# Repainting cement cliffs



## tj-lee (Jan 2, 2008)

After 6 years or so of the very hot Central California summers and this last year’s unseasonal heavy rains, the Cliffs I built on my layout were looking a bit threadbare especially where the drip line from the edge of the house caused additional water to fall from the second story roof.











Given that the Cliffs were modeled after the rocks at the Big Thunder Mountain ride at Disneyland, the colors I used to touch up the paint job are bright yellow, black cherry (a very dark reddish purple), and the base rock color, nutmeg brown. I dump a bit of each color on an acrylic square to act as a palette. Painting concrete like I do involves a lot of stippling and dry brushing, both techniques are very hard on paint brushes. I favor short, stiff bristles for this work.











Where a lot of paint has been worn off I start with the highlight colors going from light to darker colors. Stippling is where you use the brush like a ice pick and jab it perpendicular to the surface you are painting. You can see the black cherry quite clearly and the bright yellow here where I highlighted the piece so damaged by the drip line from the second story roof.















To blend the garish colors back into a semblance of rock I used the nutmeg brown with a liberal dollop of water to thin it on the palette and used that to blend the colors to look more like rock.










Turned out pretty good.

Repainting the Cliffs of Insanity - TJsTrains.com 

Best,
TJ


----------



## SteveC (Jan 2, 2008)

Nice job TJ, and good choice of topic.


----------



## tj-lee (Jan 2, 2008)

SteveC, 

Thanks. It is that time of year when you need to take a hard look at the layout and start cleaning up, fixing, regluing, and painting. I had been putting the repainting of the cliffs off and putting it off, thinking it would be a massive chore. Finally I had company coming over and didn't anyone to see the condition into which it has gotten. 

I was very pleasantly suprised that it took only a few hours to get it back into shape. The pics don't do it justice but it really came out nice. 

Best, 
TJ


----------



## SE18 (Feb 21, 2008)

what kind of paint is it? I paint my concrete with a brush and concrete dyes 

Dave V


----------



## ddevoto (Jan 22, 2008)

Nice work TJ, Another good tutorial. I used your creosote formula on some end of track bumpers and it worked great.


----------



## tj-lee (Jan 2, 2008)

Dave, 

> what kind of paint is it? 

I use acrylic hobby paint from Michaels Crafts. I seal the concrete with white latex house paint and then use acrylics in various combinations to get the color effects I want. 

Dan, 

> I used your creosote formula on some end of track bumpers and it worked great. 

Glad that the "gunk" worked for you. Chemical staining can provide some awesome results with wood. And it'll work for weathering plastic as well. Just apply let dry and you can build up layers of "rust" on a number of materials used to look like metal. 

Best, 
TJ 
TJsTrains.com


----------



## kormsen (Oct 27, 2009)

Posted By tj-lee on 06 Jul 2011 01:28 PM 
...used your creosote formula... 

Glad that the "gunk" worked for you... 

where do i find the thread about that?

thanks


----------



## Axel Tillmann (Jan 10, 2008)

I have found a great product on HGTV . I not only did my concrete patio with it but also a concrete mountain. It is an acid stain by Kemiko and it doens't create a uniform color but the color impression is modified by the concretes density which is varying. Here is the link to color chart of availble base colors

Kemiko color chart


----------



## tj-lee (Jan 2, 2008)

> where do i find the thread about that?

There was a thread in the now defunct archive. I've recreated the article here:

http://tjstrains.com/568/chemically-staining-wood

It's easy to make and works by reacting with the tannin in the wood. You can also use on other types of materials since it dries looking like rust.


Best,
TJ
TJsTrains.com


----------



## tj-lee (Jan 2, 2008)

Axel,

The concrete stain is interesting and I'll have to give that a try. I do like more color effects in my rocks and mountains. Here's the cover I built for my yard sprinkler controls:










Which once the brown cover coat was applied came out like this:










Best,
TJ


----------



## Axel Tillmann (Jan 10, 2008)

Great cover and interesting how you build the effects.

What you can do with Kemiko is build the base of colors and then in the most simple form use vinegar (or if you can get stronger acid) and mix it with your accent colors (e.g. white, ocre,....) and add accents stains to it. I have tried that as well. The cool effect is that it is reaching deep into the layers. And it is permannent.


----------



## kormsen (Oct 27, 2009)

thank you, TJ!


----------



## astrayelmgod (Jan 2, 2008)

Well, TJ, you have just increased my workload. Thanks a lot. I was planning to repaint most of my mountains next year, as I have a list of other projects before my meet in January, and I thought that repainting would take too long. I am repainiting most of my mountains because all the red faded out, so they are now yellow and black, and a sort of brownish color. 

I am planning to repaint with house paint, because it has UV inhibitors that art paint doesn't.


----------



## tj-lee (Jan 2, 2008)

Gary, 

> Well, TJ, you have just increased my workload. Thanks a lot. 

LOL! Hey Gary, how are you doing! Without you I'd have never even made a cliff, let alone paint one. Good to hear from you, my friend. 

Glad I could help re-prioritize your project list . 

> I am planning to repaint with house paint, because it has UV inhibitors that art paint doesn't. 

YES, fading is a concern. Let me know how the house paint works out and what colors you used. I think that would be a great way to go. 

Best, 
TJ


----------



## tj-lee (Jan 2, 2008)

Kormsen,

> thank you, TJ! 


You are most welcome. Do let me know if you have any questions or I can help in any way.

Best,
TJ


----------



## Axel Tillmann (Jan 10, 2008)

Posted By tj-lee on 07 Jul 2011 04:26 PM 
YES, fading is a concern. Let me know how the house paint works out and what colors you used. I think that would be a great way to go. 

Best, 
TJ 
That was the most appealing thing about the Kemiko. It is not a color that is applied to the surface, it is an acid stain that chemically reacts with the concrete. I used to paint my patio with the patio fading/peeling..... (you name it).

Now it has been stable for years. Granted the highlighting (white application) doesn't exist, but maybe if one wets a special area (or maybe protects with oil - I have to experiement) it will be spared from the staining process, and when drying in my give the highlight result.

The stain can be applied via a garden sprayer.


----------



## pete (Jan 2, 2008)

When we did our mountains we used cement acid to add color to the cement . We used the burlap and cement method and the finished coat of cement was sprayed with the acid. it was very easy and came out looking pretty good. Tj we talked over the phone about two years or so ago. We live in canton ohio you gave me some good advise on the burlap method. Thanks afain.


----------



## tj-lee (Jan 2, 2008)

Hi Pete! I remember our conversation very well, good to hear from you again. Your mountains turned out very well as I remember. 

Best, 
TJ 
TJsTrains.com


----------



## tj-lee (Jan 2, 2008)

Here's how I painted my cliff and rock pieces originally...

http://tjstrains.com/777/how-to-paint-concrete-scenery/

Best,
TJ


----------

