Oh wow, Lars, I really like that. Was it just plain concrete, or painted concrete? And what did you use to stain it?

My front porch, steps and flower box are concrete and I'm trying to figure out how to make them look a bit better. Was it difficult? Time consuming?

It looks wonderful, what a nice job.

Annie

Thanks, Annie!! It was plain concrete - stark white and unpainted and not sealed. We went to Home Depot and bought Behr concrete stain. The can recommends priming it first, but we skipped that step. We did have to use some etching first, and Kevin did that on Thursday. It's supposed to clean the concrete and make it take the stain better. The guy who installed the spa said we did not need the primer, and I'm glad we didn't use it because the stain would have sat on the primer. As it is now, it penetrated the concrete and so it more durable.

It wasn't really difficult, but you have to have the right tools, which includes a spray can ($20 at HD) and a 3/8" nap roller with a long handle. We used cardboard for masking. It is a two person job, however, since one has to go behind the sprayer to roll the stain out to make it even. Also, you cannot do it in direct sunlight, although we did when we finished the seam areas.

If you have a small project, you probably just use a sponge brush, but the sprayer makes it go faster.

Lars

Thanks, Lars. My porch is about 4 feet wide and maybe 12 feet long. The flower box runs the length of the porch, but it is made of bricks in various colors of brown and sand, just the top edge is poured concrete.

The porch area is under a roof, but the flower box isn't, so I'd guess it would need to be dne in the evening or I'd have to find a way to cover it temporarily with a tarp/tent or something similar.

I really do like that, and it would fit the color scheme. We've just finished painting the house. Yes, we painted it ourselves, LOL, it was red with black trim. Now it's a tawny brown with white trim and the doors are copper colored. The porch just stands out like a sore thumb, though.

Annie

Annie, you can probably stain the 4'x12' area with just one gallon of stain. I think one gallon will cover 80 square feet and possibly 100. It will really make a huge difference to get color on the concrete, and you can choose a color to go with your scheme. The biggest selection is in browns, yellows, and golds, but they also have a few other colors. Your area shouldn't take very long - it's the prep work that takes time. It took a little while to get used to the sprayer because it sprays in a fan pattern, and that was a bit difficult to control at first. I did discover that I could place the stain more accurately by holding the nozzle closer to the concrete and spraying more lightly.

It's not a good idea to spray the stain using artificial light, as it is very difficult to see exactly what is happening.

Good luck if you decide to proceed! It's really not difficult at all, and you must have extra house paint in case you get some overspray (like we did).

Lars

Thanks for posting/sharing Lars! The patio looks great and I love the color. Y'all did a great job!

I'd like to add some more patio area around my pool and was curious about the stained concrete. My challenge is the cool decking around the pool and part of the pool edging. Not sure if I can stain that or not. Not to forget the normal concrete that it backs up to. Future project so I've not done much research yet.

Love the backyard too. I know you are planting new things and making changes but it looks great. Enjoy that hot tub too...you will love it once it cools down some. I know you have had some of these high temp too.

David

Wow! The concrete and the entire yard look fabulous.

You two are doing a great job and it's so nice to be working on your own property.

Lee

Lars that looks really lovely...and so very professional!
Beautiful colour which goes well with the furniture.

Aren't you both clever to have done that yourselves!
And the garden is also fresh and restful looking.

I bet you are both so pleased to have your own garden and patio.

SharonCb

Thanks for the comments! Yesterday Kevin and I finished putting everything back in the garage that we had stored temporarily in the gazebo until we could get storage units worked out in the garage. We had torn out the ramshakle storage shelves and work bench that the previous owner had built (It looked like the work of an eight year old), and now because we put in more organized shelves, we have more storage and still take up less space. He had built storage that was inaccessible, which is why I insisted on ripping it out.

Anyway, now that the patio is cleared out again, I should be able to take pictures back there. There is a lot of landscaping left to be done, and I plan to get some new jardinieres for the patio. I also have to figure out what I'm going to put in them.

Lars

Looks terrific Lars.

Lars, that is gorgeous! I love it. Your garden is so pretty. It's such an inviting setting.

Excellent job and pretty backyard, thanks for sharing! I had no idea that concrete stain could look so good!

Lars, your patio turned out beautifully! We are tearing out our current concrete patio and re-grading the back yard. When we replace the concrete I'd like to stain it, too. Glad to hear it's a job we can do ourselves!

When the time comes I may have some questions for you! LOL

Linda

Linda, if you are putting in new concrete, you can add the stain (or pigment) to the top layer of concrete as it is being finished, which is a lot easier than staining it later. After having stained my concrete, I have to wonder why more people haven't done it. Maybe they don't know about it.

To make the garden even more inviting, I installed a standing wall fountain yesterday. It is sitting on the concrete, but the color closely resembles the color of the wall. We are planning some massive re-landscaping next month and hope to put in a large round fountain in the middle of the yard next year. We'll have to wait for our next tax refund to be able to do that, however.

I'll post photos of the fountain later - I haven't photographed it yet.

Lars

Lars that looks fantastic! My patio reno and hillside landscaping job finally started this week (we were waiting for the contractor to finish his last project).

Linda, I don't think many people know about it. You can put colored designs in it too if you'd like. We got a lot of ideas from this site. Look at the gallery.

Lars, may I ask you where you got your spa and if you like it?

Gina, we bought our spa in Sherman Oaks at Lifestyle Spas, which I found to have the best selection, and they have great customer service. We got discounts because we bought off season. Evidently, most people buy spas in the winter, but it's cool enough here in the summer for us to use it. We definitely like the one we got, and you are welcome to drop by to see it.

Next month we are going to Sacramento to visit my ex-roommate Bernard (who found the house in Venice where we lived), and he is coming back help with some of our landscaping. We've been shopping for fountains at Reseda Pottery, which is not far from the spa place in Sherman Oaks. If you take a trip up the 405, you should visit both places. Reseda Pottery has a huge selection of working fountains on display, and they claim to have the best prices. I'm not quite ready for another fountain yet, however. Today we started installation of a new back garage door, which is the door close to the spa. We had to cut the door to size (including sanding it down to get the width right), and we will paint it and hang it tomorrow, after a midday party in Hawthorne at one of Kevin's co-workers' house.

Lars

Thanks Lars. We will want a water feature and fire pit after the patio is done. We are having the existing concrete extended and covered with a new layer, in a circular shape with a bench wall built into the outer part.

We had thought of a built-in firepit and water feature but decided that free-standing ones will give us more options as far as placement and exchanging for new styles later down the road. Ditto the spa, not to mention that building an in-ground spa is horribly expensive.

Reseda Pottery looks great. I see they have Buddhas, which I always like.

Lars,
Your patio looks great you did a beautiful job I really love the spa. Thanks for the link to Reseda pottery I was looking for a place to buy big planter pots and Reseda is doable for us as a day trip. Looks like they may have what I am looking for.

We just had our driveway, porch, carport and patio done with stamped border and ribbons all over the place. They poured the colored ribbons and borders first, using colored concrete, and then they put three different colored powders on it and stamped it with a design. There were a couple dozen different designs to choose from. The next day they came back and pressure washed it all. It took almost 2 weeks to finish all of that part then they poured the rest of the cement. Next week they will come back and put a sealer on it. We went a total of 3 ½ weeks having our cars parked everywhere but in the garage. Our downhill neighbor had his done just before we started so I was surrounded by workmen for what seemed like all summer. He had river rock put on the retaining wall between our house and his so both properties look so much better. We still have to have them come back and do the stairs that come from the bottom of the driveway up to the house. Maybe next week we can bring our truck home itÂs been at my dadÂs since the end of June.

I was amazed with what they can do with concrete now. If I were ever going to build another house I would have concrete floors. Our contractor said they can heat them and some of the designs he showed me looked like real wood floors. It would be possible to have a beautiful wood looking floor with a drain so you really could hose your kitchen floor down.

DH retired at the end of May and itÂs been very busy around here hardly any cooking at all and no baking what so ever. Some days I was lucky to even get out of here to go to the grocery store but I can see an end to it all so maybe we can take a trip next spring.

Claudia

Claudia, do you have photos of your outdoors posted somewhere? I would like to see what you did. We want to redo our driveway as well.

Parking at Reseda Pottery can be a big tough, but we went on a Sunday, and the street in front of the store had plenty of parking, which is free on Sundays. They have a parking lot between their two buildings, but it's a bit cramped and is partially filled with pottery. They do have some nice large pots/urns.

Have you thought about putting in a fountain? They are especially easy to maintain in a frost-free zone.

Lars

Wow! That does look great Lars. And good for you and Kevin for taking on that project and for sharing your success.

Sheshebop had a BEAUTIFUL stamped concrete patio installed recently as a foundation for her gazebo and fountain. I love the stamped and stained concrete that she has; I'm going to the home show tomorrow to see what concrete vendors are showing their work.

I'd love to see Sheshebop's patio, gazebo, and fountain. We have an inexpensive temporary gazebo right now, and I am still looking at fountains. I found out after I went to Sacramento that Sacramento is the best place to shop for fountains in California. I like these, but they are large, and I might not have enough room for them.

Lars