How To Make White Concrete | A Modern Builds Experiment

[@makisalimhussain2334]

Hi, I am a Civil Engineer used to design concrete mixtures. And these are my advices: 1- Make the mixture proportions 4 parts cement 6 parts sand & 9 parts gravel 2- use water about 30-35% of the cement by weight or roughly 45-50 % of the cement by volume 3- Use concrete superplacitizer about 1% of the cement by weight or about 1.5% of cement by volume. 4- Add 70 - 75 % of the water to the dry mixture and continue the mixing 5- Mix the remaining water with the placitizer then add to the mixture and continue mixing till you get homogenous mixture. 6- I recommend to add special fibre for concrete and you need to follow the manufacturer instruction. Normaly it is about 0.5 to 1 kg of fibre per 1 cubic meter. The fibre will act as reifircement. Regards Eng. Maki S Hussain - Iraq

[@billsmith7673]

Thank you. Very informative. Do you know of any good books on concrete - especially technical ones for engineers?

[@vaibhavchauhan5770]

Sorry, I dont agree on that water cemet ratio. And more importantly Why I think that the white cement one didnt achieve strength is that the aggregates were too round due to which the binding of naterials didnt take place. Where as the ready mix had mix angles of size and shape. Civil Engineer from India

[@wasabij]

@@vaibhavchauhan5770 I wonder if the differences in your opinions have to do with geography? Like I remember Iraq being very dry and hot, vs my friends experiences with India being incredibly humid, but obviously i don't know much else about your whereabouts other than country.

[@justingriffin2546]

Wow thanks Maki Godbless you and your family

[@justingriffin2546]

@@wasabij interesting point...I've seen some Amazing modern architecture online from India lately, Godbless

[@axelSixtySix]

So you want strong concrete ? Try to add poly fibres. Want a rock solid material for machinery or structural applications ? Try resin granite (5-10% resin).

[@russellborrego1689]

Replacing 20% of your water with white latex paint would help with your tests and color. Latex paint increases concrete's flexural strength, and of course the white would make it a bit whiter. Great video tho!

[@joeyknight8272]

Good idea

[@russellborrego1689]

@@joeyknight8272, I willingly admit that it's not one *I* came up with. About ten years ago my wife and I started a small ornamental concrete business, and in my research to find out if I could use latex paint as a means to dye concrete? I found out it's strength benefits as well. Concrete is part black magic, and part state secrets, and many folks closely guard both. I try to share what I know to be true as often as possible so others can, and hopefully, do the same.

[@joeyknight8272]

@@russellborrego1689 that's good

[@Tehcarp]

the white in paint is Titanium dioxide, which you can purchase. You don'treally need the other stuff

[@Tehcarp]

also white rocks that were crushed instead of tumbled would be what you want.

[@confusedwhale]

The problem with the white gravel is that the cement wasn't able to bond with it as well. That's why you don't use smooth or dirty rock in concrete manufacturing. If you used clean and angular quartz or light limestone, your concrete would have been stronger and just as white.

[@taylormcgrath]

This is the sort of channel you find at 4am and watch until it gets bright outside and then it comes up in your recommended for years to come

[@ben4thewin]

I've been digging through the internet trying to find a good video on mixing your own white concrete, and when you started the video off with all of the exact problems I am having, I was so relieved. The video was amazing, and thanks so much for putting this information out there!

[@Darkice77]

I use a jigsaw to vibrate the form. It works awesome. What i did was make my own white concrete like this but i used perlite. I made hundreds of fake stones and used them over my siding on my house. The perlite kept them really white and they were lighter. I made several different sizes but they all fit together to make a 4x8 panel. It worked out perfectly. It took about a month total time. I used construction adhesive to stick them to my house. I think it was liquid nails. They don't come off either lol. If you try, it will pull the siding off. After i glued them all on i grouted with some medium dark grout for contrast then sealed everything with a good concrete sealer. It looks so good my neighbors want it done. Guess im making more now.

[@jimmmmmmmmmmmmmy]

Hey Mike, white concrete can be made by adding Ti02 or Zinc Oxide pigment in concentrations up to 10%. Both can be found at your local art store. TX Active cement bags have nanoparticle Ti02 for an ultrawhite finish. It's also self-cleaning to an extent.

[@jimmmmmmmmmmmmmy]

Yes, get your EIN ready to speak to an Account Representative about buying 50 pounds of pigment direct from the manufacturer. 50g of Pigment is enough for a square foot of concrete. Getting 16oz (450g) of Gamblin Artist Grade Ti02 pigment from Michaels for $16 is more than enough for a couple of DIY projects.

[@WeebRemover4500]

the white concrete with the rocks in looks really interesting when broken into pieces, i could imagine chopping that up and gluing together to use for some very decorative walls or maybe even floor

[@FullMetalFox2]

The mix is pretty similar to what ive been told by some guys working in a concrete factory, they were friends of our master carpenter. Try adding some different sizes of sand grains instead of one size, from coarse up to essentially powder, poor a thin layer and vibrate it, add GF to the rest of the batch and add it ontop of the surface layers. Ofc rebar and water replacments on final products. Thats how we made them and we got super smooth surfaces with dense concrete strong enough to support an IIRC 30-40cm floating edge. Cheers!

[@TimKollat]

for white marble sand, find a pool plaster supplier. You can get 100lb bags of it for 8 to 10 bucks. Its what I use for all my terrazzo flooring projects.

[@XristoPR]

What ratio to cement ?

[@HamidA-to8vy]

Sometimes googling is better than measuring, since concrete one of the most studied material. there are engineers specialize in concrete. Maximum stress could be written on the bag which is compression stress. Generally, more aggregate and less water gives stronger concrete. Usually concrete functioning with conjunction with steel which is crucial for performance. then it comes the additives and there uncountable number of them. The most used ones are fiberglass for strength and anti cracking; additives for workablity or water reduces; dyes ..etc

[@serena6575]

You could totally do a terrazzo inspired table with the first batch of concrete 🤩

[@osamab814]

Stephanie Leal HC exactly my thought

[@TheRomewedding]

Can't wait to see the concrete raw edge table!! Thanks for this video, Mike!

[@withthesehands5799]

The version with the aquarium rocks would make amazing concrete counter tops!

[@darinnetherland3466]

I’m guessing that this is for some type of application like that coming up.

[@powerofknowledge7771]

This was the most helpful video to show how different variables affect concrete! Demonstrating this made it much easier to understand. Thank you for making this!!!

[@toDIYfor]

Omg obsessed with white concrete... had no idea it even existed.

[@shannonvaughan4385]

I’d like to see how the ultra white holds up with some sort of structure or reinforcement inside. Also, I’d like to see how to make super jet black concrete. Thanks for the video.

[@TeamCuellar]

I could be wrong but I believe the reason the Aquarium Rocks didn't perform as well as the Pea Gravel is because the Aquarium Rocks are smaller and more uniform in shape. The Pea Gravel you used had more irregular shapes and larger which gives the concrete more surface area to bond to and the larger size also allows the rocks to interlace with each other strengthening the slab.

[@joshuasidwell9139]

The water to cement ratio is the most important thing if you are going for strength. The less water you have the stronger the concrete will be. The lowest ratio that you want to go is 0.4 water to 1 cement however it gets really hard to move into place. To counter act this a plasticizer can be added.

[@nadc7868]

I AM USING CONCRETE HARDENER AND ITS GIVING ME GOOD RESULTS TRY IT NEXT TIME

[@khaledrjoub]

The best ratio is 1 part cement 2.5 part sand 4-5 part of really angular aggregate " corners on the edges of aggregate gives a lot of strength "

[@captnbrandopink]

Angular aggregate allows for better adhesion of the paste to the rock. Aquarium rocks are often either too smooth or have an epoxy coating to prevent them from reacting in the water.

[@Im-pierre]

In the netherlands we often use the 1,2,3 ratio

[@stevenmcbride9512]

Just read the article in the OK Gazette. As a fellow Oklahoman in the construction industry, just wanted to say I’m proud of you and keep doing what you’re doing man!

[@eduardormbox]

Here in Brazil we use concrete for all in constructions... ask a brasilian about concrete and you know everything about it. Nice video.

[@PikaGirl713]

I would stack those under a coffee table!!! With that gradient... so so so pretty oh my god

[@watahyahknow]

i seen other youtubers use a formtool meant for clay and the sorts , basicly a steel ball on a stick , you use that to form the silicone using a lot of pressure and leave the overburden to dry with the rest , once dry you can pull off the overburden and be left with a perfectly radiussed inside corner , works eazier than the silicone squeegie youre using as you cannot angle it and get weird shaped corners or leave a verry thin sheem of silicone overburden thats hard to remove they did waxed the mould before applying the silicone

[@ChrisPage68]

It makes sense that the solid, larger aggregate will hold more weight. The aquarium gravel would be like using pumice.

[@ModernBuilds]

WORD!

[@rezajanpour]

the most important thing in concrete strength is c/w ratio (cement/water). you have to keep that ratio even for all of them to find out which mix is the best. and the best ratio is 0.4-0.5 ( it means for 1mass of cement you have to add 0.5 mass of water)

[@thedistractedmaker]

I have the same problem trying to find white concrete, thanks for making this!!

[@J8n3eyr3]

All kinds of possibilities with colored stepping stones!

[@MrRShoaf]

A couple of points. For the corners, foundry supply dealers sell wax fillet material that is molded with a radius on the inside and a square corner on the other. Might be easier than silicon caulk. For your aggregate you might try crushed white quartz on a half to three quarter inch thickness, then use a portland mix over the top to save money. If you making pavers, look up Penrose tiling for details of the geometry. You can then use a 3D printer to make molds with a few degrees of draft for easy demolding. This way you can precisely measure your batch sizes so one batch will fill one set of molds. Each mold can then be placed on a small shaker table or vacuum box to de-air the molds. Probably take less than an hour each night after work to make a batch of pavers. Should you want to add some steel reinforcement the wire fabric can all be precut. For a test rig, make a test fixture with a long lever that applies force on a round bar. By hanging weight a measured distance and doing a little math you can measure the exact strength. I think the standard is 28 days. If you want to make wall tiles. You will want to make your concrete with a light weight mix. Also good for raised planter beds.

[@zakarathedragonqueen7254]

The last form it is super white it may look great for decoration forms where strength is not require

[@davelinke]

Put some steel mesh inside the concrete towards the lower face of the slab to make it hyper-resistant. Concrete is thought to be compression resistant, the steel ads tension resistant. This is how we make concrete slabs for buildings.

[@alessandravazquez734]

Great tests on the white color. you saved me time and money. Thank you

[@AB-nu5we]

My local materials vendors have single colored aggregates for just such an application, including all white. Fun tests.

[@redrobin3667]

A giant Spanish Turrón... Thanks for sharing this, I will do some garden steps. I really appreciate this.

[@TheFiown]

The ultra white even without the strenghener would make a great counter top, with mesh of course , fab video

[@Stanvinsky]

Would you ever think about trying your hand at making a terrazzo table (or anything with terrazzo) ? I’d love to see something like that

[@jmakes3745]

Love, love, love this video Mike! Project videos are great but being able to see something like this massively opens the door and inspires a whole new variety of projects and innovations - super inspiring stuff and I hope you do more similar videos in the future!

[@soppliger]

This was a great video. I was looking for info on fabricating concrete tiles and found this very useful! Great job!

[@cinziadeluca5074]

I really enjoyed this. The concrete looks fantastic.

[@butternutswag]

I did enjoy this video. Didn’t realize they don’t sell white cement in store and I really would like my patio to be white.

[@rasmis]

I've made a white concrete tabletop, and apart from using what you're using, I added titanium dioxide (titanium white / titanium white pigment). That makes it incredibly white.

[@jamesdonnelly8888]

Excellent video, great service you are providing with this information

[@aarono7729]

Great video, I made a countertop with white concrete. I ordered my concrete online and it was terrible experience and also very expensive!!! Now I can make my own!!

[@bahijtaouk]

Awesome! Keep up the good work! Your videos keep getting better and better

[@craftedworkshop]

Really loved this one dude! Awesome job going through the different options. Gotta try this!

[@GUMBO640]

Does this recipe cost the same as a 90lb bag of quickcrete?

[@TheNottonight]

How about using white thin set.

[@svajunasbikulcius560]

Great video, but as mentioned water to cement ratio is one of most important factors for creating strong concrete that's why use of plastificators used by all commercial concrete suppliers, also strength labeling of cement matter too such as 32.5 will be weaker than 42.5 N/mm.sq, Loved this video a lot effort has been put in and informative about how to make it whiter, helped me, well done.

[@PUBLICIDADECOS]

!!AT LAST!!... I found a channel where tests are done and now I know the exact amount for resistant concrete. Greetings from your new subscriber from Mexico!!!

[@lucaslegz]

I would love to see you build a desk with the white concrete as an inlay. A nice dark brown desk with the white contrast. Might be nice.

[@HouseFairyDIY]

If you grind down the surface you can create beautiful floor tiles.

[@suecollado8696]

💓Instead of pebbles you should try this with coloured glass💓looks fantastic used for a table top or flower pots💓

[@adjacent-smith]

To create an exposed aggregate finish, cover the surface with milk as it sets and let it sit for a while. Then wash it clean once you think it's dissolved deep enough to show the stones.

[@simranjeetsinghmatharoo3877]

As an architect i call tell you 1:2:4 and 1:3:6 are the standard ratio and works well for all kind of loads

[@Chemeleon15]

Simranjeet singh matharoo Which materials do those numbers represent? 1gravel 2sand 4cements ?

[@simranjeetsinghmatharoo3877]

@@Chemeleon15 1 is for cement 2 for what we call fine aggregate thats sand and 4 for course aggregate thats gravel.

[@christofix]

You make testing something boring interesting by your way of video making. This was a pleasure to watch! Make some more videos like this!

[@ModernBuilds]

That's so awesome!! I appreciate it

[@stevo388]

I appreciate the effort in doing this. I have a couple critiques. Concrete needs 28 days to fully cure out while using appropriate curing methods. And last, 1.5 inch thickness is not thick enough. 2 inch minimum thickness. You could also use a bonding agent for better strength.

[@fershaman]

That "The office" quote on the back is priceless. Great video!

[@vaibhavchauhan5770]

Why I think that the white cement slab didnt achieve strength is that the aggregates were too round due to which the binding of materials didnt take place. Where as the ready mix had variety/mix angles of size and shape of aggregates. And more importantly if you arent doing curing to the samples you should add plastizers, which I am sure are added in the premix batch. Civil Engineer from India

[@farhatqureshi8562]

Excellent experiments- learnt quite a bit . Thanks.

[@eduindelacruz5813]

hola, soy de Perú , no se ingles pero con solo ver el vídeo entendí y aprendí la mejor manera. gracias hermano, saludos .

[@vidinwoodworker]

It takes about 28 days to develop strength to concrete.. white or grey cement

[@SithLord2066]

Depends on the size of the pour. Hoover dam was poured in the 1930s and it's still hardening, won't be full strength for a hundred years or so.

[@marcosgobira4719]

I sad, at least 7 days. 👍

[@mattgraham4340]

Well, it gets harder (psi). However, i'm not sure that it's tensile strength improves, which is kinda what he was testing

[@today05]

@@SithLord2066 afaik pretty much all concrete hardens for a good few decades, (to be technical concrete pretty much cures forever, but concrete starts eroding from the outside sooner than forever, so thats why there is a lifespan for concrete (that is in the hundreds of years) curing doesnt depend on the pour size, it depends on cement being in contact with water. after about 28 days it already at 99% of its maximum strength, thats why the industry uses the 28day (exactly 4 weeks) so its easier to time manage, and gives a good margin, but it keeps on getting stronger by miniscule amounts long after that. also, hardness is in direct corelation to tensile strengh found a simple explanation on the internet, so its basically like this: Hardness correlates linearly to Ultimate Tensile Strength through the empirical (although theoretically explained) equation H=UTS/k. H can Vickers, Brinell, Rockwell, microVickers, nanoVickers, whateverVickers but it will inevitably correlate with the ultimate tensile stress. k is a constant that depends on the hardness scale / type of measurement and on the material

[@lironmtnranch4765]

Great experimental processes you went through here. The classic mix is 1:2:3. Did you hydrate (wet) the concrete while it cured? This is often neglected when first dabbling in concrete, but very important toward final strength. White cement is optimized for cosmetic appearance, not strength. Your experiments tested its tensile failure point, not the compressive strength which is concrete's advantage. With fiber and/or metal reinforcement to improve overall tensile performance, those slabs would have performed far better in the breakage tests above. Your setup makes for excellent A-B testing. Washed, angular sand and gravel is important for strength as well. If everything down to the sand is rounded, bonding and thus strength will suffer. You want washed, angular sand and aggregates and _no_ fines, otherwise you're grading into hyperadobe, not concrete. That pocket screw jig helps make versatile forms. Without it, you'd likely be screwing in through the bottom which is much harder. If you made forms with a little positive draft, you could just pop the slabs out without disassembly. Using 100% bonding additive is pretty rich and would get very spendy in bigger projects. 10-25% in water would make a huge improvement over just water. This advantage would be minimized with ideal sand and aggregate.

[@DCRhythms]

I’ve been looking into making some white concrete pavers myself. This is excellent, thanks a ton!!! 😄

[@waltercc1458]

expectacular ..desde Argentina..aprendemos tus genialidades..

[@alexfurey7642]

Thanks for the content! I'm really interested in white concrete for making candle jars and trying to figure out a flame-safe way to do that!

[@captnbrandopink]

If you're ever in SoCal and interested in touring a concrete lab and learning a little bit about what goes into designing concrete mixes, let me know. Loved watching this as I have recently been working on some white cement mixes for some high profile customers!

[@xolanimendycele6633]

Hi I am interested

[@Onyxaxe]

One of my favorite videos yet. That all white concrete is so aesthetically pleasing.

[@jewdd1989]

I wish you’d make something for outdoors using the pea gravel! The white aquarium rocks were fine, not ugly for sure but there’s something more beautiful (in my eyes of course!) about the off tone it provides and then to see the gravel after breaking it was just stunning! Especially in a natural setting as the natural tones of the gravel with the white of the concrete just feels more “natural” I guess. I’ve been wanting to build a play scape for my dogs whether that be different levels of exploration or using the land as my oyster, not totally sure yet as Pinterest makes it harder for me to decide lmao! I could see structures built using that gravel concrete to add a soft but neutral setting that wouldn’t look just like concrete jungles do. It’d be beautiful for outdoor furniture and indoors as well. The pure white again is fine but I don’t know I like that natural look and I feel like the regular gravel represented that beautifully

[@mrskwrl]

Okay but what about adding fibers to the super white? That one looks amazing.

[@xDannyBeats]

I have absolutely no use for pure white concrete but I am now on the look out for something to make with it. This is sick!

[@boogerking7411]

Add fiber and superplasticizer to get smooth and strong concrete

[@sheilaolson5868]

Loved what you did here.

[@emanuelmurillo377]

Concrete strength is against compression forces and not for tension forces (test you did). Tension forces strength on concrete are around 10% of its compression strength. A better test would be to drive the wheel of your car over the slab to see if it crushes!

[@captnbrandopink]

Tensile strength is still specified by engineers for some concrete applications, but you're right!

[@heatherscanlan5016]

Your quote about the shots you don’t take is credited to Wayne Gretzky but it’s actually a Walter Gretzky quote. Wayne had to learn it from somewhere. I like that you try all the things and live up to the quote

[@chrisk1724]

You can get even whiter concrete just using standard concrete mix and adding about 5% titanium dioxide. Ends up looking great, really white. TiO2 is used in soap making so it's really cheap. Since you only need 5% shipping is more manageable

[@jasonc422]

The Sorry Girls! Here is a helpful video for that white concrete Becky was asking for!! Thanks Mike. CAnt wait to see what you do with this life hack!

[@gabriellealexander923]

Do more experiments! Love these kinds of videos and with you doing them makes it that much better! Just starting out and if I can save money by not having to do these myself would be awesome.

[@notgavincrenshaw]

For anyone wondering rz masks are rated as n99 which is good enough for silica, but on their website rz says not to use their masks for protection against silica. So do what you want with that information I guess.

[@Professional_Youtube_Commenter]

Super fine powders will clog up the mask. If you used a normal vacuum to clean up light building work like tiling in the home. You'll see how it clogs up the vacuum

[@X3WorkshopDesigns]

Sweet! Just what I was looking for. Thanks for sharing your results Mike! These tests are golden in my opinion. I personally wouldn't mind more of these types of videos from you.

[@ShadowESSENCE7mw]

thanks man I been looking every where for someone who was to try a white concrete counter top. Super help bro much appreciated!👍

[@msavage138]

When you sink your screws, if you screw in a little, then back it out, then screw it in again, it makes a cleaner fit.

[@Mark-oy2ri]

Home Depot actually has a white concrete specially for countertops. You can order it and have it delivered to the store free of charge.

[@Thatbrownguy454]

Thanks for all of the great info. I liked this just as much as your full builds

[@arsenalboy4ever]

Bro thankyou so much for this video, finally have my question answered!

[@Alex138bhp]

Really enjoyed this video. Been thinking of doing a homemade modern bucket stool with white concrete so this really helped

[@Faisal-ds1kb]

If you put your pieces in a pot of water for a few days that makes it getting stronger and harder. You should not nock on them after one or tow days because they are not strong enough yet. Thanks for this test I like it.

[@alvaroschudeck957]

Just a suggestion, I know there are already mixed concretes and are already mixed in dry state , but the order to obtain the strongest resistant concrete with the same ratio of water and cement is: add water to the bigger aggregate, then the sand and finally the cement. So the hidden pores of the bigger agregates, get totally filled with water (saturated) and later this saturated pores does not need to steal water from the other components of the mixture, weakening it.

[@brandonrowoldt8306]

I want you all to be around for a long time. I hear Ben talking about using the rz mask on the modern maker podcast to protect him when mixing cement, and now you mentioned it. Please read rz mask tech specs. This mask shouldn’t be used for silica. Just looking out for everyone’s health. Keep up the great content. 👍

[@darinnetherland3466]

It would have been nice to see a control with the pricey store-bought white mix for strength but mostly color. Looking forward to whatever project you’re planning with this.

[@abrahampool7892]

Very well, But You can add a steel mesh to be more resistent the concrete panel.

[@Doobie3010]

Goldilocks and the three Concrete`s was a dissapointing fairytale... Seriously,intresting video.Nice job.

[@stephj1002]

wow! thanks thanks thanks thanks! AND good job!!! I was just wondering about creating a nice whit-ish cement, but this is beyond my expectations. Your experiment will allow me (to make some more experiments) to be able to make (hopefully) a nice concrete countertop with the fibreglace re-inforcement and with a bit of flex to avoid breakage with acrylic and or resin... (tests needed)

[@SuperDuperTango]

Another certified banger! Your vids are getting better and better. Thanks mike!

[@davidjr7899]

That was a lot more interesting than I thought it would be. Good job Mike.

[@Lurker_Emerges_and_Says]

You mentioned fiberglass in this video to reinforce the concrete. you could always add the fiberglass to the river tables to encourage them to crack in the right places. :)

[@wanderingronin305]

Looks fantastic

[@edgr]

Excited for what’s to come!!! Coffee table, desk build!!

[@Noah-zr7nk]

Thanks for that science lesson I found it very fun and I’d love to try it

[@bethstie]

so exciting that you're so close to 1mil! I have no idea how long I've been subscribed but its definitely been a few years. it's been awesome to watch your growth!