[Johns400]

Just finished building a new shop and was thinking about coating the floor with some sort of epoxy product like U-Coat it. (I've heard nothing good about U-Coat it so I wont be using them but used them as an example )

So I was looking for some real world experience from some of you guys that have done this. I was looking at Armorclad http://www.armorcladepoxy.com/, saw POR has a kit (have always like there stuff) and Wolverine http://www.alphagarage.com/ has some nice stuff but Im not sure Im willing to pay $1000. $500 +/- maybe but not a grand. I know RustOleum has some stuff as well but just cant see it holding up real well.

So if any one can chime in and let me know what worked or didn't work for them I'd appreciate it. Thats guys

[paint guy]

Johns400: although a different division, the company I work for makes 1000's of gallons a year of epoxy floor coating. here's some general guidelines: New concrete should age at least 30 days before you coat it with any product to allow the moisture out and let the concrete cure. If you are unsure if your floor is dry enough, tape down a piece of plastic (airtight) overnight. When you pull it up, there should be NO moisture, if there is, your concrete is still too wet. A lot of companies will suggest using muriatic acid to etch the floor, but your best bet (BY FAR) for long term adhesion is to scarify it (shot-blast with steel shot, machines are available for rental). The best systems will recommend a urethane topcoat over the epoxy, and there can be a BIG difference in the quality of the products (not just the solids, either, but the quality of the epoxy resins used). If there is a curing compound or sealer present on the surface of your new concrete, this will have to be removed (scarify). I have seen these products last many years, and the same products fail in short order,because of improper prep and/or mixing, or hydrostatic pressure (concrete too wet). The 100% solids systems are typically the most expensive, but you will use less. If you want more technical advice, the Tech. Director of our concrete division and I deer hunt together (personal friends). Shoot your questions to me and I'll ask him monday or Tues. Hope this helps.

[Johns400]

Originally Posted by paint guy

Johns400: although a different division, the company I work for makes 1000's of gallons a year of epoxy floor coating. here's some general guidelines: New concrete should age at least 30 days before you coat it with any product to allow the moisture out and let the concrete cure. If you are unsure if your floor is dry enough, tape down a piece of plastic (airtight) overnight. When you pull it up, there should be NO moisture, if there is, your concrete is still too wet. A lot of companies will suggest using muriatic acid to etch the floor, but your best bet (BY FAR) for long term adhesion is to scarify it (shot-blast with steel shot, machines are available for rental). The best systems will recommend a urethane topcoat over the epoxy, and there can be a BIG difference in the quality of the products (not just the solids, either, but the quality of the epoxy resins used). If there is a curing compound or sealer present on the surface of your new concrete, this will have to be removed (scarify). I have seen these products last many years, and the same products fail in short order,because of improper prep and/or mixing, or hydrostatic pressure (concrete too wet). The 100% solids systems are typically the most expensive, but you will use less. If you want more technical advice, the Tech. Director of our concrete division and I deer hunt together (personal friends). Shoot your questions to me and I'll ask him monday or Tues. Hope this helps.

Doing what research I have that seems exactly what i need to do. The floor is also plumbed with pex for radiant heat (not hooked up yet) but it should help with future moisture which I heard could be a problem.

Never heard of the shot blast system. By the sounds of it, its a sand blaster of sort w/a different medium? Ill check in to it. How important is the primer coat? I planed on getting a kit that included everything minus the primer so I wasn't sure how critical it was. Common sense would say yes lol.

[paint guy]

A scarifier is a machine that uses steel shot to blast the floor. There are some that actually blast the floor and then will recover most of the shot at the same time. You will still have to vacuum/sweep up the rest. If the product line your considering suggests a primer, there is a reason for it, that is how they designed thier coating system. I would follow thier recommendations. No matter what you are painting, the cheapest part of virtually ANY paint job is the paint. Don't know what part of the country your'e in, but moisture retention (and the 30 day suggested guideline) can vary greatly with weather conditions. Good luck with your floor.

[Paul E]

+1 on paint guy

Find a local company that does this commercially and buy some from them. If you need to walk on it while doing the application due to layout, find some OLD golf spikes at goodwill etc. I used acid to etch mine and it worked very well, 10 years later no issues. Also if you weld put a thin sheet of aluminum under the area so you do not burn it and teh slag will fall off. Had my piece for years. also do not mix and leave in container, pour it on the floor or it will hold heat and set fast.
Paul

[Johns400]

LOL those things remind me of a drum sander for wood floors. Im not sure I would trust myself with one and that pretty new concrete.

Good call on the local Paul, found a place in town. Now to see if they will just sell me the product. What did you use if I may ask?

[RedDirtRoad]

What did your hear bad about U-Coat it?
I have that but havent applied it yet.

[Johns400]

Originally Posted by RedDirtRoad

What did your hear bad about U-Coat it?
I have that but havent applied it yet.

That its goes on really thin and doesn't cover well. I guess you could put it on thicker but have also heard it doesn't hold up well, which could mainly be due to being thin.

[65 Cat 2+2]

Someone I know used U-Coat It on a new concrete floor. After a short time it lifted in spots. He tried to get the company to make good on the warranty, but the "fine-print" conditions made that impractical.

[Paul E]

I used a primer coat and then a grey 2 equal part epoxy. About 10 years ago. dump on the floor and then squeege around and let level. Was pretty easy
Paul

[ERIC AULL]

I had http://www.garagetek.com put a "polyaspartic resin" on my floor. BEAUTIFUL, STRONG and a bit expensive.

[ry57pont]

i used rust oleum professional, i bought it at menards. going on three years of abuse, winter salt, jackstands, ect.. i acid etched the floor and put two coats of color, two coats of clear. so far i am super impressed with it - RB

[bdk1976]

Click on the following link and then go to the Flooring subforum or do a search on floor coatings - you'll be reading for days (and may or may not be more confused than when you started):

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/

[torqjunki]

I used the Rustoleum product as well purchased at home depot. This was on new concrete. I allowed some time for curing, don't remember how much, but whatever was recommended. I followed the procedure to the letter. Single coat and threw out some paint chips that came with it for looks. I should point out that this is a shop that I planned to work on cars in. I did not build it to impress my buddies or to stand around and bench race. I use jack stands, floor jacks etc. I spill stuff and don't clean it up immediatly. Going on close to a year now and it has held up perfect. When I finished and stood back and looked at it, I thought it looked like crap. You must over lap to cover it complete and these areas show up when there is nothing in the building. By the time I let it dry and got my car, tools etc in the shop, you can't see any variation in the coating. Bottom line...if you can do it yourself, and your not building a showcase for your car to sleep in, you can do it somewhat affordably by using rustoleum and it will perform as advertised. BTW...I had the "light broom finish" done on my slab which allowed me to use this coating without any sand or anti-skid added which I believe makes it more durable.

[Johns400]

Originally Posted by bdk1976

Click on the following link and then go to the Flooring subforum or do a search on floor coatings - you'll be reading for days (and may or may not be more confused than when you started):

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/

LMAO ya thats for making it even harder. I did find some good stuff over there, one idea I never really thought of was porcelain tile. One guy on there says he has dropped all kinds of heavy **** on his, along with rolling creepers, jacks and engines stands over it with no problems.

Also talked to Legacy Industrial about there product, says they have been doing the industrial side of this for 20+ years and just decided to make up a kit for the DIY. There kit is $500 for almost 700sf. Includes primer, base, sprinkle, clear, and all the other little stuff.

But I just cant get the tile out of my head. Even if a piece breaks I can just pop it out and replace it. Anybody with tile garages out there?

[Johns400]

BTW this is a shop that I will be working on my baby in, (72 GTO) not a place for old people to hang out and talk about the glory days lmao

[JTT99]

After I built our new home in AZ in 2004 I used the U-Coat It with the clear coat on the virgin concrete floors. I followed the directions completely and can report 6 years later it has held up perfectly with no lifting etc. even in our heat. I built another garage in 2007 and was going to do the same but found I could get the job done professionally and the difference in cost was only about $100 and that was for 750 sq. ft. so that was a no brainer. Given the state of the current economy you might be surprised how close to the material cost a professional may come in cost. One tip for those with these floors. I found the best way to clean is to get a Hoover Tile scrubber/vacum. I found one on Ebay refurbished for less than $100 and it has been money well spent. Makes cleaning really quick and easy.

[ry57pont]

one of the things i remeber about surface prep was to tape a clear plasic sheet roughly 1'x1' on the concrete sealing it to the floor, check it after 24hrs for moisture under the plastic. if so the moisture may "hydraulic" the epoxy up from the concrete.-RB

[PurplePackFan]

I agree with what all the others said. I did my floor about three years ago with Epoxy-Coat which I bought on line here: http://www.epoxy-coat.com/

I feel that it is a good product, however, they recommended to prep the surface with muratic acid reduced to 1:4. That is NOT enough to rough up the surface, I even made mine about 1:2, but my finished concrete was way too smooth. Someone above said to have the concrete finishers do a "broom finish" to the concrete. I whole heartily agree. My surface ended up being too smooth so the product is not adhereing as it should. I may need to redo in a few years. With epoxy floor coatings you can go as thick as you want as they don't "dry", they "cure" so if you have a rough surface just apply thick enough so that is smoothes out and let it do its thing and you will have a great looking and durable floor. Prep work is everything, the actual application is actually the easy part. Kinda like any other paint job. Start with a clen, rough surface, mix per instructions, lay it out and let it settle, spinkle color chips and let it cure. Done.

Just my $.02 Good Luck!

John

[Aaawen]

I think you made a very good point about surface preparation. A lot of epoxy floor failures are not caused by the coating itself, but by the concrete surface not being properly prepared.

Grinding the floor to create a proper profile is usually the step that makes the biggest difference. I also found that checking moisture before coating is important, especially in garages where the slab can hold vapor.

For my recent garage flooring projects, I’ve been paying more attention to moisture barriers and proper primers before applying the epoxy system. Products like Bond Craftor’s moisture vapor barrier epoxy are designed for this purpose, helping create a better foundation for the coating.

The coating is only as good as what’s underneath it. A little extra preparation upfront can save a lot of work later.