy application, and great look. - Personal Tips:
When filling concrete pits with the patching compound, sand down the compound slightly before it’s solid, otherwise it’s almost impossible to sand down..
When applying the acrylic sealer, let the weight of the saturated roller do the work. I personally found that rolling the roller back from the far end, let the sealer apply nicely.. Roll the roller nice and slow to prevent the acrylic sealer from bubbling as it dries. - Direct Colors Products Used:
Antiquing Stain & Seal Kit ( Driftwood stain, Solvent Base Acrylic Sealer – Gloss)
Concrete Patching Compound
Concrete Pigment (Cocoa Brown)Other Products Used:
Pressure washer to clean it off
Drab to Driftwood Patio
Project Info:
- Project Completed In: 2 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 300 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
We wanted to add some color to our concrete patios. We started on our small front porch just to make sure we could handle the process and that we liked it enough to do our back porch! We absolutely loved how it turned out. We had everything planned out and it went very smoothly. We are so happy with it. We can not wait to do our garage next! - Personal Tips:
We had taped off everything well and then we bought some cheap plastic shower curtains and taped those up on top of the tape so we did not splatter or get any stain on the siding. It was quick and easy to put up and also take down.
Also, my husband held the one gallon sprayer and continuously shook the stain while I sprayed. - Direct Colors Products Used:
Driftwood Antiquing Stain and satin sealer.
Other Products Used:
Dollar tree plastic shower curtains. Frog tape. Small one gallon sprayer.
Sunfaded No More
Project Info:
- Project Completed In: 2 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 0400.00 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
Redo the color that was sunfaded and blotchy also sealed all concrete curbing - Personal Tips:
Other Products Used:
Xylene and generac pressure washer
Charcoal Stained Salt Finish Patio
Recolored & Revamped Stamped Concrete
- Project Completed In: 4 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 350 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
I was looking to recolor and stain my rather ugly orange patio that was there when I moved in. The patio was stamped so I knew there had to be a way to make it look good. Luckily, I found Direct Colors and got just the result I wanted. I mixed charcoal and black Antiquing stain to create a deep dark color which slightly showed the previous orange, creating a natural look. Then I sealed it to pop the color. I love it!
- Personal Tips:
If you are covering an old color that is very bright, make sure to buy enough stain. It took me multiple layers due to the bright orange that was there before. Other than that, it was a rather simple process. I mixed some anti slip into the final sealer to ensure a finish that was also safe. - Direct Colors Products Used:
Charcoal Antiquing Stain & Seal Kit
Black Antiquing Stain & Seal Kit
Non Slip Additive - Other Products Used:
Two pump sprayers & deck brush
Crimson Colored Concrete That Pops
- Project Completed In: 4 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 1236 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
We had stamped concrete installed with requested color added to concrete. Color was not done right by contractor which didn’t allow stamped area to pop out from retaining walls surrounding it. Since we had used Direct color before on an acid stain for a small area on property we decided to go with the Antiquing stain since it allowed a more solid color approach and the direct color site recommended it for stamped concrete. We liked the idea of it being shiny wet look with the gloss and we were glad we did rather than the satin.
- Personal Tips:
If your concrete is stained with water build up like ours was from a fountain grind off calcium build up with had grinder and clean and etch with Direct color product. Order more than enough color if performing work on stamped concrete since it soaks up significantly more than finished concrete, two coats for good solid color end product with some area follow-ups of touch up if lighter. The sealer seems to bring it all together. Thin coats of sealer since thick coat will cause bubbles in top coat. - Direct Colors Products Used:
Crimson antique stain with Acrylic high gloss concrete sealer - Other Products Used:
Cleaner etcher compound
Faded to Fabulous Back Patio
- Project Completed In: 2 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 450 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
I had been living at this home for about 5 years and had never done any sort of maintenance for my stamped concrete patio. The previous sealer seemed to have already worn off even before I moved in, so my patio had been exposed to the sometimes harsh climate in Colorado for many years. I stumbled upon direct colors and saw pictures of how great stamped concrete patios can look when they’re cared for and decided to refinish mine. I actually first requested quotes to have someone come and refinish it for me and unfortunately most quotes were telling me it would be upwards of $5k. I quickly decided to try and do it myself and I’m really glad I did. I had no experience doing this before but I simply followed all the instructions listed online and I think it turned out great.
- Personal Tips:
I would say definitely get a separate pump sprayer for the stain and the sealer. I initially tried to use the same for both but I feel like I wasnt able to properly clean the sprayer and it just made things more difficult. Furthermore, between coats of sealer I didn’t clean the spray tip well enough and it seemed to clog it up so I was getting really uneven application. For the final coat of sealer I switched to a roller so that I could also apply the anti-slip product and that went on much more evenly but you definitely need a good quality nap roller that won’t leave lint behind. I also got a bit careless when spraying the stain and had quite a bit of overspray that required a lot of scrubbing to clean. I would say just take your time and use cardboard and tape to make sure you don’t overspray. Lastly, I may have sprayed the stain and the sealer very unevenly, in the end it still turned out nice, but I would say take your time and first practice spraying evenly on something like cardboard. - Direct Colors Products Used:
I ordered 3 of the Crimson Antiquing™ Stain & Seal Kits and 1 16 oz Non Slip Concrete Sealer Additive. I only used part of the non-slip, and had some stain left over, but I did order another kit after this project was done in order to later reapply another coat of sealer. - Other Products Used:
I also first power washed my patio with a cheap electric power washer I found on Amazon
Multicolored Makeover
- Project Completed In: 2 weeks(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 500 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
The patio builder built it last year and sealed incorrectly with a garbage sealer. We spent over $9,000 on the patio and it looked awful. We searched and searched for a solution to make it look sharp and worth the money we paid. We are so happy we found your company. We have neighbors coming by to see the patio! Everyone is blown away by the difference. Thank you for a great product! We can’t believe how the water beads on the patio now after applying your sealer. We never had that with the inferior sealer - Personal Tips:
Be sure to fill any cracks between pavers before sealing. I wanted multi-colors so I colored each one a different color. we did 2 coats of sealer.
Neglected Concrete Renewed
Colorful Stamped Concrete
- Project Completed In: 3 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 336 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
I made a stamped concrete patio, stamped to look like slate. I then used antiquing stain in 4 separate colors to stain each tile individually, then I put a top coat of charcoal to darken it all up. I then put one coat of the satin sealant followed by a final coat with the non slip powder. - Personal Tips:
I used a brush to stain each square, then sprayed the charcoal top coat with a pump sprayer then rolled the sealer on after it was dry. - Direct Colors Products Used:
3 Gal Charcoal Antiquing Stain
1 Gal Russet Antiquing Stain
1 Gal Fern Green Antiquing Stain
1 Gal Driftwood Antiquing Stain
2 Gal Satin Concrete Sealer
16oz non slip additive
20-Year-Old Concrete Upgrade
- Project Completed In: 5 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 1800 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
We have a 20 year-old concrete that hasn’t been taken care of. I was intimidated to stain because I’d seen DIY failures. Direct Colors Antiquing stain was super easy and came out great. I loved the opportunity to try samples before we decided to go with it. - Personal Tips:
Clean your sprayer Well! I had trouble with clogging until I took apart the stay tip and rinsed well.
Try the samples. It gives you a sense of what happens first and second coats, as well as what sealing adds to the depth of the color (besides letting you try different colors)
- Direct Colors Products Used:
Cumin Antiquing Stain & Seal Kit
ProCleaner & Degreaser
Cumin Concrete Stain
Project Info:
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- Project Location: Outdoor
- New or existing concrete: Existing Concrete
- Concrete Texture: Stamped
- Estimate Square Footage: 600 (sq. ft.)
- Project Timeframe: 2 (days)
- Project role: DIY
- How did you hear about us: Google search
- Tell us about your project:
I have a stamped and stained patio that is about 600 square feet give or take. I ordered your sample kit (antiquing stain in Cumin) about a year ago and the door is perfect to replace the original look. The stain came surprisingly fast so today in 70 degree weather and about 10 percent humidity, I used the recommended Ace Hardware sprayer and applied the stain. After the drying period, I am going to apply two coats of the Easy Seal solvent based sealer. I would like to be able to use the ACE hardware sprayer again. Can you give me your thoughts on how to clean the sprayer. If I use regular paint thinner will that work or will it destroy the spray nozzles etc. I don’t see any videos on cleanup of equipment. Thanks
Project Info:
- Project Completed In: 10 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 1100.00 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
We stained a newly poured concrete patio with the easy tint (maple and aztec brown). We originally tried to use paint rollers but that was a mistake. The paint rollers absorbed a lot of the stain so we went through it quickly and ran out of the maple and had to order more. We bought a paint sprayer and that made a world of difference! It was so much easier, faster, and more uniform (see the before and after pictures). Overall things went great and we were able to save thousands of dollars doing it ourselves. - Personal Tips:
Buy a paint sprayer! - Direct Colors Products Used:
Easy Tint Maple and Aztec Brown
Other Products Used:
AOBEN 750W Paint Sprayer (Amazon)
- Project Completed In: 2 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 400 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
Outside kitchen California room - Personal Tips:
Follow the instructions … very very easy to apply the stain
- Project Completed In: 1 day
- Estimate of Square Footage: 200 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
Courtyard - Personal Tips:
Follow the instructions. Goggles and gloves highly recommended
- Project Completed In: 7 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 500 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
I created my own pavers using a mold and colored cement. However, the cement color wasn’t entirely consistent or rich in color so I decided to acid stain the blocks. - Personal Tips:
Spray the entire area with light color, go back and paint brush the dark areas - Direct Colors Products Used:
Coffee Brown EverStain
Desert Amber EverStain
Solvent-Based, Satin Acrylic Sealer
- Project Info:
- Project Completed In: 4 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 300 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
I loved everything about my back yard except my pink paver brick patio. My wife and I dreamed of a clean, inviting, white washed look. We researched paint, big box store products and even tried real lime wash which eventually failed. We decided to take a chance on direct color and we are glad we did!! - Personal Tips:
Materials are expensive, and more importantly your time is valuable. Take your time and do the work. I spent at least $70 on trial kits.Also dont be afraid to utilize the direct color team. Matt specifically was super helpful. I took several pictures to ask application questions because everyone’s situation is different. Matt is an expert and was my guide through the process. He will let you know if its a good idea to do extra coats or call it quits. White specifically has to be put on several times to become opaque, and needs a light color brick in order to work.Once i knew it was a go i calculated what i needed and ordered. I highly recommend over buying, because the last thing you want is to run out. I ended up using every last drop!The key to good application is good prep work. Power wash, let it fully dry. And apply. Make sure those coats dry before applying sealer. I ended up doing 5 coats of white and 2 coats of sealer. Believe it or not i could complete in one day. Be careful though, i had matt on speed dial for help and he gave the blessing to apply several coats on a hot day.I was so pleased with the results and i am confident this will hold up for YEARS.My advice for people doing white: take your time, test it, use resources. Sealer slightly darkens white after application Also finish it off with a pro grade polymeric sand. - Direct Colors Products Used:
5 gallons portico white
2 gallons easy seal satin
Other Products Used:
Techniseal pro series hp next gel jointing sandGranite color makes the white pop a little bit
- Project Completed In: 5 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 400 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
Ten years ago we had installed a paver patio on the back of our home. At the time we had installed a brick fire pit in the center, but due to the shape of the back porch it was never workable at the corner caused smoke to swirl upwards and everyone hated it. After a few years I knocked down the brick firepit but was left with a hole that I filled with river pebbles with the intention of finding a circular outdoor rug to cover it under the table. I was never able to find a rug that we liked so we were left with pebbles constantly being kicked everywhere and a place our dog used to dig in. I decided to see if I could find a circular paver kit that could fill in the hole and found one and had it installed last fall. The pavers were supposed to have a reddish tint to them, but instead came mostly gray and they did not match the current pavers at all. I then found you guys and decided to stain the circle a red tint and darken the existing gray pavers. After consulting you guys I ordered a test kit and decided on Terra Cotta and Charcoal colors. I first pressure washed the existing pavers and then adding polymeric sand. After drying I sprayed on the coat of Terra Cotta in the circle and then followed with the Charcoal for the grays. I decided to do the concrete back porch as well. I came back later and added additional coats of Charcoal by brush to the darkest existing gray pavers as well as the darkest Red pavers to give it more of a cobble stone effect. After fully drying I began adding the sealant. Ended up with approximately three coats of sealer. - Personal Tips:
With no differences in color or places that you need to protect it’s an incredibly easy job. However, if the plan is to maintain an edge between two distinct colors, plan it out ahead of time. The pavers I was working with were VERY porous, so it absorbed and spread into them like alcohol would into chalk. Even when I was doing the parts by hand I needed to be careful to not get too close to the edge for fear of it bleeding. Also be aware of some overspray. Finally, even though I’d done the math I would have been happier had I ordered an additional bottle of Charcoal and Sealant. I ended up ordering a third bottle of sealer during the project because it was clear l I was not going to have enough to put down as many layers as I’d have liked. Because of that the project took a week longer because I had to wait for the order to come in.
Project Info:
- Project Completed In: 5 day(s)
- Estimate of Square Footage: 400 sq. ft.
- Project Description:
We replaced our deck and extended our patio, but unfortunately we didn’t do the pavers all at one time. While the pavers were the same style (Belgard Mega Bergerac in fossil beige), one half was done a few months after the other and the pavers were produced at different locations/runs. Because we look down on the pavers daily, we couldn’t live with the color mismatch, and wanted to darken the lighter section to match darker pavers.The consultations helped as I worked through the process…detailed in personal tips below. - Personal Tips:
* The test kits are a must! After testing a few colors and the solvent sealer, silver gray seemed to provide the closest match. I tried one and two coats…there’s enough in the samples to do various tests.* The area isn’t large, but I sprayed the stain and sealer which was a mistake. The stain went on rather heavy and came out a lot more silver than anticipated. We couldn’t live with this either.* I scrubbed the pavers with Xylene and pressure washed which removed the sealer and stain. I realized working smaller sections worked the best b/c xylene dries quickly and makes it harder to remove the sealer. Smaller sections, not so bad.* After drying and reapplying polymeric sand where needed, I rolled two coats of silver gray. Before sealing it all, I sealed the outer edge just to make sure everything looked as expected…in case I needed to xylene it off again. While it’s not perfect, and not sure anything would be, it’s really close and happy with the result.
Direct Colors Products Used:
Portico silver gray and solvent-based sealer
