The concrete finish guide.
Twelve finishes you will see on garages, patios, floors and counters, up close, with where each one works best, plus a glossary of coating terms.
Twelve finishes, one slab.
Pick a tile to see the finish and where it works best.
Granite flake
A gray, black and white chip blend that hides dust and tire marks and goes with almost any garage.
- Two- and three-car garages
- Workshops and basements
- Homes preparing to sell
Coastal flake
Blue, white and sand chips with a clean, light feel that brightens a garage or a utility room.
- Bright garages and mudrooms
- Pool houses
- Lake homes
Sunset flake
Terracotta, orange and cream chips for a warm, bold floor that suits brick homes and showpiece garages.
- Show garages
- Patios and entries
- Homes with warm palettes
Midnight flake
Black, navy and silver chips for a dark, dramatic floor with a deep gloss.
- Man caves and car displays
- Modern garages
- Showrooms
Ocean metallic
Swirled blues and whites with pearl depth that move with the light, one of a kind every time.
- Basements and living spaces
- Showrooms and salons
- Statement garages
Copper metallic
Copper and bronze marbling with dark veins for a warm, molten look.
- Restaurants and bars
- Home bars and studios
- Entryways
Honed and polished
The slab itself, ground and polished to a soft sheen with the aggregate showing, with no coating to peel.
- Modern homes and offices
- Warehouses and showrooms
- Natural concrete fans
Amber stain
Mottled amber, rust and brown that soak into the concrete like leather or stone.
- Living rooms and sunrooms
- Cafes and studios
- Older slabs with character
Slate stamp
A natural slate pattern in gray and charcoal pressed into concrete with antique color.
- Patios and pool decks
- Walkways
- Entry courtyards
Wood plank stamp
The look of weathered wood planks in durable concrete that will not rot or splinter.
- Pool decks
- Porches
- Outdoor living areas
Troweled microtopping
A thin, hand-troweled skin with soft clouding for seamless modern floors, counters and walls.
- Kitchens and baths
- Counters and stairs
- Feature walls
Sand quartz
Warm beige and brown quartz grains for a tough, gritty, granite-like surface with great traction.
- Utility rooms and wet areas
- Kitchens and shops
- Garages that need grip
Terms you will hear on site.
Plain-English meanings for the words that come up in estimates and on the job.
- Aggregate
- The sand and stone mixed into concrete. Polishing and some overlays can leave it showing.
- Base coat
- The first colored layer of a coating system. It sets the color and builds thickness.
- Broadcast
- Throwing flakes or quartz by hand into a wet coat so they embed in it.
- Chip or flake
- Small colored vinyl pieces used in decorative flake floors.
- Cove base
- A rounded coating that runs up the wall so there is no seam where dirt can hide.
- Cure
- The time a coating needs to harden. Walking, light use and full load come at different times.
- Densifier
- A liquid that hardens the surface of concrete, used when polishing.
- Diamond grinding
- Using diamond tooling to level concrete, remove old coatings and open the surface.
- Efflorescence
- White, powdery salts that move to the surface of concrete with water.
- Epoxy
- A two-part resin that cures into a hard, glossy, strongly bonded layer.
- Etching
- Using acid to roughen concrete lightly. Grinding gives a more reliable profile.
- Metallic epoxy
- Epoxy mixed with pearl pigments that swirl into marbled, light-reflecting patterns.
- Mil
- A thousandth of an inch, used to measure coating thickness.
- Moisture vapor
- Water moving through a slab as vapor. It can push coatings off from below.
- Overlay
- A thin cement-based layer applied over old concrete to renew its look and texture.
- Polyaspartic
- A fast-curing, UV-stable resin often used as a topcoat.
- Primer
- A thin first layer that soaks into the slab and helps the next layer bond.
- Profile
- The roughness left on concrete after prep, matched to the coating being applied.
- Sealer
- A clear product that soaks into or covers concrete to block water and stains.
- Shot blasting
- Firing steel shot at a floor to clean and profile it, mostly for big areas.
- Spalling
- Chipping or flaking of the concrete surface, often from water, freezing and salt.
- Topcoat
- The clear, protective final layer that adds gloss, traction and wear resistance.
Mix your own blend.
Saved. Your choices will travel with the estimate form below.
Not sure which finish?
Send a photo of the space and we will suggest a few options and bring samples.