How Can I Tell if Concrete Floor Has Been Sealed? + Acid Stain Questions


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Old 08-09-21, 03:25 PM
J
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How Can I Tell if Concrete Floor Has Been Sealed? + Acid Stain Questions

I'm trying to determine whether the concrete floor in my basement has been sealed. We just bought this house with two rooms in the basement. In one room there was an ugly carpet tacked down and in the other, the concrete has been painted. I was hoping to acid stain the concrete for the entire basement.

Now I know that I'll need to remove the paint from the floor in the one room in order to stain it. In the other room, I tore the carpet out and the floor looks like bare untreated concrete underneath. It is dull looking and I did notice some stains on the bottom of the carpet that looked like moisture had seeped through. So perhaps it is not sealed? I tried dribbling some water on the floor. It didn't bead, but it didn't immediately soak in either... Is there a way to know for sure whether the floor was sealed?

I'm hoping the floor that was under the rug is actually unsealed so that I can acid stain it properly. I know the acid stain will not work over a sealed floor, and grinding the floor down is just a nightmarish thought for me. For the other room with the painted floor... Would it be possible to use a citrus based stripper to remove the paint? And what are the odds that a painted concrete floor would have also been sealed? Seems like paint could be removed more easily than a penetrating sealer, right?
 
 

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