Advise on coloring concrete

[EddieWalker]

Howdy Ya'll,

I'm working on my entrance and have built some columns. I've wrapped them in fake rock and now I want to cap them.

I can buy concrete pyramid style caps for $150 each. I need four of them, so $600. This is more than I feel they are worth, so I'm gonna make my own.

I figure some 3/4 plywood and 2X6's should do the job. Then I'll line the form with a yet unknow material so the concrete will release easily. Then I will pour a high grade of sack concrete from Lowes into the form with some wire to hold it all together.

This all seems pretty straight forward and within my abilities.

I would prefer the cap have a darker color to it, even almost black. I don't want to paint it, and prefer a stain or even better, something I can add to the mix while mixing.

Any ideas?

Thanks,
Eddie

 

[gsganzer]

You can buy the coloring at Lowes or HD. How did the fake stone work for you? The wife and I are looking to use it in our room addition. How did you do your columns? We're planning to do our fireplace and porch columns with "Texas Limestone" fake veneer.

 

[slowrev]

Home depot used to have quikrete phamplets in their store to help you with your projects. I believe they covered coloring and form works.
I believe the site that might help you is www.quikrete.com.
Ben

 

[Junkman]

I colored the mortar black when I did the brick work in our home. The only problem is that you want to buy all the coloring that you are going to need for the project at one time. I didn't and there is a color variation in the mortar that I notice, but no one else does. Best to be careful with the measurements of color so each batch comes out the same color. I don't know why I knew where to find it after all these years, but I still have one box left in the garage. See picture.

 

[DavidJ]

<font color="blue"> I figure some 3/4 plywood and 2X6's should do the job. Then I'll line the form with a yet unknown material so the concrete will release easily. </font>

If you use plywood it'll leave the tale tail markings that you'll have to rub out or leave if you prefer. You can use plastic or masonite to line the forms or even to build them of and it'll leave a smooth surface and will release the concrete well. If you use just the plywood you can spray it with silicone as a release agent.

Be sure to vibrate the concrete either manually or mechanically well to prevent air pockets on the surface.

 

[Soundguy]

Ditto.

Another thing that can be done, is to release it while it is not fully cured, and use a stiff brush to add some striations.

Could also simply add a smear coat of stucco on it after released, and then smooth that or brush.. but my bet would be going for the masenite / smooth surface.

Another thought is to spray your forms with contact cement, and then shovel some fine sand into them.. then agitate, and dump the sand out. This should smooth the lines that plywood will give you.. and give you more of a sandstone texture...

Not sure exactly what you are looking for.

Soundguy

 

[Cliff_Johns]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I can buy concrete pyramid style caps for $150 each. )</font>

For that kind of money, you could get concrete gargoyles with square bases and have some really cool caps.

Cliff

 

[EddieWalker]

Gsganzer,
The fake stone is easy to work with, the peices all fit together easy once you learn the pattern and the results are awesome. A few tricks I've learned. Mix the morter on the soupy side. The rock sticks much better. Buy a diamond cutting blade, and it cuts through the stone like butter. Otherwise its a very simple material and project.

Ben,
Thanks for the link. I think the charcoal color is what I will use.

Junkman,
Thank you for the taking the time to photogragh the dement die. I'm gonna have to be real carful on this because I'm only going to build one form.

DavidJ and Soundguy,
Thanks for the insight on the plywood. I hadn't considered the grain coming through, but now I realize it will, and that isn't the look I want. I want a smooth finish and the masonite idea is perfect. I even have some scrap lying around that might just work.

Cliff Johns,
Every time I see that picture of that dog, I first see the groundhog from Caddy Shack, then I look again and I see the dog. It's the craziest illusion!

Thanks again for the great advice. I'm off to Lowes in the morning for supplies, then to Sams to get some sodas and water for Harves little get together on Saturday.

Eddie

 

[Junkman]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( ................. then to Sams to get some sodas and water for Harves little get together on Saturday.

Eddie

)</font>

Make mine Pepsi..... thanks .... /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[dummy]

If you happen to read this before going, you really want to use mortar mix, not concrete mix. The stone in the concrete mix will be apparent in your final product. You don't want to use a "release agent" on your form either, it'll probably end up staining your final product. I'll attach a pic. or 2 later when I get home of how mine turned out.

Almost forgot, leaving it sit in the forms for a couple of days to a week won't hurt it either. From my experience, 24 hours wasn't quite long enough.

 

[Egon]

As per Dummy:

Think I would check at a local concrete mixing plant that produdes paver blocks etx. They should have the dye, don't even think of green, get some mortar sand, some motor cement and also some portland cement. The portland cement will help add strength. Mix at 3/1 sand to mortar and add a little extra portland and just enough water to make it workable. For the small amouts used economics is not really a factor so heavy on mortar and cement will not hurt. Just get it to a nice sticky stage so that if you slap it on a vertical wall it sticks.

If you want portland cement and lime properly mixed will also give the right consitency.

A good paint mixer and electric drill work well for mixing small quanities.

Sand blasting the exterior of the product may help for desired look.

The bagged mixes have never appealed to me.

Egon

 

[Soundguy]

Egon's got good info. Lime mixed in with the portland will make a nice creamy sticky mix.. sticks to verticle surface nicely.

Soundguy

 

[EddieWalker]

I’m on the edge of Ivan right now and the rain is keeping me from buying my materials. Open bed pickup wont work for hauling cement sacks. Hahaha Looks like a morning of surfing the internet and doing laundry.

Dummy and Egon,

Thanks for the advice. I never considered anything but concrete and didn’t think about an alternative material. It makes sense to use mortar and now that I think about it, that’s what the pros use also. The light bulb just turned on!!!

I’ve got a bunch of Type N mortar for other projects already. Will there be that big a difference from that compared to making my own? Could I just add a coffee can worth of Portland Cement to the sack when I mix it and get the added strength?

What about using the wire? Do you recommend it, or is it a waste?


So far the advice I’ve received has totally changed my plan of building these things. Thank you to everyone for sharing your information and knowledge!

Eddie

 

[Egon]

Use the wire and added portland and go for it.

Egon /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[dummy]

I didn't use anything other than mortar, sand and water for the initial pour. This a general pic. is of the posts

. Thanks in advance for reminding me I need to cut my grass /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

 

[dummy]

And a closer view of the poured caps.

 

[Egon]

That's really nice work Dummy.

Say, should you not cut the grass to make a lovely yard even more lovely. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Egon

 

[EddieWalker]

Dummy,

Thanks for posting those photo's. It exactly what I want to do except I want a flat top where I can mount a light and I want to stain the color on the mortor.

I bought the quickrete liquid color. They suggest one bottle for two sacks of 80 pound morter. So I figure half a bottle for a 60 pound sack of morter with a coffee can worth of Portland Cement mixed in.

I bought some 19 guage, half inch squares, galvainzed mesh to reinforce it. I probably wont need it, but for $11, I figure it wont hurt.

Tommorow is the BBQ at Harve's, so I wont get started until Sunday.


I'll add pictures to my other post about my entrance.

Thanks again,
Eddie

 

[dummy]

Thanks. This was my first real brick laying experience. Was supposed to have integral lighting also, but some "Dummy" forgot to place conduit inside the columns /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif Couldn't fire the contractor (me), I tried, but wife kept hiring me back because my hourly rate was too low !