Wow, this is fantastic site! I found it a few weeks ago and have been spending way too many hours soaking up all the experiences, product information, photos and more. I first came here looking at garage wall storage ideas, such as the Gladiator Gearwall and Geartrack. As I saw some of the posters' wall photos I started noticing the floors….and how much the floors impacted the whole look and feel of the space.
Then I began reading the posts in the Flooring section. And now, after seeing how MANY choices are available, reading a bunch of manufacturer’s sites, looking at other websites, etc., my head is totally spinning. And I have a deep understanding and appreciation for the other posters here who have expressed similar experiences. So, if I may, I would like to impose upon you veterans of flooring choices and request that you tolerate yet another newbie’s questions.
Here’s my situation. We’re building a new house in Charlotte, NC area with a 3 car garage, approximately 35 ft by 20 ft (700 sq ft), that loads from the side of the house. Looking from left to right from outside, the first 9 feet will be my workshop area, then a two car overhead garage door and a one car overhead garage door. My workshop is basically an 8 foot Gladiator maple top bench and several Craftsman Professional storage cabinets (purchased for 80% off at a Sears store that closed a few years ago!) that I’m moving from our prior house. I’m a tinkerer/home handyman and not planning on doing large scale, serious projects.
Based on the house next door that is being built by the same builder, I believe the concrete floor will be machine troweled to a smooth finish but not the “hard” finish that some have described here. Contract has no detailed cement finish specs and there’s no option to change them. There will be no floor drains (apparently city won’t allow them); the floor will slope to the door openings. The floor will be poured and subject to the usual home construction traffic for about 4 months or so before I get it; probably mid-November, 2013. No sealer or other materials will be added during construction but they will “clean” it before closing. I have no experience with concrete floor finishing, but have done nearly anything else possible for home construction/maintenance and have a decent tool collection for doing such.
My floor finishing Goals are: (A) prevent concrete dusting, (B) stain resistant and easy to sweep, (C) improve appearance by have some color, but nothing dramatic (like a checkerboard pattern) or too dark (which I think would show dirt easier), (D) not slippery when wet, (E) a matt or low gloss finish, not a really high gloss, (F) can be done in a couple days (it will have to be done after closing and before moving in--there will be tremendous pressure to get the move in started) and (G) budget friendly, since with a new home there are lots of competing projects.
Questions? While I’m certainly not positive, I think I can accomplish this using a couple coats of a stained sealer, like the Legacy HD-6600. Agree or disagree?
The other option I’m considering is to apply a stain/densifier and then clear sealer. How different will the color be with that method? I’ve searched but not found any real comparisons between this vs. using the stained sealer.
With either method, should I also use skid additive? Which one?
Finally, should I also consider sealing the new concrete driveway? It will be broom finish so I assume no skid additive is necessary?
Thanks so much for your time. I'm looking forward to participating here at GJ!!
Then I began reading the posts in the Flooring section. And now, after seeing how MANY choices are available, reading a bunch of manufacturer’s sites, looking at other websites, etc., my head is totally spinning. And I have a deep understanding and appreciation for the other posters here who have expressed similar experiences. So, if I may, I would like to impose upon you veterans of flooring choices and request that you tolerate yet another newbie’s questions.
Here’s my situation. We’re building a new house in Charlotte, NC area with a 3 car garage, approximately 35 ft by 20 ft (700 sq ft), that loads from the side of the house. Looking from left to right from outside, the first 9 feet will be my workshop area, then a two car overhead garage door and a one car overhead garage door. My workshop is basically an 8 foot Gladiator maple top bench and several Craftsman Professional storage cabinets (purchased for 80% off at a Sears store that closed a few years ago!) that I’m moving from our prior house. I’m a tinkerer/home handyman and not planning on doing large scale, serious projects.
Based on the house next door that is being built by the same builder, I believe the concrete floor will be machine troweled to a smooth finish but not the “hard” finish that some have described here. Contract has no detailed cement finish specs and there’s no option to change them. There will be no floor drains (apparently city won’t allow them); the floor will slope to the door openings. The floor will be poured and subject to the usual home construction traffic for about 4 months or so before I get it; probably mid-November, 2013. No sealer or other materials will be added during construction but they will “clean” it before closing. I have no experience with concrete floor finishing, but have done nearly anything else possible for home construction/maintenance and have a decent tool collection for doing such.
My floor finishing Goals are: (A) prevent concrete dusting, (B) stain resistant and easy to sweep, (C) improve appearance by have some color, but nothing dramatic (like a checkerboard pattern) or too dark (which I think would show dirt easier), (D) not slippery when wet, (E) a matt or low gloss finish, not a really high gloss, (F) can be done in a couple days (it will have to be done after closing and before moving in--there will be tremendous pressure to get the move in started) and (G) budget friendly, since with a new home there are lots of competing projects.
Questions? While I’m certainly not positive, I think I can accomplish this using a couple coats of a stained sealer, like the Legacy HD-6600. Agree or disagree?
The other option I’m considering is to apply a stain/densifier and then clear sealer. How different will the color be with that method? I’ve searched but not found any real comparisons between this vs. using the stained sealer.
With either method, should I also use skid additive? Which one?
Finally, should I also consider sealing the new concrete driveway? It will be broom finish so I assume no skid additive is necessary?
Thanks so much for your time. I'm looking forward to participating here at GJ!!
