If you're laying a new driveway for your home, there's no need to go past concrete. This paving can look sleek and grey or ornate and textured. Concrete can be treated to mimic any other flooring you can imagine. In fact, it offers so many varieties that it may be hard to choose one or two for your driveway. To help, here's a quick overview of the design options.

Broom Finish

You've probably seen a lot of smooth grey concrete around your neighbourhood, on footpaths and driveways. This even finish is created when contractors pull and push the flat blade of a trowel over the poured concrete. However, that is not their only option. They can run a special broom across the cement to give it a rough texture with interesting lines. This broomed finish will give the driveway a better grip. The brush strokes usually extend horizontally across the slope to make it less slippery.

Stamped and Rock-Salt Concrete

Besides this, you'll have many other choices to create a texture for your driveway. For example, you could opt for stamped concrete, which can look like bricks, pavers, timber planks, or other elements. Stamps, often made from polyurethane, are pressed into the cement before it's completely hardened, leaving patterns behind once they're pulled up. This technique is often used to create a natural stone patina at a better price than actual stone.

Or, instead of mats, contractors can scatter rock salt over the cement. The tiny grains sink into the top of the concrete. When they're washed away later, the concrete is left covered with minute holes and notches. This organic-looking effect imitates the pits and holes in rocks, so it will give your driveway an organic aesthetic.

Scored Concrete

These techniques mould the concrete when it's somewhat unset. But even if you have hardened concrete, it's not too late to add texture. Contractors can use saws to score or cut the concrete with decorative lines. For instance, they can carve the paving into regular large squares or diamonds to give the look of pavers.

Coloured Concrete

Of course, to imitate stone, the concrete will also need colouration. You have various choices, too, at different stages of the concrete installation. Pigments could be mixed into the cement at the start before it's poured, termed integrally coloured concrete.

A concrete company can also apply colours on top once the paving is in place. They can sprinkle dry-shake hardeners that form swirls and patterns for a nuanced look. And they can add dyes and stains to the concrete when it's set. Stains react with the cement elements to create unpredictable effects for an organic look. Typically, earthy and dusty hues will be used, similar to those found in the natural environment. So the driveway will blend with the front garden.

For more information on concrete services, contact a company near you.

Share