What is the BEST epoxy flooring out there?

[Christian79]

Hello,

I am new to the forum and have only used the search button a few times. I would like to epoxy the floor in my garage and would like to do it ONE time ONLY. Does a product exist that would give me that kind of assurance? The garage will be used to store my vette in the winter and some easy mechanical work during the year (oil, brakes, clutch, ......) . I just purchaced a used Mohawk A-7 and will be rebuilding/painting it this winter so I will have no issues with jack stands and the like. I am not rich! I purchase everything used and rebuild it to like new condition. However, if I have to layout some extra cash to do it right one the first time (hence the A-7 for easy work ;-)....) then I will save up my pennies and wait. So please let me know what is the BEST product out there.

Thank you,

Alex

[Jaguar Fan]

Hi Alex,

Welcome. I assume you mean the best for a DIY-er. Why don't you spend some time browsing through here & you'll see lots of projects, and maybe then you could ask a few more detailed questions.

Also, can you post a few pictures of the current slab? and tell us what condition you think it is in?

Good luck!

[krooser]

That's like asking who is the most beautiful woman in the world...

[awakeinAZ]

Recommend you DONT do it yourself.....

[Christian79]

Yes for a DIY-er. My main question is about durability. I like the Wolverine series products and am leaning that direction. However, I would like to know if there is anything better than that. I currently have no way to take a pic since my vette is in pieces (waiting on parts) and the other side of the garage is covered with Yamaha Waverunner parts. However, the pad is 7 years old and 18' x 19'. It has no cracks and is divided into quadrants. Overall the condition is 9/10 with a deduction for some slight discoloration from cleaning up any spills with solvents.

Originally Posted by Jaguar Fan

Hi Alex,

Welcome. I assume you mean the best for a DIY-er. Why don't you spend some time browsing through here & you'll see lots of projects, and maybe then you could ask a few more detailed questions.

Also, can you post a few pictures of the current slab? and tell us what condition you think it is in?

Good luck!

[Christian79]

My wife Thats my answer and I am sticking to it

Originally Posted by krooser

That's like asking who is the most beautiful woman in the world...

[Christian79]

Why do you feel that way? Seriously I want to know!!!

Originally Posted by awakeinAZ

Recommend you DONT do it yourself.....

[Jaguar Fan]

Hi Alex,

On this board you'll find a bunch of DIY-ers who have done just a handful of projects and some pros who do this for a living and a few vendors who sell product. I'm a DIY-er and am absolutely amazed at the high quality of several of the projects presented here by professionals who do this day in, day out. They have a much higher skill level than you or me, and of course they offer a warranty on their jobs.

DIYers like you and me have to learn by doing, and we don’t have 3 or 5 guys working simultaneously and we don’t have access to the high quality equipment they do.

A good pro will probably do a better job prepping the floor and has access to several different products for different conditions. They have training, etc etc. They also have access to coating materials that you and I cannot get for good reason as you or I don’t have the training to use them correctly (we might goof it up).

A pro is running a business; to make money, they use techniques & products to get done in a few days & move on to the next job; you and I will take our time and use products appropriate for a DIYer who does not have the skill and training.

You and I are not going to do as good a job as a pro. You and I are more likely to have a failure for any number of reasons because we just don’t have the experience.

So… if you want the best outcome, I think I also suggest you save your $$ and hire a reputable pro with lots of experience & success stories.


But a DIYer can do a very good job.

I’ll defer to pros, but since they’re probably watching the game right now (New Orleans over Atlanta 35-24), I’ll give you my 2 cents.

From the perspective of a DIYer, the general concensus seems to be to use a 100% solids epoxy. I was at first confused by what that means – after all, epoxies are liquid, so how can they be 100% solid? I think the answer is that when you mix the part A and B, the result is something that contains no water to evaporate or VOCs to evaporate – so effectively 100% (or almost 100%) of the liquid chemically cures into a hard coating. Contrast that with some of the products you can buy at Home Depot or equivalent – they might be “water based” or have VOCs that evaporate. Those products are not thought to be as good.

I’ve personally used the water based product about 12 years ago; it currently looks like crap and is coming off everywhere. Separately, a couple years ago I did my mom’s garage with a higher quality product (ICI Devoe Devran 224HS), a less-than-100% solids epoxy and it turned out pretty darn good for a DIYer.

Whichever product you choose, if you read through some of the project reports you’ll see that you need to take great care prepping your floor. And, follow the manufacturers directions COMPLETELY. Plan on having some help.

Here’s my project: http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=16957

It IS a lot of work.

[Christian79]

Thank you for the info and words of wisdom and encouragement. I think I will give Fred @ Alphagarage a call and see what all is entailed. I am a "try anything" kind of guy but I want to know all the steps so I can make an educated evaluation on how my abilities stack-up against the task at hand. Thankfully I am only doing 350 sq-ft so at $2.00 sq-ft est. I am looking at a risk of $700 plus the cost of rental equipment and misc supplies. At less than $1,000 it sees like a reasonable risk for what will most likely be a good install. I will keep a journal and show my progress as time passes.

This should be fun,

-Alex

[mrpd114]

I am ready to epoxy my 800 Sq. Ft. garage and found a product called BAR-RUST 235V, a multi-purpose solvent-based epoxy coating at a paint store.

Anyone have any knowledge of this product as used for a garage floor paint?

[T4Turtle]

After my research, If I would have done it myself I would have gone with Wolverine.

I Decided it was worth my time and the extra warranty to have it done professionally by Durall which is a local company.

[awakeinAZ]

Originally Posted by Christian79

Why do you feel that way? Seriously I want to know!!!

It's easy to lay down epoxy, it's much more difficult to do it well. There are many people who come to this board to find a fix for some issue.

[krooser]

I used Insul-X... a professional coating I bought from my local paint store.

The only equipment I rented was an orbital sander to get rid of the little "hairs" on the surface of my floor that come from the fiber in the fiber-mesh concrete.

Anybody can do a professional job if you take your time and make sure the floor is clean and oil free.

[thundercow]

I sense a contradiction...

Originally Posted by krooser

I used Insul-X... a professional coating I bought from my local paint store.

[Randar68]

You can do it yourself for a fraction of the cost (and with better materials than some local options) it you take your time with proper preparation and some patience.

Your space sounds like a very doable sized DIY project (my garage was 22x20) and if the slab is in great condition, that's 90% of the hard work.

Definitely recommend going through Fred and having him help you spec out your project.

[Christian79]

Thanks for all the help guys!!!!!!!!! Now I need to get my Vette put back together and the Waverunner parts off the floor. It looks like I can rent a floor machine for $65 a day. Even though it should take about an hour to do my garage ;-)

[wineslob]

I don't know what the policy is here for manufacturers of coatings. I work for one, but I won't mention any names/links, unless I get an OK.
We do make a concrete cleaner (it will strip release agent off), an acrylic transparent concrete stain, an epoxy coating, and other products for concrete/fencing. All are DIY friendly.
I have put down (in my work shop) a 100% epoxy (not ours) coating. The job came out well but the biggest issue was impact resistance. Any metal, tools, etc.. dropping on the floor damages it. Total buyer beware.

[Costner]

Asking what is the best epoxy is like asking what is the best car, the best state, or the best food.

Opinions vary. With a little research on this board (which means not assuming someone will spoon feed you the information you need) you will be able to decide what features and benefits are most important to you, and then you can make an informed decision.

I recommend you stay away from the cheap off-the-shelf water based varieties offered from the big box stores if for no other reason than they have a lower solids content and results from those who have used them are mixed. A few products stick out as being the most successful from those on the board, but I'm sure it won't take you too long to figure out which is recommended based upon a few topics here.

[krooser]

Originally Posted by thundercow

I sense a contradiction...

No...I'm a professional... just not a professional floor coating guy...

Honestly....how can anyone who has never done an epoxy floor know if you can or cannot do a good job? Seems the guys who have never done it are saying you can't do it... makes no sense to me.

If you are looking for a showpiece floor for your expensive toys and want your garage to look better than your house, maybe you should hire a professional. But I wanted a coating that would take abuse, be easy to clean and look fairly nice. That's what I got... and it's held up very well for the last 3 years.

I couldn't imagine paying anyone thousands to do what I did for a few hundred bucks.

[reddog1970]

I just used Armorchip from Armorgarage. Came out great. Haven't moved a vehicle on it yet. I will update next week once I have moved the vehicles inside, but i'm very happy so far.