STEP 4: Acid Staining Concrete Countertops
Once your countertops are put into place you can mask off the cabinets and start applying the acid stain. We went with a Ebony color stain which ended up being very dark brown/ black. A gallon of acid stain cost us $45 at Intermountain Concrete Specialties of Salt Lake City. Some of the available acid stain colors can be seen at Concrete Coatings Inc. Acid staining concrete countertops is usually done when you do not color the concrete mix of your countertops.
The acid stain can be applied with a wad of cloth, brush, or roller. You should apply the acid stain to the rough dry concrete countertop before doing any buffing. The acid will bubble as it reacts with the concrete. If your concrete has any air pockets, you can fill those with grout before applying the stain as well. We ended up going over everything twice to get the concrete a little darker. Any oils or adhesives that are on the concrete will not allow the stain to do its job and you'll see imperfections...not necessarily a bad thing if you are going for a more rustic look like we were. You can get very creative when acid staining concrete countertops...it's kind of like painting a picture.
Bath concrete countertop after acid staining.
After the concrete countertops were stained, we took a brick of beeswax (purchased at Michaels) and rubbed all the countertops down. After that, we took a buffer and buffed the wax into the concrete. A buffer like you wax your car with will work but something a little more powerful is best.
Finished concrete countertops after they are stained and waxed up.
These acid stain concrete countertops turned out nice in the end. They are very durable, rustic looking, and should last the life of the cabin.
STEP 1: Building Concrete Countertop Forms
STEP 2: Mix and Pour Concrete Countertops
STEP 3: Setting the Concrete Countertops in Place
STEP 4: Acid Staining Concrete Countertops