Does Stamped Concrete Hold Water? (5 Simple Ways To Fix!)

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Does Stamped Concrete Hold Water?

Are you putting in a new pool and pool deck in your backyard? Or just planning to refurbish the existing pool deck to something more elegant. Stamped concrete is certainly an option worth considering for the pool deck. Stamped concrete ticks a lot of right boxes. But, a valid concern is “Does Stamped Concrete Hold Water”?

Stamped concrete can hold water as it is a textured finish. Stamped concrete either mimics natural stone or historic sites such as a Roman piazza or an English cobblestone street. These are not smooth either and do hold water, when it rains or snow melts.

You may not like the fact that stamped concrete pool deck holds water in spots, but it is perfectly natural! 

You do not want the stamped concrete on your pool deck to hold water as you are worried about:

• Pool deck becoming slippery
• Water seeping into the concrete
• Standing water inviting algae, mold, moss and even mosquitoes

There are techniques to prevent the stamped concrete from holding water without compromising on the aesthetics. So, read on for more details.

How Do You Fix Standing Water on Stamped Concrete?

A pool deck, irrespective of the material, will get wet. What with swimmers getting in and out of the pool all the time! Stamped concrete pool deck not only gets wet, but may also stay wet longer as the troughs in the concrete texture will hold water.

Seal Stamped Concrete

If water remains in the troughs, indentations and grooves it gets more time to seep into the concrete pores. This will hasten the concrete disintegration process by scaling. It can also result in the corrosion of the steel reinforcement bars and a reduction in the tensile strength of the concrete.

To prevent this from happening, you must ensure that the stamped concrete pool deck is well sealed, both with penetrating and topical sealer.

A good quality penetrating sealer will seep into the tiny pores (capillaries), fill them up, solidify and block them, so that water can not enter.

I recommend Foundation Armor SX5000 Water Based Silane Siloxane Penetrating Concrete Sealer.

The topical sealer film protects the concrete from abrasion, weather and chemical spills. I recommend using and recoating your pool deck every 2-3 years.

I recommend Foundation Armor AR350 Solvent Based Acrylic Wet Look Concrete Sealer.

Use Non-Slip Additive in Sealer

The problem with a wet pool deck is that it gets slippery. Stamped concrete pool decks tend to be even more slippery because they have a couple of coats of topical sealer on them. The topical sealer can be quite slippery.

You have to be very careful if you have lots of kids having a pool party. Kids intent on having fun and a slippery stamped concrete pool deck is certainly not a good combination.

To make stamped concrete less slippery, you need to mix a nonslip additive such as H&C Sharkgrip Slip-resistant Additive into the topical sealer.

Dry Out Stamped Concrete

Stamped concrete around the pool gets wet when you & your family use the pool, it rains or you pressure wash your pool deck. If the sun is out and strong it will dry up on its own.

But water in the depressions may take a lot longer to dry. It is a good idea to run a dry mop or rag over such spots so that you can soak in most of the excess water.

Choice of Stamping Pattern

There are a host of choices when it comes to the pattern that you can select for your stamped concrete pool deck.

Some patterns try to mimic natural materials such as different types of wood or stone. Other patterns attempt o create an historical ambiance by replicating worn bricks, weathered cobble stones, etc.

The choice is of course a very personal one. It depends on the ambiance that you wish to create. It also needs to match with the architectural style of your home.

If you are concerned about the fact that stamped concrete can hold water, avoid using patterns that have deep grout lines or rough surface textures.

Strategic Placement of Stamped Concrete

Stamped concrete brings a touch of sophistication to a pool deck that few other decking materials can match. But it is not necessary to use stamped concrete on every square foot of your pool deck.

Design the layout of your  pool deck in a manner that areas which will get the most wet foot traffic do not have stamped concrete. Maybe use a slip resistant finish, such as brushed concrete. Brushed concrete is not slippery.

Highlight areas which are unlikely to get much wet foot traffic, by using stamped concrete. For example, lay stamped concrete around a fire pit on your pool deck used for alfresco dining. 

Add some plants and recessed lighting and you have got a pool deck to die for. Without the disadvantage of stamped concrete holding water!

Stamped concrete pool deck is certainly great value for money!

Thank you very much for reading the post. I do hope you found it informative and helpful.