Before you try anything: always speak to a professional before cleaning, treating or applying any product to your stone. Every slab is different, and the wrong product can cause permanent damage. Contact us or a qualified stone restorer first.
Quick answer
Coffee stains in concrete are tannins that have soaked into the stone. Blot, wash with pH-neutral soap, then draw the stain out with a hydrogen peroxide poultice covered with plastic for 24 to 48 hours. Coffee is acidic too, so if a pale, dull ring remains once the brown has gone, that part is an etch and needs polishing, not more poulticing.
First, check what you are dealing with
- Brown or tan ring, surface still smooth: a stain. Follow the steps below.
- Pale, dull or slightly rough ring: an etch from the coffee's acidity. See fixing etching below.
- Both: remove the stain first, then deal with any dull mark.
What you need
- Paper towel
- pH-neutral dish liquid
- Hydrogen peroxide
- Flour, talc or diatomaceous earth
- Plastic wrap and tape
- Plastic scraper
- Gloves
Step by step
Blot, do not wipe
Soak up any liquid with paper towel straight away. Wiping spreads it across a bigger area.
Wash the area
Clean with warm water and a few drops of pH-neutral dish liquid, rinse and dry with a soft cloth so you can see what is left on the concrete.
Test first
Try the mixture on a hidden spot of your concrete (inside a cut-out or under an overhang) and check the finish after it dries.
Mix the poultice
Stir an absorbent powder (plain flour, talc, diatomaceous earth or whiting) into hydrogen peroxide (3% from a pharmacy for fresh stains, or 12% from a hairdressing or pool supplier for older ones) until it has the consistency of peanut butter.
Apply it
Spread it 5 to 6 mm thick over the coffee ring, extending about a centimetre past the edge. If your concrete is sealed, the poultice only works where the stain has got through a worn patch of sealer into the concrete itself.
Cover and wait
Cover with plastic wrap, tape the edges and poke a few small holes so it dries slowly. Leave it 24 to 48 hours until completely dry: the drying is what pulls the stain up into the powder.
Remove and rinse
Lift the dry poultice with a plastic scraper, rinse with clean water and dry the concrete. If the coffee ring is lighter but still there, repeat up to three times.
What not to use on concrete
- Vinegar, lemon juice or "natural" citrus cleaners: they etch concrete.
- Scourers, steel wool and abrasive creams on a polished surface.
- Mixing cleaning chemicals, especially bleach with anything else.
- Bleach: it rarely lifts tannin stains from stone and can damage the finish.
When to call a professional
Call a stone restorer if the stain survives three poultices, covers a large area, or has left a dull etch ring you cannot polish out. A concrete benchtop specialist can re-hone and refinish the surface and patch chips.
Understanding coffee stains on concrete
Concrete is porous cement paste. Most concrete benchtops rely on a sealer or wax, so once that coating wears, oil and coloured liquids soak straight in.
Cement is alkaline, so acids react with it and leave pale, slightly rough etch marks. On sealed concrete the damage may be in the coating as well as the concrete.
A concrete benchtop specialist can re-hone and refinish the surface and patch chips.
Good to know
On concrete, a coffee ring usually means the sealer has worn through at that spot. If rings keep appearing in the same area, the surface needs refinishing or protecting.
Stop it happening again
Whether yours is cast-in-place and precast concrete benchtops, repairing it fixes today's mark; protecting it stops the next one. Our clear Stone Protection Film sits over the surface, so acids cannot etch it and liquids cannot soak in. Choose Gloss for polished concrete or Matte/Satin for honed and matte finishes. The protection is identical. It is installed across Sydney with a 10-year written warranty.
How we protect concrete · Stain removal guide · Coffee stains on every surface