Poured a stamped patio last Tuesday, still can't decide if the integral color was better than the color hardener I usually use

Job was out in Scottsdale, about 400 square feet. I've always done color hardener for stamped work, gives me that deep color I want. But the homeowner wanted integral color mixed in the truck, said it fades more evenly over time. I went with his call since it's his house. The color looks good, but it seemed to fade a little during the pour, I had to work fast. Has anyone else switched from hardener to integral and regretted it or been happy?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_claire6d ago

Oh man, I totally feel you on this. I did a job last spring where the homeowner insisted on integral color for a stamped path, and I swear I was sweating bullets watching it fade as it dried. I mean, I've always been a color hardener guy too, but I gave it a shot and honestly, the final result looked fine but I missed that punchy, wet-look depth you get with hardener. The color consistency was all over the place on mine, especially in the sunnier spots, and it just felt like I had zero margin for error timing-wise. Still not sure if I'd do it again, even though the homeowner was happy and said it'd age better.

jessica9216d ago

Oh man, @the_claire, did the color look any better once it fully cured?