Atomic Industry World HQ: Part 4 (FLOORS!)

Posted by 141drew Posted onApr 28, 2011 at 10:58 AM and filed under Projects


I had originally intended to leave the floors of the Atomic Industry World HQ natural. The idea being that natural concrete works perfectly with our overall industrial look. However, the more I thought about it the more I didn’t want to deal with keeping natural concrete clean. I wanted something I could mop.

After talking it over with my architect and wife, we all concluded that some type of clear sealer would be the best bet. So, I made a call to one of our sponsors – Legacy Industrial. In turn, the guys at Legacy turned me onto their Urethan Sealer. It’s a single component product, so it’s very easy to apply and it gives your concrete a “wet” look once cured. I was sold and called a good pal and one of Texas’ premier concrete guys (Jimmy Mungle of the world famous Mungle Bros.) to help me apply the product.

Our concrete pad is fairly old and came complete with many oil stains, cracks, and other imperfections. None of this really bothered me as it all kind of worked with the industrial look we wanted. However, for the sealer to bond we really needed to clean the hell out of the space. Mungle put his machines to work and spent hours cleaning the joint. It was hard work, but when we were done we had a concrete pad that damned near looked new.

The new look wouldn’t last long. We laid down the first coat of the sealer and the stains that were once on the concrete began to surface again – exactly as I had hoped. By the time the second coat was down and cured, we were left with an incredibly warm floor with tons of character. Even better, the surface feels bullet proof. The best way I can describe it with words is to say that it’s as if the floor was shellacked with an inch of a impossibly hard ice. I’m quite taken with it.

That said, my endorsement doesn’t mean much. I’m not a concrete guy. Jimmy Mungle is… What does he think? He’s converted as well… He loved the ease at which the product went down and has every reason to believe that the floor will be durable in the long-term as well. Legacy Industrial has been added to his rolodex.

In any case, enjoy the pictures:



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See Comments on the forum.

View thread (41 replies)
W

Weps

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this is exactly the look i wanted for my garage, but couldn't get an answer on what to do. polishing the concrete was the direction people wanted me to go. i much prefer the idea of a urethane. thanks.

btw, the toledo stools are a nice touch too.
 
OP
R

Ryan

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SUHRsc said:
How is the traction with wet feet?
Click to expand...

It looks wet, so you think it would be slick... It's not really. The floor has traction characteristics similar to a basketball court if that makes sense... Wet feet might make it slick - I dunno, my feet are dry!

As for the Toledo stools, those are one of my prize possessions. The came out of the same Ford plant that produced the 1932 Ford. I'll feature them eventually.
 
P

peelman

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Looks awesome! How thick is the coating? You mention inch-thick ice in the OP, but surely its not that thick? How would it stand up to gasoline and/or other solvents once cured?

At my high school (long ago) they would wax the hallways with at least an inch of wax towards the end of every summer. The floors would actually "bowl" out over the course of the year as the wax wore off, but you could only tell if you were really looking for it. It always amazed me how thick that **** was, we chipped some up with a screwdriver one day outside of the ag shop, just because we got curious. Those pictures reminded me of the look those hallways had when we'd return in the fall. Within two weeks they'd be perpetually scuffed and wouldn't shine like that, but for the first week or so they always looked "wet".
 
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Ryan

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peelman said:
Looks awesome! How thick is the coating? You mention inch-thick ice in the OP, but surely its not that thick? How would it stand up to gasoline and/or other solvents once cured?

At my high school (long ago) they would wax the hallways with at least an inch of wax towards the end of every summer. The floors would actually "bowl" out over the course of the year as the wax wore off, but you could only tell if you were really looking for it. It always amazed me how thick that **** was, we chipped some up with a screwdriver one day outside of the ag shop, just because we got curious. Those pictures reminded me of the look those hallways had when we'd return in the fall. Within two weeks they'd be perpetually scuffed and wouldn't shine like that, but for the first week or so they always looked "wet".
Click to expand...

I have no idea how thick it is... Certainly nowhere near an inch or even a 1/4-inch, but it sure looks it.
 
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radchad3

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Looks Great! What kind of prep does this take? Is it a reasonable alternative to epoxy in a residential garage?
 
L

LegacyIndustrial

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radchad3 said:
Looks Great! What kind of prep does this take? Is it a reasonable alternative to epoxy in a residential garage?
Click to expand...

Depends.
New concrete with steel trowel finish: 2500 PSI even pressure washing
New concrete with power-trowel finish: light acid etch
Old concrete with coatings: grind clean
Old concrete with no coatings: grind. light etch or 2500 PSI even pressure wash

The concrete can't be real smooth.

Yes, this is an alternative to an epoxy coating. It definitely will out-perform the epoxy in the chemical resistance and abrasion resistance category.
 
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LegacyIndustrial

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I would think it would mark. However, we have not tested it against sparks or slag. If you are doing heavy welding I would recommend a welding blanket, steel sheeting or think about a penetrating sealer like a densifier.
 
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Charles (in GA)

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Problem is, I want color, something like a very light grey, so light will be reflected up from the floor to help illuminate the underside of car on lift, lower shelf of workbenches, whatever. The more reflected light the better.

This is clear, is this made with solids in it to give it color? Not looking for all the fancy stuff like flakes, just light color for reflected light.

Charles
 
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Nealcrenshaw

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Is two coats recommended or will one coat provide the same benefits? ALso curious if you have any pics with the softskid added in. I want the slip resistance but i want this look more.
 
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LegacyIndustrial

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Charles (in GA) said:
Problem is, I want color, something like a very light grey, so light will be reflected up from the floor to help illuminate the underside of car on lift, lower shelf of workbenches, whatever. The more reflected light the better.

This is clear, is this made with solids in it to give it color? Not looking for all the fancy stuff like flakes, just light color for reflected light.

Charles
Click to expand...

I would put down (2) coats of our thin-mil epoxy (HD-015) and (2) coats of this HD-356VOC urethane. Should do the trick nicely without breaking the bank.

Link to HD-015: http://legacyindustrial.net/cart/epoxy-coating-hd015-1-gal-p-207.html
 
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L

LegacyIndustrial

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bchee said:
I want to do this in my kitchen.
If this stuff is so good why is there so much talk about epoxy on here (flooring section)?
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If you want colors, flakes, smoothness, thickness, then choose a pigmented epoxy with this as a topcoat. link to coating kit: http://legacyindustrial.net/cart/standard-garage-system-p-230.html

If you want clear, smoothness and thickness then apply a thick coat of clear epoxy with this as the top-coat.
link to clear epoxy: http://legacyindustrial.net/cart/hd137muv-clear-coating-15-gal-p-202.html

If you want a clear to cover your colored concrete, stained concrete, natural concrete choose this as a stand alone.

This product is hard as nails but is only 4-5 mils thick with (2) coats. It will not hide any imperfections in your floor.

The trend right now is for natural looking floors. This product coupled with Ryan's natural looking concrete was a perfect match.
 
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S

SUHRsc

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Ryan said:
It looks wet, so you think it would be slick... It's not really. The floor has traction characteristics similar to a basketball court if that makes sense... Wet feet might make it slick - I dunno, my feet are dry!
Click to expand...

haha, thanks...
it sure does look nice...
 
H

hdmcrdr

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Texas
That floor looks awesome Ryan. I am going to hammer out and pour a new floor in my garage this spring, it is broken & heaved :( . I will have to check in to LegacyIndustrial's products. Great job on the World HQ!
 
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JeffreyJames

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Charlotte, NC
I have a similar product applied to our offices and at first it looked awesome but then after a year it started coming off in sheet under where the chairs roll around.

NOTE: This is more then likely due to the person that applied it and not the product. I am sure the floors were not cleaned to the level that the Atomic Ind. HQs were.


Looking great man!
 
T

TAB

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Ryan,
How are the floors holding up with the move in and increased traffic? Thanks

TAB
 
B

bengcap

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Did you acid stain the floors before you applied the sealer and if so, what color and brand did you use. I'm looking into remodeling my garage and your work looks great!

Thanks,
Ben
 
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LegacyIndustrial

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bengcap said:
Did you acid stain the floors before you applied the sealer and if so, what color and brand did you use. I'm looking into remodeling my garage and your work looks great!

Thanks,
Ben
Click to expand...

I will answer on Ryan's behalf. The color you see is the natural patina and color of Ryan's concrete. Concrete color can vary from the materials used to make it and if it's older it can have natural stains in it.

Ryan's color can be replicated by using acid stain. If you apply it in an inconsistent fashion you can make it look more natural.

We have acid stain on our site if you need it.
 
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Re-Volv

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Ryan, to get a sense of the total cost of a project like this, how much did all the grinding/surface prep cost?
 
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Omphaloskeptic

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Ryan, finished floor...fabulous!:thumbup:

I do wish there was video/picture thread detailing the entire process. From who did what when, how they did it, the chemicals, tools, power equipment used, time involved with each step, total square footage covered, how much of each product was purchased/used, lessons learned, masking/protecting adjacent surfaces, filling expansion joints, product compatibility, the whole nine yards.... I fully realize each concrete floor has its own particular challenges that determine that particular prep/application process, but overall, it would be good to know all the details of one particular example.

I will search the flooring forum for such an account, but it seems everyone is talking epoxy and I really like the basic one product, one step, approach to achieve an industrial, yet attractive, work surface.
 
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