Cement color match nightmare in Denver, turns out the batch was to blame

Last month I picked up a pallet of buff cement from a supplier in Denver and my mortar came out grayish pink, not the warm tan I ordered. The store manager told me I had to be washing my tools with dirty water or mixing too wet, basically blamed my technique. I redid a sample wall twice, still off, so I called the plant and they admitted that whole production week had a lime content issue. Replaced the pallet free and the new batch matched perfectly first try. Has anyone else gotten a bad batch where the supplier tries to blame your process first?

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wyatt_green3116d ago

Funny you mention that, I used to be the guy defending the supplier. Thought bad color was always on the installer, you know, sloppy measurements or whatever. Then I got a grayish tint on a fireplace surround, same exact story. Redid it twice, still ugly. Called the plant, they said their fly ash ratio drifted for like a week. Got the replacement, perfect match. Now I take a sample of the dry powder home before I even mix a full batch. Saves me the headache of arguing with a store manager who just wants you gone.