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Staining old & new concrete surface together

by Dan
(C.S., TX)

Q. We recently added concrete to our garage to level it (converting the garage to a playroom/ utility room). The utility room will now contain the leveled old (the 1 1/2" step up)with the new concrete, with the joint being in the pathway. I suppose the acrylic stain would be the best to use, but what is the best way to handle the the rough joint(approx. 12 lf.) of the new pour meeting with older (14 yr) concrete? Will a patch material make it worse? Do I still need to wait 28 days to stain since the stain will be on both?

A. First of all you don't have to wait if you're using acrylic stains because they are water based. The 28 day or 1 month rule only applies to acid staining. As far as the joint goes, any patching material will stand out even with acrylic stain. Probably the best way to hide it or make it less noticeable is to incorporate it into some sort of pattern. Perhaps you could do some scoring to make a pattern. If the joint is part of the pattern it may appear as if it's supposed to be there. Faux finishing with acrylic stains also helps hide those imperfections by drawing attention away from them. Another option is to fill the joint with a crack filler and then overlay the entire surface so you have a level playing field to start with. It just depends on how much time and $ you want to spend.