Concrete Staining & Sealing in Harrison Township

Concrete is a sponge with a hard face. On an inland lot the slab dries between rains, but on the canal and river-mouth plats the ground stays damp at the seawall through fall, and the seawall walk, the patio and the drive soak up that moisture right up to the first hard freeze. Water expands about nine percent when it turns to ice, and ice inside the top quarter inch of a slab lifts the surface off in flakes; by spring the walk is pitted, the cream is gone and every pit holds more water for the next winter. Road salt tracked in from I-94 and de-icer spread on the walk speed the same cycle by pushing more water into the surface.

A penetrating sealer stops the cycle at the surface. It soaks into the pores and reacts there, so water beads on the concrete instead of soaking in, the slab looks the same as it did dry, and nothing sits on top to peel. Film-forming sealers put a coating on the surface, which is right for stamped and colored concrete where the gloss and color depth are the point, but on a seawall walk that stays damp underneath a film can trap moisture and turn cloudy. For a plain drive or walk we recommend penetrating; for the stamped patios in the 1980s and 1990s subdivisions and around the condominium buildings along Jefferson Ave, a film-former with the color refreshed by a stain first.

Concrete sealing starts at $299, on top of the cleaning the surface needs first, and a penetrating sealer goes three to five years before it is reapplied. The drive from our Clinton Township shop is about 15 minutes, and sealing pairs with the driveway cleaning on the same visit once the concrete has had a few dry days. Read what Michigan winters do to unsealed concrete if you want the freeze-thaw mechanism in more detail, and our sealer comparison for the choice between the two types.

Sealing Wet Concrete

The failure that shows up most on this shoreline is sealer applied to concrete that was still damp underneath. On a seawall walk the surface can feel dry an hour after the sun hits it while the slab below holds water from the canal, and a film-forming sealer laid on that turns white and cloudy within a month, then peels. The second failure is the wrong product: a heavy gloss film on a plain drive that holds water on top and gets slick when wet, or a thin penetrating sealer on stamped concrete that leaves the color flat.

Timing It Right

Sealing needs dry concrete, a surface above about fifty degrees and no rain for a day, so late May through September is the window here, and the canal lots need the longest dry stretch before it. A drive cleaned in spring can be sealed in June once the trailer moves and the slab has had its dry days. September works well too, after the humid months and before the first freeze, which is the moment the sealer starts doing its work.