Coloured concrete driveways in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie

Coloured concrete puts the colour where it cannot wear off: in the mix. An oxide pigment is added to the load at the plant, so a chip or a scratch shows the same colour underneath. The surface is finished the way a plain slab is, usually with a light broom for grip, sometimes with a trowelled or stencilled face on a flat forecourt. The result is a flat, quiet driveway in charcoal, sand, terracotta or one of a few dozen standard colours.

What coloured concrete costs

$115 to $160 per square metre supplied and laid, between plain and exposed aggregate. A 36 m² single driveway works out at $4,140 to $5,760 and a 60 m² double at $6,900 to $9,600. Darker colours use more oxide and sit higher in the range; a seal adds to the figure; removing an old slab first adds about $35 per square metre. The cost guide and the calculator cover the rest.

Through-colour or topping

Two methods share the name. Full-depth oxide, which this site prices, colours the whole load. A colour hardener or a coloured topping is worked into the surface of a grey slab; it can give stronger colour for less pigment, but it is only as deep as the layer, and a chip shows grey. Ask any quote which method it prices. The specification assumes oxide through the mix.

Choosing a colour

Concrete colour is read against everything around it. Charcoal beside a dark roof and a rendered wall reads as one decision; the same charcoal beside red brick reads as a contrast. Sand and limestone tones hide dust, charcoal hides tyre marks, and mid greys do a bit of both. Hold a cured sample, not a chart, in the actual light of the frontage, and expect a small variation between loads and across a large slab; that is the material, not a fault.

Sealing and fading

Oxide is stable in sunlight, but the cement paste on the surface weathers and lightens with time, which reads as fading. A sealer slows it and keeps oil out, and it is reapplied every few seasons. The same limit applies as for any decorative finish: on a City of Newcastle crossing sealer is not permitted, so the seal stops at the boundary line.

The crossing

Lake Macquarie City Council accepts a coloured crossing if it is sealed with a non-slip product, and it applies the same 125 mm thickness as any crossing. City of Newcastle’s drawing lists coloured concrete among the finishes that may be considered; plain broom finish is its default, and stamped concrete is not permitted at all. In both areas the crossing is approved before the pour, which the Section 138 guide explains, and in both the usual outcome is colour to the boundary and grey in front of it.

Colour carries well onto a front path or an alfresco; see paths, slabs and patios. If an old slab has to go first, see removal and replacement. Then ask for a written quote.