Tips on how to Create Colourful Concrete Stools

1. Collect Supplies

Begin your DIY stool mission by gathering the best provides. Having these supplies readily available will make the method clean from begin to end. Right here’s what you’ll must get:

• Quikrete countertop combine
• Quik-tubes
• 5-gallon buckets
• Drill with mixing paddle
• Chemical-resistant gloves
• Rubber mallet
• Security glasses
• Small masonry trowel
• 60- or 80-grit sandpaper
• Utility knife with a pointy blade
• Tape measure
• Painter’s tape
• Paintbrush
• Picket dowels (5/16 inch)
• Drill bit (5/16 inch or ⅜ inch)
• Stain or paint

2. Measure Quik-Tubes

When you’ve gathered your instruments, it’s time to measure the Quik-Tube Constructing Varieties. These are light-weight, handy, single-use, rigid-fiber types that make initiatives like this simpler than constructing customized wooden types. Moreover, these constructing types are excellent for pouring concrete right into a cylinder form — the inspiration to your stools. 

It’s necessary to get simply the best measurement to realize the specified peak of your stool. This tip has by no means failed me: Measure twice and reduce as soon as. 

I like to recommend utilizing 8-inch diameter tubes, however in addition they are available 10-inch and 12-inch sizes. Measure and mark 2-foot sections on every 4-foot tube in just a few spots earlier than connecting the marks with the painter’s tape. Then, fastidiously reduce alongside the tape with a pointy utility knife to chop the tubes in half.

3. Prep the Varieties

Giving the moist concrete a correct help system to keep up its form in the course of the drying course of is vital. To create empty area beneath the stools, add dowels to carry up the tubes. Mark 12 inches from one finish of every halved Quik-Tube and drill 4 equidistant holes across the tube circumference at every mark. The holes ought to accommodate 5/16-inch dowels — a 3/8-inch bit will work.

Snap the dowels in half to get the 2-foot segments wanted for every stool. Drive two dowels by every tube in a crossed formation, leaving at the least 6 inches protruding from all sides. The dowels will help the concrete’s weight whereas it cures.

Earlier than mixing, fully cowl the underside opening of every tube to forestall concrete seepage. In my expertise, duct tape works greatest for this step. Lastly, spray the insides of two 5-gallon buckets with cooking spray. This prevents the concrete from sticking because it cures.

4. Combine and Pour Concrete

Utilizing a concrete countertop combine is good for a mission like this. It cures rapidly, finishes easily, and takes colorants and stains effectively. Combine it with water per the directions whereas sporting protecting gear — gloves, eye safety, and a particle masks to keep away from pores and skin irritation or inhalation hazards.

Working one by one, stand a Quik-Tube upright in a bucket. Use a rubber mallet to pound the dowels into the bucket backside, securing the tube in place. The tube needs to be about 2 inches from the underside.

Pour the combined concrete into the shape, barely overfilling. Faucet the perimeters with the mallet to get rid of air pockets. Insert a dowel into the middle, then noticed forwards and backwards to launch air bubbles.

5. Form and End Concrete

As soon as hardened sufficient, gently tug on the tube kind to take away it. Use a trowel to slice off any tough edges across the lip. When concrete remains to be tender, etch the floor for higher stain absorption. First clean with 60-grit, then 80-grit sandpaper. Rinse particles and let dry earlier than making use of stain.

A number of coats of stain construct a richer shade. Apply with a paintbrush, letting dry between coats till you’ve achieved the specified look. Lastly, seal the end.

6. Remedy and Shield

Enable stools to remedy in a dry spot for 1 to 2 weeks earlier than publicity to moisture. Rotate periodically whereas curing. Absorbent sealers additionally assist shield completed concrete from weathering. Reapply sealers yearly.

If you would like sturdy, ornamental concrete accents in your yard with out the excessive price of hiring an expert, making your individual stools is totally price it. This newbie DIY concrete mission makes use of supplies which are easy to supply and fundamental strategies like mixing, pouring, and ending. The ending work creates a high-end, artisanal look. With easy upkeep to guard the concrete, these stools can improve your outside residing area for years.