Recommendations for Garage Floor Coating?

[CorsiHockeyLeague]

Most of what I'm getting is in that same $2500 range.

[Ducay]

Good to know, but for what services (mostly prep wise, and coating wise).

I've seen a few companies come in cheap, mostly because they skimp on prep (so it looks great for a year) by not shot blasting or grinding the floor - or because they skimp on the coating (applying only a single epoxy or 2 thin layers) rather than a solid single layer with a top coat or otherwise.

Like another poster mentioned, cheap options are cheap for a reason

[zamler]

I did mine about 5 years ago used one of those epoxy kits I think it was Rust-Oleum. I prepped the concrete for hours, made sure no residue would show on a rag or my finger. I got high as #### painting the stuff on but it's held up really well.

Some of the prices I'm seeing here, lunacy.

[Northendzone]

^ given the prep work involved the the cost of a quality product - i don't think $2,500 is outrageous.

it is more than i would want to pay though

[arcfyr]

We're moving into a new place next month and we feel that this will be a good quality-of-life and preventative thing to do while the new garage is mostly empty. Would definitely prefer to have a professional look at it - thanks for sharing all the tips. If anyone has any specific recommendations or prices, please continue sharing!

[TorqueDog]

Any reason not to do polished concrete in a garage? I'm starting to consider that as an alternative.

[Fuzz]

My floor was made quite smooth and is fairly slippery. I'd want an epoxy with some grip in it. I'd think polished would be slippery?

[TorqueDog]

Depends how your floor was made smooth. If you used a sealer on said concrete surface, it would be far more slippery than if it were merely polished.

Sealing closes off the pores in the surface, whereas polishing still leaves a porous surface. So if you stepped on a wet polished concrete floor, the water still has somewhere to go and allows your foot to make more contact with the concrete.

[Fuzz]

It was finished smooth with a power trowel, and then they misted some chemical on it, I assume a sealer? Hrmmm, thinking about that now, would an epoxy coat stick to the sealer?

[TorqueDog]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

It was finished smooth with a power trowel, and then they misted some chemical on it, I assume a sealer? Hrmmm, thinking about that now, would an epoxy coat stick to the sealer?

Both an acrylic or epoxy-based sealer would make the surface more slippery unless a slip-resistant additive was mixed in before application. You could just have the existing sealer re-applied with an anti-slip added, I think.

[Fuzz]

I'd definitely add an anti-slip texture if I did it myself.

[DFO]

Originally Posted by DFO

I'm going with a product called Rust Bullet. Bought all the paint & clear for $1000 - doing a 28x26 garage.

https://allgaragefloors.com/rust-bul...floor-project/

Finished the floor finally. The result exceeded my expectations for a DIY job.

Spoiler!

Spoiler!

[prarieboy]

Originally Posted by DFO

Finished the floor finally. The result exceeded my expectations for a DIY job.

Spoiler!

Spoiler!

That looks great. I can see no difference between my floor which was done by Zone Garage and yours. Good work!

[bossy22]

Nice...want to do mine?

[Shin Pad]

Originally Posted by speede5

Cheap options are cheap and will make the floor look nice for a few years but if you really want a coating that will last you need to be using a 2 part epoxy system. (2 part as in resin/catalyst not 2 coats as in base/clear)

Amerlock makes a good system https://pacificsouthwest.net/wp-cont...PDS_AI2011.pdf and you should be able to find it at a paint store that sells commercial products. General Paint carries it here.

Hopefully your concrete has vapour barrier underneath or moisture will come through and can affect any coating. If you want to know, tape a square of plastic on the floor for a few days and see if it gets moist underneath. If it does it's probably not a great idea to paint the floor. The coating becomes a vapour barrier and moisture gets trapped in the concrete.

If it's fine acid wash the floor and use the Amerlock. Roll, don't spray, and use a respirator, this stuff is toxic. But it is awesome. We have it on our hangar floors and there are a few spots it has chipped but after 17 yrs of heavy aircraft maintenance the floors are still shiny and white.

Any quick coatings you buy at Home Depot etc are not much better than just painting the floor with house paint.

If there isn't a vapour barrier below the slab, then you should use a moisture reduction barrier on the slab prior to application of the coating. It's important to make sure the floor coating is compatible with the moisture barrier coating. Some examples of moisture barrier coating are Planiseal EMB as manufactured by Mapei or Ardex MC Ultra - there are others. If you don't manage the water vapour coming through the slab from the ground below it, then it can delaminate whatever type of flooring you are putting on over - especially the ones that form a moisture seal such as epoxy coatings etc.

[DFO]

Originally Posted by bossy22

Nice...want to do mine?

Not a chance. I didn't keep a tally of the hours put into the project but it was alot. The biggest effort was cleaning out the garage so I could see the floor...

[Fuzz]

Did you acid etch or diamond grind?

[bossy22]

Originally Posted by DFO

Not a chance. I didn't keep a tally of the hours put into the project but it was alot. The biggest effort was cleaning out the garage so I could see the floor...

LOL...I hear you.

[DFO]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

Did you acid etch or diamond grind?

The coating is polyurethane based - no acid etching needed. They also say you don't need to over do it with grinding. After doing the crack filling I rented a concrete prep wheel & surfacer from Home Depot and did a once over.

[Fuzz]

I'm hopefully doing mine this weekend. I rented the prep tool and scratched up the surface. Since I had to wash it anyway I did the cleaner/citric acid solution since I had it with the kit. When dry it looks like all the sealant is gone and I have a nice profile to accept the epoxy.

I am going with Rokrez, as I found a great deal on 3 kits on Kijiji (I'll maybe have one left if anyone wants one after!) But I also have been reading that a topcoat is a very good idea. Simiron, who makes Rokrez recommended their product but it is impossible to get in Calgary, or western Canada. So I found a Calgary Company,

https://www.polymersciencecorp.com/


and bought one of theirs. I'll test a small spot to make sure it is compatible with Rokrez, but it should be fine. If I were to do it again I'd probably just go straight to them for everything, but I got a good deal on the Rokrez.

Anyway, I think it should go pretty smoothly. I hope!