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I have my garage empty right now, and am installing steel, wood beams, a lift, cutting in doors, blah blah.
I want to epoxy the floor in a solid color, but getting the straight skinny on who/whom, how, how much,.where, so on is ALL over the map. Anyone have an idea where to look for advice? Anyone here do this for a living?
I just want it done correctly with good stuff.
I've dabbled with the stuff a few times for customers. Are you looking to do it yourself, or to have it done?
I have used stuff from a local paint Manufacturer (Florida) that has held up 8+years in some locations. I used PPG epoxy in my new garage about 2 years ago and don't feel that it is any more durable than the other stuff I had used. Any references I would have would not do you much good out in California. If you are planning to put it down on your own, I'd be happy to walk you through it. Also, some of the Solvent based paints and sealers are not available in California, so that may create other hurdles. There are water based Epoxies also, but I don't have much experience with them.
Like so many things now, you can spend as much money as you are willing to. There are coating which are better than epoxies, but the cost is pretty high for a residential application.
I wanted to do epoxy in my garage, but was discouraged by a local contractor that told me if the floor has any oil stains, I will have headaches.
It works great on new concrete floors, but not older ones, like mine, with oil spots. Regardless of how well you try and remove them.
I don't know how accurate his opinion was, but it started me thinking in another direction.
For that reason, I went with a Race Deck floor. I installed it myself. If I move, I can unsnap it and take it with me.
Well, I will tell ya BigBird. I did some research on these coatings last winter. Seems like everybody is trying to copy U-Coat it. Even Walmart has some garage floor coating. I believe some are Rust-O-Leium.
Myself, I am old fashioned and have my doubts about a water based paint holding up to gas, oil, tranny fluid, PS fluid, etc. And I read that preparation is 90% of the success rate like any paint job.
I will recommend not a product, but rather you watch 3 or 4 videos on YouTube. Type in garage floor coating in the search box. Supposedly these are non-bias vids showing people what to do and not to do. One vid showed a guy ran out of paint in the middle of the project. Quickly bought another can. It did not match perfectly.
Are you doing this yourself or having a pro do the installation? Either way you might try http://garagejournal.com.
I went with Armstrong Vinyl Composition Tile (VCT) because it was cheap and I could do it myself. Looks good or good enough. Only regret is I didn't wait long enough and some tiles moved around when I parked the cars. The white rectangles are temporary slip pads for the tires I put down after some movement. BTW I spent zero time worrying about what had soaked into my concrete floor over all these years.
Welcome back, haven't seen that goofy looking bird in quite a while.
One vid showed a guy ran out of paint in the middle of the project. Quickly bought another can. It did not match perfectly.
This is true. The true epoxy coatings have to be applied all at once. You have to cut in around posts, walls etc while rolling it. You can not go back and touch it up later. It won't match, even from the same bucket. It was tough for me to do my 600 garage quickly enough by myself. Another possible consideration is that most of the epoxy floor coating are not Outdoor safe. UV can make them fade quickly and/or peel. That can be a problem for some since there is usually a small strip of concrete garage floor outside the garage door.
I put down epoxy last fall on a 1000' floor with my neighbor. I didn't throw enough flakes on it as it was drying, so when the floor is wet, it is like an ice rink for a couple of steps.I got the epoxy from 'Lowes'. We needed just under three boxes @ just under $200 per box. The most important part is cleaning and RINSING again and again.I let it dry and then rinsed one more time always using a gas powered power washer. I have had no lifting or peeling at this point, and I have an F250 that gets parked inside before snows
If you do it yourself, try to find a add-in grit to make it easier to walk on
Always start painting at a doorway. Then work your way towards a corner. It makes for a MUCH more interesting story.
Seriously, apply a strip of two inch painters tape exactly where the garage door seal will lay. Stop painting right there. Otherwise the door seal will lift the paint next winter.
Go to Sherwwin Williams and ask to speak with the local rep. They won’t steer you
wrong. My epoxy is 15 ,no flaking. Only small chips now and then. But the shine is gone.
Now they have a solution for that.
My next house I'm doing like my buddy did at his shop. They sanded the concrete w/ several different grits, stained it and just buffed it w/ a wax. Maintenance is re-wax every year or so.
It's a really dusty process!!! sanding-
A little dusty from the forklift- Nice shine and easy clean up
My garage is where I go to get away from having to worry about things like getting the floor dirty. I don't see why people want to make their garage look like their living room. I'll take a dirty concrete floor over a coating that I have to constantly worry about any day of the week.
Years ago I worked for a friends dad doing epoxy floors on the industrial scale. Usually on new concrete but if it was an existing floor we would grind off the top surface to prepare the floor. This was industrial stuff so I'm not sure if you can find any commercial product as good as the stuff we were using. This stuff was hard to work with and came out about a 1/4 inch thick. We could put all sorts of substrates like sand to small pebbles in it to add texture depending on the application.
The problem with epoxy is that it is hard and does not 'move' with the concrete underneath. So, it will eventually just flake off. Also, concrete is usually put directly on ground or gravel/sand which will leach moisture up under the epoxy. IMO, there is no way to get epoxy to stay...long term...on concrete, unless it is in a very dry environment with moderate temperature change.
Go with the durable tiles or the roll-out flooring made for garages. I think a good quality concrete paint put on well-prepared concrete surface would last a lot longer than epoxy. And, if it got scuffed or scratched, you could just touch it up.
Last edited by 7T1vette; Jul 17, 2019 at 08:04 PM.
I personally have had good luck using Rustoleum Professional Solvent Based epoxy. I have had no issues with it lifting even after a number of years. I even painted it to the end of the concrete floor that runs under the garage door and a few inches outside. It even holds up well right outside the garage doors in NY winters. There is rubber weatherstripping under the garage doors, which cushions the doors, so there has been no cracking or chipping of the epoxy under the doors.
I have to order it on line as the local stores only carry the water based product. I am not sure if you can order it in CA.
I also used it on my garage floor in Southwest Florida where it is very humid, and so far after two years there is no lifting.
I applied the Rustoleum Product on the advice of a co worker. HD only sold the water base product, which my co worker said was not as good, as the Alkyd kit that Rustoleum also makes. I ended up getting the kit from Summit Racing. The epoxy has been on my floor about six years. The only place that is chipping, is where the garage door hits the floor. My home is over 35 years old and the cement is crumbling, not the epoxy paint. I followed the instructions exactly, that was my co workers advice. I couldn’t justify the cost of a professional floor company, so I did it my self. I have used floor jacks and stands, plus my 73 has a few leaks, no chipping. I just spray 409 cleaner on the stains and wipe with a paper towel. I am sure that my floor is not as nice as those done by a professional company, but I recall they charge around $ 2,000 for a two car garage.
The gun club I belong to had the floor in the indoor range epoxy covered. The floor is over 50' long and about 45' wide. The company sanded and prepped one day and then put down the epoxy the next. It's a beautiful job but the cost was $17000. Yes, seventeen thousand dollars. I also had a friend who had his 2 car garage floor done and that 20'x20' job cost him five grand. If I decide to do my floor it will be with the snap together tiles that I can replace myself and then spend the extra cash on something for my Vette.
Duane
My next house I'm doing like my buddy did at his shop. They sanded the concrete w/ several different grits, stained it and just buffed it w/ a wax. Maintenance is re-wax every year or so.
It's a really dusty process!!! sanding-
A little dusty from the forklift- Nice shine and easy clean up
Couple years later-
How is it when its wet from water/antifreeze or oil? I worked for a dealership that had nice floors, when wet with just water it was slicker than ice and oil,ATF or antifreeze it was almost impossible to stand on. Slipping on the floor and throwing your back out while in the garage would be disaster while trying to clean up a spill.
Originally Posted by theandies
. I don't see why people want to make their garage look like their living room.
Its nice to have a clean floor where you can lay on and not have to worry about oil or grease getting onto your clothes, when you go to get into your DD to go get parts or move the toy to for more room.
I put down epoxy last fall on a 1000' floor with my neighbor. I didn't throw enough flakes on it as it was drying, so when the floor is wet, it is like an ice rink for a couple of steps.I got the epoxy from 'Lowes'. We needed just under three boxes @ just under $200 per box. The most important part is cleaning and RINSING again and again.I let it dry and then rinsed one more time always using a gas powered power washer. I have had no lifting or peeling at this point, and I have an F250 that gets parked inside before snows
If you do it yourself, try to find a add-in grit to make it easier to walk on
Jeff
I had the same experience when we setup our CNC/ Screw Machine shop floor. We dropped $25k on a new coating 17 years ago. The same product that is used in many Fire Houses. I was told it was durable and oil resistant- which it is but it's slick as ice when wet. This has plenty of grit in it too. The floor was mopped daily but still gets oil crud in it and needs to be power washed. The machines are all gone now but the floor is solid. The plain concrete floor outside of the machine shop was clear sealed and that is less slippery. In my shop the previous guy painted the floor with gray paint to sell the place and it looked good but wore away where I work. I am leaving it like that. I vacuum and mop the floor and it's good , not slippery at all.
Garage floor
