Stamped Concrete Walls

Wall Stamped Concrete

Stamped concrete — patterned concrete — is a system built around purpose-made designs that change how a surface looks. It shares most of its ingredients with ordinary concrete, but it is not the same thing: it is designed to read as brick, timber or tile, and the effect comes from careful, repeated work to a pattern rather than from the materials it imitates. It is commonly used on pavements, terraces, driveways, car parks, walls, parks and poolside areas, and because it can be made to look like a range of building materials it works out cheaper than using brick, stone or block paving themselves. There are several ways to install it and some of them take real expertise — a professional contractor and a crew that works to a standard. The benefits are considerable; some apply to other systems too, but stamped concrete brings plenty of its own.

1. Appearance

The first argument for it is how it looks. On a plain house or building, stamped concrete lifts the visual value of the property considerably — and the same holds for factories, schools, hospitals and shopping centres. Installed with care, it can become the thing people notice first. If you want to improve a wall or a floor without spending heavily, it belongs on the list: what it does for a patio, a wall or a floor is out of all proportion to what it costs.

2. Cost

Set against other systems, stamped concrete is inexpensive. The cost of a well-designed installation is low enough that it is worth considering on price alone; asphalt paving, for one, comes to considerably more. It looks good, it holds attention and it fits a realistic budget — which for a business owner makes the decision straightforward. Anyone can have a surface finished to the best of what stamped concrete offers.

3. Service life

Beyond the price, the other argument for stamped concrete is how long it lasts. It runs for years before it needs any repair at all: a properly installed system will go twenty-five to thirty years before that point. With competent, prompt repair when the time comes, fifty years or more is realistic.

4. Versatility

It is concrete for the most part, but it comes with a range of purpose-made patterns and textures that change how a floor looks. It can be finished in whatever pattern you want — the only real requirement is knowing what you are after. A floor can be made to read as marble, parquet or oak. The options run out long after most people's patience does, and there is a pattern to suit any taste.

5. Low maintenance

Maintaining stamped concrete is not difficult, though it does need planning. It is not only easy but cheap, and even when repair is called for, the work involved is small. That is what makes it, unlike most flooring systems, a sound choice for a long-term plan.