Stained Concrete Floor Cleaner

Some questions I get asked a lot is how to clean a stained concrete floor? What stained concrete floor cleaner do I use? Where do I find these cleaners? Well, here’s some expert tips and techniques on how to clean your stained concrete floors.

Expert Secret #1

First off, any stained concrete surface, whether it’s inside or outside, has some sort of sealer protecting the stain. Fro example, the sealer can be damaged by using acidic or alkaline cleaners. Other popular floor cleaners leave residue on sealed concrete making the surface dull looking. So what’s the proper cleaner to use on stained and sealed concrete you ask? Try using natural stone cleaner! Natural stone cleaner is pH neutral so it won’t damage the surface sealer protecting the stain. They also won’t leave a residue on the sealed surface. That means they always leave the surface nice and shiny… yay!

All of that said, I usually clean my stained concrete with just water and a micro fiber flat mop. This picks up most dust and dirt from the sealed surface. If you have stamped or textured concrete then I usually scrub the area down with a little bit of water and a deck brush, then hose off the concrete after the scrub. This will loosen up any dirt and debris and allow the water to rinse it off of the stained concrete. If there’s something that gets spilled like food or oil, then I use a little bit of the natural stone cleaner to break down and remove the oils from the surface without leaving any residue behind.

Expert Secret #2

I know you’ve seen this… around a potted plant there will be white mineral build up below the pot. This stuff is hard to remove without damaging the sealer. If you use an abrasive it will scratch up the sealer. However, if you use a acid based mineral remover it can etch and or break down the surface sealer protecting the stain. That’s not good! So here’s another trick when cleaning outdoor concrete.. use enzyme based efflorescence cleaner to remove mineral build up. Yep, you got that right! They make enzyme cleaners that are non-acidic and dissolve the efflorescence and minerals on the surface without damaging the sealer. Man I love living in the future!

Expert Secret #3

For a deep cleaning you can always pressure wash your stained concrete. If you’re using a high psi pressure washer, above 2,300 psi, you need to keep the wand at least a foot off of the concrete so it doesn’t start blowing the surface sealer to smithereens. But how do pressure wash interior concrete? Very carefully of course!

You can use an interior wand with you pressure washer along with a wet dry vacuum. This will allow you to clean your stained concrete without soaking all of the walls of your home. These wands are pretty affordable and can be purchased at most hardware stores. Pretty cool stuff, right?

So in conclusion, if you use these expert techniques you should be able to clean your interior or exterior stained concrete without damaging the surface sealer that protects it. Put these secret techniques to use and your concrete will thank you!