If you’re torn between hardwoods and tile, there’s another flooring option you might want to consider: chemically stained concrete floors. Contrary to popular belief, there is no paint involved in this process, also known as acid staining. The color comes from a chemical reaction. Although it sounds like a science experiment, the result is a unique, low-maintenance floor that is sure to turn heads at your next party.

Chain reaction
Architect Frank Lloyd Wright incorporated acid staining into his designs as early as the 1920s. Wright liked the organic aspects of the process, which leaves concrete with a mottled, variegated and marble-like look. These days acid staining is gaining momentum as people recognize its durability as well as its green properties.

Jeroen H.F. Kaijser Bots, owner of Huntersville’s Euro Floors, a company that specializes in chemical staining of concrete floors, has both commercial and residential clients. Many residential clients want stained concrete floors in their basements, he says.

“We’re trying to focus on basements because they’re part of people’s homes, and people are usually more excited about doing something beautiful in it rather than just a base color,” explains 36-year-old Bots, a native of The Netherlands. “You’re creating a chemical reaction to create a color. It’s really a fun process, and it’s also very unique. It’s not like you’re painting. It’s a little bit like you’re baking a cake.”

Regardless of whether a concrete floor has just been poured or is 30 years old, it can be chemically stained. The most important thing is that it is clean. “About 80 percent of the final result has to do with cleaning,” says Bots, adding that cleaning is part of the process. “Since this is a chemical reaction, whatever is on the floor, it’s going to react with.” For instance, if you have dirt specks on the floor, those will show up even more after it is treated.

Once a concrete floor is cleaned, there are various ways of applying the chemical mixture, which is made up of hydrochloric acid, water and inorganic salts. The metallic salts react with the hydrated lime in the concrete. “We are ‘rusting’ the floor with metals. It is this chemical reaction at the ion level that creates the color,” says Bots, who earned an MBA at Western Carolina University.

Acid stains come in several colors, including black, brown, umber, red, tan, gold, green and blue. The key thing to remember is that an acid-stained color is a variety of colors and tones. The mixture is what makes it so appealing. No one knows what the exact color will be until the process is over. However, Bots does perform a chemical test to obtain the color closest to what the client wants prior to the treatment. Part of the excitement is seeing what happens.

Personal touch
Not only is the color of an acid-stained floor personal, but the design is, too. Bots, who has an extensive design background, works closely with clients to create personal designs. Victor Kaijser Bots (Jeroen’s brother) and Claire Garritsen in Amsterdam are design consultants for the company.

“I usually give two or three designs that we come up with together,” Jeroen Bots says. “I talk with the client to find out what they like. … We do some sketches on paper and kind of see how it flows.”

Bots usually goes to the site two days in advance to sketch the design on the floor with sidewalk chalk. That way he can see where the light falls and where the flow is going to be. If the client likes it, he makes another sketch on paper and then places the order. His crew of five sketches the design on the concrete with pencil and then cuts it into the floor with a diamond blade.

One client in Asheville had a leaf stuck in her concrete, so they created the design from that. Bots says that stars are also popular.

As for maintenance, a dust mop will suffice, in addition to a regular mop every now and then. “Most people don’t see concrete as a natural product, but concrete really is a natural product because it has water, it has sand, and it has cement,” he says. “All these factors are different every time you mix them. Just like a cake. For example, if you use skim milk or a different flour, it creates a different effect.”

Tracie Johnson, an interior designer at PTI Design in Denver, has a stained concrete floor in her home and agrees that maintenance is minimal. “It’s easy to maintain. You don’t have the floor being damaged. I use them a lot because most basements have media rooms, pool table rooms, recreation areas,” Johnson says. “Those are the areas where the client is going to be entertaining. You don’t have to worry about spills. It’s easy to clean up.”

Johnson also adds that concrete floors are environmentally friendly. “I do a lot of green design with all of the green building that’s taking place now,” she says. “With this, you’re working with a natural product and then adding color to it. They also have a green-based sealer, which has no harmful ingredients in it. Not only that, it’s a cost-efficient way to go, as well.”

The price of an acid-stained floor starts at $2.95 a square foot. That includes one color and a sealer. The price increases from there, based on the design, number of colors and coatings.

These types of floors also work well for exteriors.

Bots also can add an anti-slip agent to the floor as a safety precaution.