Exposed aggregate and stamped concrete are popular choices for driveways, but coloured concrete can provide a great alternative with colours and hues to perfectly suit the style and colour of your home.
Integral colour concrete is available in a range of pigments and oxides to create anything from a rustic and traditional tone, to a smooth and simple concrete texture and colour for modern homes.
What is integral colour concrete?
Unlike older methods of colouring concrete by casting coloured oxides into the top of the
concrete and bull floating in, we now use a coloured pigment that is infused within the concrete itself. This makes it long lasting and retains a uniformity of colour even when there is wear and tear or abrasion on the concrete.
There are many interesting ways to use coloured concrete for driveways. It’s a cost effective, durable and long-lasting solution to a multi-use driveway.
Related article: Planning for a concrete driveway? Think about current and future use.
The benefits of using coloured concrete for your driveway
- There are over 30 natural colours to choose from
- Very little maintenance is required, maybe the occasional reseal
- Can combine two or more colours for variation and interest
- A cost-effective option that is durable and long lasting
Here are 5 ways to use integral coloured concrete for a driveway, for both modern and traditional homes.
1. Simple coloured concrete driveway with tiled border
We used a shale concrete for this contemporary home. It looks like it has a tiled border but this is a stamped concrete design at the very edges to give the driveway a distinct finish, separating it from the pathways and garden. Simple and effective.
2. Steeper driveway with smudged finish
For this contemporary home, we used shale coloured concrete with a smudged finish. The smudged finish is often used for steep driveways where more grip is needed for cars, bikes and other vehicles. It’s a neat and tidy result with a concrete seal to protect the concrete from tyre marks and general wear and tear.
Related article: 4 Concrete Ideas For Steep Driveways
3. Grey coloured concrete with strips of sand coloured concrete
We can use two different colours of concrete to segment a large slab on a driveway and give it more variation and interest. In this example, we have picked up the colours of the stone work from the home and complemented it with the grey and sand coloured concrete in the driveway.
We installed a creative style of coloured concrete in the plaza of the Adelaide Airport. Although this is not a driveway, it’s a great example of how two colours of concrete can be used to create an effect. If your home needs a little more creative interest, a two-toned driveway may give your home more street appeal.
Related article: Getting creative with your concrete design – mixing and matching concrete colours
Getting creative with your concrete design – mixing and matching concrete colours
4. Light grey coloured concrete driveway for a modern home – handcrafted saw-cut
For modern and contemporary homes which need a sleek finish, our handcrafted saw-cut range is ideal. You can choose whatever coloured concrete matches and complements your home. Once the concrete is laid and allowed to dry, we return to saw-cut square or rectangular patterns into the concrete. It looks like pavers but without the maintenance required with pavers. You won’t need to weed between pavers and there will be little or no movement or subsidence with saw-cut concrete driveways.
Related article: 6 Concrete Design Tips For Driveways In Adelaide’s Modern Homes
6 concrete design tips for driveways in Adelaide’s modern homes
5. A simple and uniform style for a sweeping driveway in a traditional home
For this traditional home, we recommended a simple, uniform concrete style to blend into the background, allowing the home and landscaped gardens to stand out better. This is a larger sweeping driveway and anything else would have added too many distractions to the traditional design of the home and future plans for more landscaping.
Sealing coloured concrete
We recommend sealing your concrete for longevity and protection however with integral coloured concrete the issue whether to seal the concrete can be left with the homeowner. We usually include an application of sealer in all our coloured concrete driveway projects but can provide a cheaper cost for people who do not want to have sealer.
The sealer helps prevent lasting stains in concrete from oil, grease or tyre marks, which can become absorbed into porous concrete without a sealer. The sealer will give your concrete a fresher look and is smoother to sweep clean.
Related article: Do I need to seal my concrete?
Wondering about concrete solutions for your shed floor?
What you choose for your flooring depends on the use of your shed. Do you need it to store household items, cars, boats, and will it be used by little kids on bikes or running around? Do you also use your shed to entertain? Coloured concrete may be ideal. It is smooth enough for little knees if your kids fall off their trikes or bikes, and it’s also durable enough for heavier vehicles.
Related article: Renovating the shed? Concrete ideas for your garage or shed floor
Renovating the shed? concrete ideas for your garage or shed floor
The team at Panorama Concrete will manage your coloured concrete driveway project from start to finish
To complete a concrete driveway project, you may need to install small steps, a retaining wall, artificial turf, stormwater drainage or lights in the concrete itself. Instead of running around trying to coordinate all the trades to get this done on time and on budget, we’ll manage the project from start to finish, looking after all these small additional jobs.
Call us on 08 8297 9611 to find out more about coloured concrete options for your driveway. You can also visit our display centre at 1 Maple Avenue Forestville where you will find a range of coloured concrete installations, exposed aggregate and stamped concrete styles. We’re open weekdays from 8.30am to 5.30pm.
Panorama Concrete Adelaide – a One Stop Shop Service for your Concrete Project