Change Color of Slate Floor – In 7 Effective Steps

Slate tiles with their amazing appearance and top-notch service have acquired a lot of appreciation from most home decors. They come in different colors and even different textures as well. Besides, you can tell by their shape that they have got varieties in it too. Slate tiles are strong enough to endure the heavy rush of human foot traffic and won’t complain about their strength. Most people want to change color of slate floor for flooring, walls of toilets, backsplash, and so on.

Because of its versatile shapes, textures, and patterns, many people want to change the color of slate floor to give it a more vibrant look. Thus they find a way to enhance the beauty of the slate floor in various ways. As slate tiles are vividly solid, have great efficiency, and have extraordinary endurance, modifying their color can seem challenging at the same time. For its swift texture, staining it or painting it can require some solid instructions. If you are DIYer, you must be keen to know if it is possible to do the whole process of changing the color of the slate floor without the help of a professional or not.

The answer to the question is not at all disappointing because you can definitely do this without the help of a skilled hand. You just need to know the right process and do it rightly. That’s why to guide you to the right path we are here with full instructions so you can get the best out of your honest labor.

Can You Color-Stain Slate Tile?

As we have said before slate tiles are strong, hard, and provide perfect longevity, it has become a great part of decoration and of making a great house. However, even though slate tiles are amazing in their appearance, people want to get more out of them and ask “Can you change the color of the slate floor”. Well, staining slate tiles is not an impossible job.

As slate tiles are porous and have the power to absorb, coloring, or staining the slate tiles will not be a bad idea. It depends on your desire if you want to darken your slate tiles or lighten them. Besides, you don’t have to pull rocket science to do this simple job. A lot of common sense about staining a surface and some basic rules of dealing with slate tiles will do more of the job at a time.

Mostly, slate tiles come in color surrounded by gray shade. You will see plain slate tiles too. Because of this gray shade and light color of slate tiles, people feel the necessity of color-staining slate tiles to some extent. From darkening slate tiles to changing the whole color of the slate tiles, a lot of things have become possible to do just using stain and then an enhancer or sealer following the accurate procedure.

As staining slate tiles can lighten slate floors too, it can be said that you can change your slate tiles into several looks. But above all, you need to know which is the right processes and follow it thoroughly. We will be providing one in our next segment, so you are to some extent relieved from the trouble of finding the right process. Read Also: 7 Best Sealer for Saltillo Tile 2024 Reviews [Beautiful & Durable]

7 Steps to Change Color of Slate Floor:

A floor that is decorated with slate floor provides a completely different beauty. If you learn to change the color of the slate floor in the right way, then these slate tiles are able to provide you a long-term service. Though slate tiles are more efficient than other many types of tiles, they can also start to deteriorate with time. If you don’t apply a maintenance routine to them, they will start to fade their efficiency and color.

Nevertheless, you can restore the color if you take the step at the right time. However, changing the color of the slate floor is also proudly responsible for restoring the efficiency and workability of slate tiles. Therefore, if you are attempting to change the color of the slate floor, follow our process thoroughly and restore its beauty and strength as before.

Step 1: Collect the Essentials:

We believe in preparations first because that determines how confident you are about fulfilling your job. Without gathering the essentials first you will find an immense interruption in your job and that will distract you from successfully coloring the slate tiles. That’s why we have made a list of major materials that you are going to need to achieve your goal. So, let’s check out the list at once

1. Alkaline solution for cleaning
2. Broom
3. Mop
4. Grout cleaner
5. Lint-free cloth
6. Freshwater
7. Hand gloves
8. Mask
9. Scraper or wire
10. An even and smooth sponge
11. A tray or tray-like container
12. Hot water
13. Epoxy or acrylic paint
14. Small-sized and medium-sized paintbrushes
15. An enhancer or sealer

Step 2: Clean the Dirt from the Floor:

After you have acquired all the essentials from a hardware store, concentrate on your floor later on. The floor carries a lot of dust and debris and this is pretty normal. First, bring a broom or vacuum cleaner and then vacuum the loosened dirt from the floor. But before that, don’t forget to remove all the materials from the floor. If the pieces of furniture are movable, for a better cleaning system, remove them with the help of some helping hands.

However, after removing all the pieces of furniture, you will witness more dirt and debris getting exposed. Now, vacuuming the loosened dirt will be more satisfying. After removing the loosened dirt, you need to see if the floor carries any grease and rusty scales or not.

Step 3: Clean Rusty Scales and Greasy spots:

Often times it happens that metal-based materials leave rusty scales on your slate floor and it also remains unnoticed by the homeowner or people who maintain the cleaning of the floor. These rusty scales and unnecessary greasy spots on the floor look really bad and you need to fix them before applying paint on the slate floor.

That’s why use a scraper and try to scrape the grease and rusty scales from the floor. You can use wire if you see the grease has become hardened and it is of several layers. Be careful with these tools because they tend to put scratches on the beautiful tiles. But you are allowed to give a vigorous rub on those particular spaces where the situation is colder. Pour hot water on those greasy and rusty scaled spots and then after waiting two to three minutes, start scraping again and then you will the scales and grease coming out of the floor. Then clean the loosened grease and rust with fresh water.

Step 4: Clean with Cleaning Products:

It is not simple to adhere paint on the slate floor too easily. To get adhesion both from slate tiled floor and paint, you need to prepare the surface clean and even at its best. More even the surface is the better. After completing the former step, you need to give a thorough cleaning to your slate tiled floor. The tiled floor carries grouts and in those grouts, you will witness dirt that requires effective cleaning products to be cleaned properly.

An alkaline solution-based commercial cleaning product is effective enough to clean the surface and abolish the residue of rusty scale and grease to the greatest extent. This type of cleaning product is famous worldwide and experts also recommend them big time. For the grouts, you need to adopt cleaning products that carry acidic components so they can loosen the dirt of the grouts and become clean. Pour those cleaning products in a bucket full of water and with a mop clean the floor, and then use fresh water to give a final cleaning to the slate tile.

Step 5: Let the Floor Dry and Wear Your Safety:

After providing a deep cleansing to your slate tiled floor you need to wipe the extra water using a lint-free cloth or rag. Or you can let them dry naturally. You can also use a dryer if you want to do your job as fast as possible. However, after the floor is completely dried, the floor is ready to adopt more pressure on it like painting and then sealing.

Then, to jump into the next step, you need to prepare yourself fully. You better wear hand gloves and a mask from the very starting point of the job if you want to remain 100 percent risk-free. However, now that you are going to work with some chemical-based products and paint, wear those safely to avoid any skin diseases and fatigue.

Step 6: Apply One Coat of Paint:

We recommend oil-based epoxy paint to apply to the slate tiled floor. Or you can use water-based acrylic stain for the slate floor too. But epoxy paint comes with the most adhesion capability and its oil-based version gives a very long-lasting formula with a glossy or semi-glossy look. You can adopt spray paint too as they come with the easiest application method. But if you have brought the liquid one, then pour some of it into a tray or tray-like container.

First, take the attempt to paint the grout. To paint them, dip the small-sized paintbrush into the tray and then paint the grout properly. To color the grout, you will find epoxy grout paint on the market. You can use this one too if you want the detail beauty of your slate tiled floor. Now, dip the medium-sized brush in the tray and then apply a thin layer to the slate tiled floor. Well, you can choose a small part of the floor and examine the color with slate tile to check if you are doing it right.

Step 7: Apply Several Coats of Paints and then Seal the Tiles:

Now that slate tiles contain pores and are good at absorbing, a thin layer of epoxy paint will not be enough. It will not provide you with the exact color that you have been wanting till now. That’s why you need to apply several coats of the same paint. After applying the first coat of paint, wait 30 to 45 minutes till it dries to the touch. Then you are allowed to apply the second coat. If the second coat does not meet your desired color, then apply a third coat waiting 30 to 45 minutes.

The third coat should meet your expected color and then you need to wait more than 45 minutes to let the last coat dry completely. Take a full day or two to let the paint dry fully and significantly. After that, you can apply an enhancer to seal the floor. Sealing the coat of paint helps it to look more vivid, and glossy, and increases its durability too. You need to apply several coats of sealer too following the same manner you adopted while painting the slate floor. After sealing it, wait a day or two and then return the pieces of furniture to the newly painted slate floor.

Which Type of Paint to Use to Change Color of Slate Tile?

Slate tiles provide a hard surface while you install them for flooring. Their hardness and unique texture make it quite tough to get along with all types of paint. Also, not all paints are made for all types of materials. Some paints are specially made for wooden surfaces, while others are made for tiles, porcelain, concrete, and all. That’s why while choosing paint for your slate tiled floor you need to know which paints are applicable for slate tiles. We are here to provide the names of some of the paints that adhere to the surface of slate tiles and work pretty fine.

1. Epoxy Paint:

Epoxy paints are specially made for the application to the floors. No matter if it is a concrete-based floor or porcelain-based floor or slate-tiled floor, epoxy paint works fine on them. As this paint is for industrial use, you can imagine the heavy components it carries to provide the best adhesion to the surface. It carries more latex acrylic additives more in it and epoxy components less in it. And thus, it provides the perfect balance to the consistency of the paint.

2. Acrylic Craft Paint:

Water-based paints are popular globally because they are so user-friendly and do not create much trouble while painting something. If you are wondering if there is any water-based paint that can be applied to slate tiles then acrylic craft paint is your perfect pick. For a first drying pigmented color, this paint is suitable for sure.

3. Spray Paint:

Spray paints are so convenient to use that you will fall in love if you try them once in your lifetime. You can find spray paint for different surfaces in the market. Spray paints that are used on hard surfaces like concrete and porcelain can be used on slate tiles too. To paint slate tiles, you need to take them to the open yard and then practice applying them for some moment. And then you can get the right consistency of the spray paint.

FAQs:

Question: Can you stain slate floors? Does sealing slate change the color?

Answer: It is possible to stain slate floors using epoxy or acrylic craft stain. They come with a great deal of adhesion and your slate floors will look totally different after you stain them properly.

If you use stone-enhancing sealer then you might witness the change color of slate floor. Enhancers darken the shade of the remained color and give a glossy or semi-glossy finishing to the slate tiled surface.

Question: Can slate floors be refinished?

Answer: It is possible to make your slate floors new again by using enhancers. But you need to clean the surface properly and make it prepared for applying sealer to the slate tiles.

Question: How do you restain slate?

Answer: If you have old and loose stains already on the floor, then you need to clean them properly. Then apply the first coat of epoxy paint thoroughly to the slate tile. Provide a thin layer at first and then you can apply several coatings of the paint. Thus, you can re-stain the slate.

Last Updated on May 31, 2024 by Rogers Weber

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