flooring for fab shop?

[that-guy]

new garage i am going to be building soon will be used primarily for automotive fabrication. so lots of cutting, grinding, welding, etc...what would be a good product for me to put down to save my new concrete floor from being stained? thought about epoxy, but it won't hold up to hot sparks or possible tools/heavy parts falling on top of it. thought about Racedeck tiles, but i fear that grease and oil can fall in the creases and lay under the tiles, as well as not beable to hold up to anything hot

 

[Garage Flooring]

In my opinion a product such as our 100% solids garage floor epoxy and high performance top coat would be your best bet. I would go full broadcast but use a single light to medium color so you can find things you drop.

If you have specific areas which you are concerned about oil and grease I would use anti skid in those areas as well.

Heat I would use a welding blanket in areas where you expect sparks, etc to be hitting to floor or use a product such as DiamondLife aluminum tiles in that area. See this blog post

 

[K13]

I would think Tile or sealing your concrete is going to be your best bet. No offense to the Epoxy flooring guys but I have never understood the theory of spending a bunch of money on a floor to protect you concrete and then having to spend more money and time covering that up everytime you want to actually work in your garage.

 

[goodspeed]

Yeah, the idea of laying down a welding blanket on the floor seems odd to me as well. In my fabrication area, it's all bare concrete. Seems to work just fine.

 

[Fastback]

If you haven't poured the slab yet look into adding some color to the mix and have the contractor use a power trowel to over heat it slightly and you will turn your concrete into flooring. It closes up the slab and has a great look that's durable. Many of the big box stores have gone this route.

I have covered this floor in slag and paint over spray while car building, I had to go back and use a floor stripper with a buffer to clean it up, but it seems to hold up just like any other concrete floor. I just keep a sacrificial layer of sealer or "Floor finish" on it so I can wipe up oil spills.

 

[Sureshot]

Why not just leave the cement floor as is?

 

[Garage Flooring]

I would think Tile or sealing your concrete is going to be your best bet. No offense to the Epoxy flooring guys but I have never understood the theory of spending a bunch of money on a floor to protect you concrete and then having to spend more money and time covering that up everytime you want to actually work in your garage.

This is a valid point. Tile is a great option if you are looking at real tile. We have multiple options available including epoxy which I still think is a good fit in a lot of cases.

 

[that-guy]

how do the conrete sealers found at places like Lowes and Home Depot differ from rolling on a coat of epoxy?

 

[Garage Flooring]

If you are looking for a sealer I would OM Scotty at Legacy. Stains, etc might also be good options for you

 

[that-guy]

just trying to keep the ability to work like i normally do without worrying about hurting the floor, but also making it easy to clean up and not stain like a bare concrete floor will

 

[Garage Flooring]

Short of going ceramic tile talking to Legacy about a good stain or sealer may be a good option. We also carry great epoxy products but we suggest a welding blanket be used

 

[slickgt1]

I'm thinking Porcelain tile. Yea you will get some slag marks from welding, but when the look really pisses you off, break out those few tiles, and set new ones in.

 

[that-guy]

def. thinking stain or sealer now. should give me the durability of just straight concrete, but ability to still clean up without causing unwanted stains