Painting concrete steps

Instead of the usual looking concrete steps, why not give it a new coat of paint to refresh the look of your home. In order to achieve that, choosing the right type of paint is crucial. The paint should stick on to the concrete and slip-proof as a protection to you and other people who step on them. Here are the steps on how to paint your concrete steps.

Things that you need:

  • Concrete/ masonry primer
  • slip-proof concrete/masonry paint
  • concrete vapor transfer test
  • heavy duty stripper
  • masking tape
  • paintbrush
  • paint roller


  1. First, prepare the concrete steps for the paint. You can use the concrete vapor transfer kit to test whether the concrete will hold the paint. This test will only be used for the steps which are less than one year old. Clean the concrete steps by stripping off any existing paint, rust, dirt or grease. Next, use masking tape or painting tape to tape off porch or wall areas that are joined with the concrete steps. Apply the tape where you are likely to over paint. For example, tape along the lines and the landing on the top of the steps.
  2. Then, paint a coat of concrete or masonry primer to the steps. You can use a brush to paint the entire area, the edges and the inside of corners. For the rest of the surface, you can use the roller. Before painting the color on the steps, make sure the primer is dried completely. For oil-based primers, most of them are dry within 4 to 6 hours but only ready to be painted for another 8 to 10 hours. If you are using the epoxy primers, these primers dry within an hour and are ready to paint within 6 hours in warm dry weather.
  3. Try choosing a slip-proof cement paint or masonry paint. You can also use a non-slip marine additive as the alternative paint to increase traction when the steps are wet. If you can\’t decide, ask the paint salesperson to suggest a suitable non-slip additive for your paint choice.
  4. Brush a coat of masonry paint the same method as you did with the primer. You may have to paint several thin coats or a thick coat depending on what type of paint you are using. After finish painting, let the steps completely dry before stepping on them. If the weather is warm and dry, a thin coat of masonry paint will dry within 2 to 4 hours, while layering a second coat will dry within 8 to 10 hours.

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