How do I get my concrete white again?

Author: Prof. Ansel Schaden  |  Last update: Tuesday, December 5, 2023

Pressure washing is one of the fastest, most effective ways to get your concrete white again. Concrete can change color over time due to pollen, algae, or dirt buildup, but a good pressure wash can easily remove dirt and stains and make your concrete look new again.

What is the best thing to whiten concrete?

If your concrete is dull and sprouting weeds or mold, bleach is your best option for cleaning and brightening concrete. Mix a cup of bleach into a 5-gallon bucket of warm water, then spray or pour over concrete. Rinse thoroughly with water.

How do you whiten dirty concrete?

Cleaning concrete with bleach, water, and 1/8 cup of dishwashing liquid is an effective solution when it comes to mildly dirty patios. Does white vinegar clean concrete? Cleaning concrete with vinegar is also good for mildly soiled (equal parts vinegar and water) or heavily soiled (full-strength vinegar) patios.

What will bleach concrete white?

Add 2 ⅔ cups Clorox® Outdoor Bleach to the pump sprayer and then add 13 ⅓ cups water to make 1 gallon of bleach solution. Wear gloves, safety glasses and clothing that you don't mind accidentally splashing with bleach solution.

How do you restore discolored concrete?

Cleansing — For mild discoloration, repeatedly flushing the hardened concrete surface with hot water, then scrubbing with a stiff brush, can reduce or remove discolored blotches. Acid treatment — If the discoloration is more severe, a mild acid solution of 1-3% muriatic acid to water can help remove the discoloration.

How to Clean stained concrete

Can you fix discolored concrete?

For mild discoloration, flush the hardened surface with hot water and scrub with a stiff brush to even out some of the variability in the concrete's moisture and mineral build-up. It may be necessary to carry out this process until the discoloration disappears.

Can dark concrete be lightened?

Restaining works best if you need to go darker or fill in light spots, but does not work very well when you're trying to lighten the overall color. If the desire is to lighten the color, the best results I have seen come from pulling some of the initial stain out of the concrete.

Does vinegar whiten concrete?

A quick answer is yes! White vinegar can clean concrete and remove stains. It may not be as powerful as concrete cleaners, but it can clean up concrete stains on a budget.

Will hydrogen peroxide bleach concrete?

Liquid peroxide formulas clean and brighten grout lines without harsh acids and chlorine bleaches that can damage the grout and surrounding flooring materials. The Liquid peroxide cleans, refreshes, and brightens concrete, tile, and grout without leaving watermarks or residue in contrast to other cleaning chemicals.

Is it OK to spray bleach on concrete?

But that's not all; chlorine bleach can also be used for cleaning the concrete driveway. Of course, you should dilute it with equal parts of water or a 1:1 ratio. With the mixture ready, spray it on the driveway, allowing it to sit for 10 minutes. Then, use a stiff brush before rinsing with clean water.

Is bleach or vinegar better for cleaning concrete?

In fact, vinegar removes mold from concrete better than bleach. Bleach will only remove the top layer of mold, causing the mold to return.

Does Dawn clean concrete?

Use a detergent such as Dawn or Ajax dishwashing liquid mixed with water to brighten a concrete patio that hasn't been cleaned in a while. Use a detergent such as Dawn or Ajax dishwashing liquid mixed with water to brighten a concrete patio that hasn't been cleaned in a while.

How long does it take for concrete to whiten?

Although the bulk of the hydration process takes place in the hours and days immediately after the pour, concrete needs 28 days to fully dry. While the slab will harden and lighten in color before 28 days, don't be fooled into thinking it's done hydrating.

Does hydrogen peroxide clean concrete?

Although bleach is great at the whitening effect, you can use peroxide to achieve this. Hydrogen peroxide is an oxygenated bleach. It is safe for plants, so when you rinse this solution, it won't harm anything. It works together with the dish soap and baking soda to remove dirt and whiten dirty concrete.

Does muriatic acid whiten concrete?

Brightens concrete.

When cleaning with basic pH chemicals such as sodium hypochlorite, you remove dirt, mold, and algae from surfaces easily, but do not get the brightening effects acidic pH chemicals, such as muriatic acid, provide. Muriatic acid can provide that bright white look that new concrete often has.

Can I use OxiClean on concrete?

Product description. OxiClean is a powerful concrete cleaner that works well on various materials, including pavement and grout.

How do you use OxiClean on concrete?

Although it's possible to scatter the OxiClean powder on the wet concrete and then scrub with a stiff broom, you'll probably get a more uniform result by mixing the powder with water first. Use four scoops of powder per gallon of water. The powder mixes best into warm-to-hot water.

What is the best homemade concrete cleaner?

Mix equal parts water and vinegar and apply it to concrete. If this stain removal technique doesn't work, use 100% vinegar and scrub stains out. This solution can work on many surfaces, including car seats and hardwood floors.

Can you mix baking soda and white vinegar together?

But common pantry essentials that are often used for cleaning — like baking soda and vinegar — shouldn't be mixed either. Unlike the bleach-ammonia mixture, combining soda and vinegar won't hurt anyone — but don't expect the mixture to do a good job cleaning, either.

Can you mix bleach and vinegar?

Mixing vinegar and bleach together releases a poisonous chlorine gas, which can be fatal if inhaled at high enough concentrations.

Is there a difference between concrete and cement?

Although the terms cement and concrete often are used interchangeably, cement is actually an ingredient of concrete. Concrete is a mixture of aggregates and paste. The aggregates are sand and gravel or crushed stone; the paste is water and portland cement.

How do you make concrete lighter in color?

Titanium dioxide is useful for achieving light colors, whites, as well as making light grey when used in grey cement. Cobalt oxides allow for various blues and teals but can also be more expensive than other oxide based pigments.

Will bleach damage colored concrete?

As a gentler cleaner, bleach can't harm concrete's durable material. Aside from being an effective cleaner and stain remover, it also acts as a disinfectant to the concrete surface.

Does GREY concrete turn white?

Why is my concrete turning white? Efflorescence is a white salty residue caused when too much moisture is moving through the concrete. As the concrete dries and its moisture rises upwards through the slab, it brings salts within the concrete to the surface as well.

Why is my concrete so dark?

The dark gray discoloration is caused by varying degrees of hydration of the cement in the concrete, caused by the varying moisture contents in the localized areas of the total concrete.

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