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Raised Flower Beds Part 9: Coating
This part covers how to coat your flower beds to be stone-like and weatherproof using Exterior Foam Coat mixed with Boost for added strength.
Our new version of Boost is used straight. You can dilute it but you will loose strength.
The first coat should be wet so it will penetrate the Mesh and better adhere to the foam. We went just under 1/16” thick for this coat. 
Foam Coat with Boost is so incredibly hard that not even a hammer will break it free from tools that you forget to rinse off. 
We used a Marshalltown Hopper gun at the second to the largest opening. The compressor is set at 125psi and we vary the gun pressure from 40-60psi depending on the consistency of my mix. I now use a fairly heavy duty 10 gallon compressor. This little guy couldn’t quite keep up.
Hopper guns spit and spatter, so you’ll need to trowel it smooth. We use the silicon 1-gallon paint pour spouts to trowel the curves. We also used a damp tile-setter’s sponge to smooth things out. Keep in mind that the second coat will be the smooth coat, so it won’t hurt to leave this one a bit rough.
The second coat should be dryer than the first, but still wet enough so it doesn’t clog the hopper nozzle. We didn’t bother using Boost in the second coat. If it’s at all warm lightly mist the first coat before spraying the second coat. This coat was also just a bit under 1/16” thick. You’ll want to trowel this coat smooth, but not shiny smooth. We actually roughed it up a bit after troweling using a damp sponge.
If you want a rough stony looking wall, this last coat should be spit on sparingly and not at all even. You can leave it rough or lightly trowel the surface to create a knock-down look. It’s a good idea to lightly sponge everywhere that’s been troweled so the StainFast will be better absorbed and have a deeper feel.
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