Feature Map

Color Selection

The Concrete Palette™ has over 17,000 colors with 10 different dosage (intensity) rates.

To select a color, use your mouse to click on the Concrete Palette™ Universe. Your selection will be highlighted by a flashing green square. As you click different points within the Concrete Palette™ Universe, the "virtual tile" in the color sample preview screen changes color. You can also use this method to change the color within the sample project photos.

Color Preview

The Color Preview is an enlargement of your color selection point from the Concrete Palette™ Universe. The Color Preview combines your color selection with the settings you choose for surface texture and dosage rate (color intensity) settings. Use Color Preview to experiment with different colors, textures and dosage rates to create your own virtual concrete tile sample.

Texture - Finishes

There are five different surface finish textures you can select. Choose from Salt-Finish, Medium Sandblast, Broom, Trowel, and No Texture. This feature shows how surface appearance can differ even though the base concrete color is the same.

Differences in the surface texture of concrete cause you to see more or less of the light reflected to your eye. This is why sections of the same concrete or stamped concrete surface can appear darker or lighter than other sections. Exposed aggregates also impact color appearance. Notice how the medium sandblasted texture looks lighter. This is because more of the light colored sand and aggregate is visible from the exposure process.

Dosage Rate / Cost Estimates

Use the Color Dosage slide bar to increase or decrease color intensity. The higher the intensity, the greater amount of pigment added and more intense the color of concrete becomes. The cost per square foot will increase or decrease depending on the intensity. Refer to the Color Cost calculator to see the approximate retail cost to add color to concrete. This estimate is based a typical concrete paving project, utilizing a standard 5-sack mix design producing concrete 4" thick with each cubic yard covering approximately 80 square feet. The cost estimate is for the incremental cost of color additives only and does not include costs for the concrete, delivery, contractor installation, site preparation or special finishes.

Projects Preview

View your color selection in virtual concrete projects by clicking on the Project Preview button (shown here circled in red). Enlarge the photo by clicking on the enlarge icon (circled in green). Click on the Previous and Next buttons (circled in blue) to select different project types. Please note these colors are very popular in stamped concrete projects.

You can adjust the project color instantaneously by using the color tuner located at the upper left-hand corner of the Concrete Palette™ (circled in red). The color tuner makes slight adjustments with each click. Use the Color Tuner arrow buttons to make fine changes and see the effect instantly in the photo.

To return to the color preview section click on the "Color Preview" Tab (circled in green).

Save Color Swatch

Once you have chosen a color, click the "Save Swatch" button to save it for future reference. Select a project folder from the dropdown menu. Give your color swatch a name and then click the "Save" button. Your color selection will be saved into the project folder you specified. To move a swatch from one folder to another, find the swatch in the Swatch Browser, click Save Swatch and choose the new folder to save it to.

To create a new project folder, close this window and open the Swatch Browser window (see below for more information).

Swatch Browser

Create new project folders by clicking on the "New" button (circled in blue). Give the folder a name and then click Save. Delete a folder by highlighting the folder and then clicking the "Delete" button (circled in yellow). Beware: deleting a folder permanently removes all color swatches in that folder. Read the Save Color Swatch directions above to learn how to save a color swatch in a project folder.

A swatch can be viewed by clicking on the Swatch Browser tab and looking into the appropriate project folder. To copy the 16 digit swatch code, highlight the swatch and then click the "Copy Code" button (circled in black). This saves the swatch code to your computer's clipboard. You can then paste the swatch code into any text document using the standard Edit/Paste command (Windows: Control+P). To delete a swatch, highlight the swatch and then click the delete button (circled in green).

Request a Color Sample

Even though we have done everything possible to assure the Concrete Palette™ represents colors accurately, monitor technology still has its limits. This is why an actual colored concrete sample should be ordered before specifying your color. To order a sample, click the "Get Sample" button. Complete the sample form and e-mail it or fax it to 323-269-1053. A sample will be made and sent to you within 12 working days. There may be a handling charge for this service.

Viewing Custom Tile Samples

Once you have received your custom tile sample make sure you turn your room lights on before comparing your color on the Concrete Palette™ sample to the actual concrete tile. Always view your monitor and sample tile under similar lighting conditions for color consistency. In order to compare a sample concrete tile to the monitor display, view the sample against a neutral, medium to medium-dark gray background (the shade of gray that boarders the Color Preview window on the Concrete Palette™) and look back and forth between the sample and the image displayed on the monitor in the Color Preview window.

• If you view the sample tile against a different colored or light background, the tile will look different from the color represented on your monitor.
• If you hold the tile sample up next to the monitor display, it also will look different from the color sample on your monitor because the tile is not receiving the same amount of light as the sample on the monitor.

Color Finder

To find or view a color using a swatch code, click on the "Color Finder" button (circled in red). Type in or paste the 16 digit swatch code into the field (example circled in blue) and then click the "Preview" button. The color will appear on the Color Preview window.

Share colors - Use the "Color Finder" to view a color swatch created by a colleague.

Swatch Code Info - In order to incorporate the recipe and dosage rate information, the swatch code is 16 digits long. Each swatch code is unique. For easy reference, make sure you save the swatch code into a project folder.