Color enhancing sealer in Scottsdale
It deepens and richens the stone's natural color rather than adding color to it. On travertine or slate that has gone flat, the difference is not subtle.
Calls answered 7am to 8pm · same-day service usually available
We test a section so you can compare untouched, cleaned, and cleaned plus enhanced.
What it actually does
The simplest description is the most accurate one. It makes the stone look permanently the way it looks when wet.
Wet a dry travertine floor and the color deepens, the variation between pieces becomes obvious, and the whole thing reads warmer and richer. That happens because water fills the surface pores and changes how light moves through the stone. Color enhancing sealer does the same thing with a product that stays.
It is not a stain or a dye. Nothing is being added to the color, the stone's own color is being brought forward, which is why the result looks natural rather than painted.
Where it is worth the money
Travertine that has gone flat
The best candidate there is, and extremely common in Scottsdale. Travertine loses depth as its sealer wears and soil settles into the surface. What was warm and varied reads pale and chalky.
Cleaning takes it partway back. Enhancing takes it the rest of the way, and on a large travertine floor in a bright room the change is the most dramatic result we produce.
Slate
Equally strong and less expected. Slate that has gone gray and lifeless comes back with genuine depth, and the color variation between pieces returns in a way that reminds people why they chose it.
Faded pool decks
A travertine deck after a decade of full sun goes pale, and owners frequently assume replacement is the only option. Cleaning plus enhancing can bring it back close to how it looked new. Full page on decks.
Where clear sealer is the better call
Plenty of situations, and we would rather say so than sell the higher tier by default.
If you like how the floor looks now, clear seal protects it without changing it, and that is a perfectly good outcome for $0.425 less per square foot.
On polished marble, enhancing does much less, because polished stone is already showing its color. The effect is most visible on honed and textured surfaces.
On light stone you want to stay light. Enhancing deepens, and on a pale limestone chosen specifically for being pale that may be the opposite of what you want.
Why we test first
Because it is a real change and it is not easily undone.
On any floor where you are considering it, we clean a section and apply the enhancing sealer to part of it. You then look at three things side by side: the untouched floor, the cleaned floor, and the cleaned and enhanced floor.
Seeing all three together answers the question faster than any description, and about a third of the time people choose clear seal after looking.
That costs us the higher tier regularly, and it means nobody ends up with a floor that is darker than they wanted on a surface that is awkward to reverse.
What it costs
Interior: $2.50/sqft, or $2.125 after the 15% off. Against clean plus clear seal at $1.70, that is $0.425 a foot more, so on a 900 sqft floor about $383.
Pool deck: $4/sqft, or $3.40 after the discount, against $2.55 for clean plus clear seal.
Grout color seal can be added on top of either, over 40 colors, and you are never required to take a particular stone tier to get the grout done. Full pricing here.
What it will not do
It will not hide etching. Nothing does. An etched patch stays duller than the stone around it, and enhancing the surrounding stone can make the contrast slightly more obvious rather than less.
It will not fix worn finish in traffic lanes, which is the same category of problem. More on both here.
It will not make stone acid-proof. It protects against staining like any sealer, and an acidic spill left sitting will still etch through it eventually.
Questions
What does color enhancing sealer do?
It deepens and richens the stone's natural color rather than adding color to it. The effect is similar to how stone looks when wet, made permanent and protective.
Which stone suits it best?
Travertine and slate that have gone flat, by a distance. Both have natural color variation that dulls as sealer wears and soil works in, and enhancing brings that variation back.
Is it reversible?
Not easily. It is a genuine change to how the floor looks, which is why we test an area and let you see it before committing to a whole floor.
Does it protect as well as clear sealer?
Yes, both protect against staining. The difference is visual rather than protective.
What does it cost?
$2.50/sqft interior, or $2.125 after the 15% off, against $1.70 for clean plus clear seal. On a pool deck it is $4/sqft or $3.40 after.
Will it hide etching?
No. Nothing hides etching. It deepens the color of sound stone and an etched patch will still read as duller than what surrounds it.
Calls answered 7am to 8pm · same-day service usually available
$2.125/sqft interior after the discount. Tested before you commit.