I hate my concrete

[elainerader]

Hi,

Does anyone have experience resurfacing their concrete pool deck? I have a limited budget (champagne taste) so keep that in mind for suggestions.
I would love to put flagstone everywhere, but that is cost prohibitive.......but I really HATE all the concrete and the un imaginative shape it is. (Purchased the house with the pool) The surface is roughish with some cracking and is 14 years old.

Although full sun is coveted for pol ownership....we have zero shade all day long until late in the afternoon. (building a large structure is also not in the budget) Some shade up close with non shedding trees (windmill palms are the only ones that will survive the winter, or more banana plants but they die back in the fall.

My thoughts: cutting places out to plant some palms close to the edge of the pool AND/OR
building up curved planters near the edge of the pool
coupled with some sort of affordable concrete staining?

So anyone had experience with any of this?

Thanks for any feedback with photos! (Mine is attached)

P.S. This pool was a disaster when I moved here, and thanks to all of you wonderful folks, its is now perfect

 

[duraleigh]

I wish I could bring you good news. Any modification of concrete (enough to make a difference) will be really pricey, I think.

 

[elainerader]

Even a stain?

 

[YippeeSkippy]

How about putting up a simple pergola type frame and using sail cloths to provide an area of shade? I just looked and if you get on Pinterest and input "pool shade ideas" you'll see some great ideas. Many look relatively inexpensive if you can build it yourself.

 

[smooth2222]

Couldnt you paint the concrete, also adding that anti slip stuff?

 

[elainerader]

Thanks for the suggestion, I will!!

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How about putting up a simple pergola type frame and using sail cloths to provide an area of shade? I just looked and if you get on Pinterest and input "pool shade ideas" you'll see some great ideas. Many look relatively inexpensive if you can build it yourself.

Thanks for the suggestion, I will take a look....always forget about looking there for ideas!

 

[Jamison04]

If the concrete is still in good shape and not cracking and the surface isn't chipping off and if it was me, I'd look into acid staining it. You can achieve some really nice looks and completely transform the whole look.

 

[dtlight]

There are acrlic stamped overlays that you can do for your concrete, I'm looking into them for my Mom's house where a 25 year old back patio slab doesn't look all that great...

SunStamp - Sundek Concrete Coatings and Concrete Repair for ideas, not an endorsement.

Concrete sawing isn't that expensive, so removing the outside part of your slab to create a more decorative shape, or adding planting areas within the existing slab might be an option as well.