Hi all!,

Just finished putting on a 3+car garage for the toys on the house.

trying to decide what to do for garage floors...epoxy kits? or say rocksolid metallic (WOW) sharp?

anyone DIY your garage floor?

i love the look of sexy naked cement...but know it is gonna stain over time, especially working on the toys and cars!

Thanks,
Ron

 

Just get a clear epoxy for the concrete

 

I've seen a lot of really nice looking colors and patterns, tiles and "mats" etc, but I seem to like the clean look of a plain gray or tan concrete floor with a clear / epoxy over it. I've seen a few where the owners prepped the concrete, then painted an nice gray (kind of like the forum background) and then cleared. Looked great. Hey - maybe toss in a few of those "speckles" that you can buy, just for some texture..

 

Folks like WW Graingers sell concrete-cement floor coverings for use in warehouses etc..Whatever you use..clean and prep the floor properly for the application..Something neutral won't be an eyesore for the next homeowner should you sell your place..Checkered flag motif would be cool..Jim

 

I painted three garage floors with Rustoleum solvent based epoxy. I used a medium gray color and applied two coats. Holds up really well, no lifting and very durable with jack stands and floor jacks. I cleaned the floors with muratic acid. The big box stores sell Rustoleum but it is water based. I purchased it from Summit Racing and Amazon.

 

Recommend this site for your deliberations

http://www.garagejournal.com

Lots of contributions at http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/f...splay.php?f=20

 

For what it is worth, I have painted three concrete garage floors with epoxy paint and have been very satisfied with the result. The first was a plain gray color and on the second garage I went overboard and gave it two coats of color, chips in the second coat and two coats of clear on top. It has held up very well through all the abuse i have put it through. My rationale for the clear was, future scratches and discoloration could be sanded out and another coat of clear applied. It has been several years and only an electric dual brush floor scrubbing machine was needed to clean it up. I do quite a bit of metal fabrication, so welding burns and the like are reality. The brush scrubbing took the gloss off the top, so now it has a satin finish, but still looks very good.

The third floor was on a buddies garage that was built within six months of coating it. He was not sure what to coat it with, so he asked me about my experience. He is a welder by trade and a motorhead. From my experience, I suggested applying just a clear coat on his concrete garage floor. After he prepped the floor and it dried, the two of us spread the epoxy clear with rollers and got his four car garage done in about an hour, one coat.

If you like the look of the floors in Home Depot and Lowe's, you will like the look of the clear epoxy over concrete. I asked my local Home Depot manager what was used on his store floor. After looking into it for me, it was clear epoxy paint they used. The down side is it will get slippery when wet, so you need to be aware of that, but HD wasn't concerned. On the positive side, it is very easy to paint over future floor damage with just clear and it would be my future choice of a concrete floor coating, if doing it again.

My buddy told me sometime after we applied the epoxy to his garage, after arriving home on a rainy day with his Harley, he almost spilled his bike coming into the garage. I never had a problem in either of my two garages, but something to be aware of. To counter this, you can sprinkle some sand into the wet paint for traction, but that makes the floor very difficult to keep clean and not my choice. There are many choices in covering a concrete floor, but I believe epoxy floor coatings are the most economical and will endure, "IF PREPARED PROPERLY". If the concrete isn't cleaned and etched and allowed to dry according the the manufacturer's directions, the paint will lift and not provide satisfactory results.

 

As ignatz noted, head over to the garage journal - flooring forum and you'll spend the next 6 hours reading threads about expoxy, rust bullet, SPGX, etc. and you'll end up with information overload. I went with Armorpoxy's SPGX.

 

Don't go cheap. I tried the rust oleum and the road salt in the winter ate it up. Also I noticed when the garage floors are coated they don't dry as fast. Meaning rain and snow will take longer to dry.

 

THANKS guys!

I am leaning to the clear epoxy! like the look!

would you recommmend a water based or solvent based clear epoxy?

Thanks!

 

While I know it was coated with something by the builder I can't say for certain what was used on my 1964 garage floor. I just know that it is clear and that it has worn incredibly well with amazingly little staining (none of them severe). The one problem is that it is slick when wet--extremely so when any oil is present.

 

Like everything else, there are always improvements as technology marches on. Just yesterday, I see an ad on TV for a Rustoleum clear concrete floor coating product. The ad makes the product appear to have different tint colors available to the clear, but I'd stick with the natural concrete color without tint. It makes for easy color match, if there is future damage that needs coating. This follows trying to match a candy color to a damaged body panel. Tinting clear is not a new concept, but the first time I have seen it on a concrete floor coating and the first I have seen an ad for a clear coating. I'd look into this new Rustoleum product as a potential option to coat a concrete floor. The ad said Home Depot carried the product. Good luck with your result, whatever product you choose!

 

NEVER paint or coat or tile anything concrete that is in an automotive use enviornment....think floor jacks/metal wheels, jack stands, other support devices, tools landing on floor, scratches, even hot tires on paint....

FUGGETABOUTIT!!!!!

IF you have to, paint the floor when you sell the house, and park the car on rug samples from you carpet store.....

 

id say hands down "ASPART-X" by "LINE-X"

I have grinded, welded, used floor jacks, driven on it daily including a 4WD truck with 13x35" tires with rocks stuck in the treads and i have to turn the wheels to park.....
And it still looks brand new.

It is not DIY. and its sort of expensive. they sandblast the whole floor first.
So far nothing stains it.

 

Thanks all! still researching

 

For my likes, I think that is the best floor I have seen yet.

Oh, and your car is pretty dang nice as well!

 

Thanks!

 

I used U Coat it, has held up very well and looks great. If you would like pictures let me know

 

Same here, I got it through summit.

 

This isn't ordinary concrete paint. I've had an epoxy floor for over 15 years, and I did all of the above including welding, grinding, and spilled brake fluid too. No issues at all. As long as you prep the concrete, epoxy coatings hold up quite nice.