JimVonBaden
Well-known member
No, I didn't do anything to mine for the first 8 months. After that I stripped it with chemical stripper (easy), and coated it with two coats of sealer (also easy).
Jim
VCT tile now done. Looks great!
- Thread starter Jason B
- Start date
No, I didn't do anything to mine for the first 8 months. After that I stripped it with chemical stripper (easy), and coated it with two coats of sealer (also easy).
Jim
ketas47
Well-known member
steve911, It looks like 2005 you put your VCT down,overall how would you sum it up? I think I am going to buy my tile Friday @ Menards, 73 cent per tile plus 11 percent store wide discount = 65 Cents plus $50 for adhesive for a total of $650 for a 925 sq. ft. garage plus what ever I decide to put on finished floor (sealer,wax). Not to bad of a price?
Last edited:
Hi everyone -
First time poster here. Thought I'd share a picture of the VCT I just had installed in my 24x36. It's a working garage, built on the cheap completely by myself (with the exception of the foundation, slab, and roof shingles). I bought the VCT 8 years ago and it's been stacked under a workbench. Finally talked myself into hiring out the install. Kids, racing, and career kept me from getting around to it.
Really glad I hired the pros. The sanded and skim coated the ENTIRE floor to be sure it would be perfectly level. They spent 28 hours total on the install by my clock. Even though the slab was nicely done 10 years ago I was amazed at how much patch they had to use. Maybe overkill for a working garage but at the moment I'm thrilled with how it's looking, especially compared with the "before" oily stained dusty mess of the original concrete.
I'm giving it 3 days to fully set, then mopping 5 coats of polish onto it. I fully expect it to get dirty and chipped up with various welding projects, motor swaps, etc in the coming months. But I'm willing to be more careful than I was with the concrete
Before:
Here's a crappy but fun google photo sphere of the full "before" garage (click):
https://plus.google.com/107581978485910037132/posts
During:
After (not sealed/polished)
First time poster here. Thought I'd share a picture of the VCT I just had installed in my 24x36. It's a working garage, built on the cheap completely by myself (with the exception of the foundation, slab, and roof shingles). I bought the VCT 8 years ago and it's been stacked under a workbench. Finally talked myself into hiring out the install. Kids, racing, and career kept me from getting around to it.
Really glad I hired the pros. The sanded and skim coated the ENTIRE floor to be sure it would be perfectly level. They spent 28 hours total on the install by my clock. Even though the slab was nicely done 10 years ago I was amazed at how much patch they had to use. Maybe overkill for a working garage but at the moment I'm thrilled with how it's looking, especially compared with the "before" oily stained dusty mess of the original concrete.
I'm giving it 3 days to fully set, then mopping 5 coats of polish onto it. I fully expect it to get dirty and chipped up with various welding projects, motor swaps, etc in the coming months. But I'm willing to be more careful than I was with the concrete
Before:
Here's a crappy but fun google photo sphere of the full "before" garage (click):
https://plus.google.com/107581978485910037132/posts
During:
After (not sealed/polished)
laserman35
Member
- Joined
- Nov 23, 2012
- Messages
- 22
That looks great what joint compond did you use?
I used the off-the-shelf grey and white from Home Depot. Or maybe it was Lowes. 51903 and 51899. I remember that I have less than $400 in tiles (bought 900 sq ft) so I must have gotten them on sale and/or used a big coupon way back when I bought them.
http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-25e...word=armstrong+vct&storeId=10051#.UQk8Xr99J4g
http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-25e...word=armstrong+vct&storeId=10051#.UQk8Zb99J4g
I did not pay attention to what skimming compound they used, sorry. I know it was in yellow buckets...
JimVonBaden
Well-known member
That looks great Bull! Can't wait to see it polished! Have you stripped it already? If not, make sure you do before polishing it.
Jim
Jim
That looks great Bull! Can't wait to see it polished! Have you stripped it already? If not, make sure you do before polishing it.
Jim
Uhhh...what?
JimVonBaden
Well-known member
VCT comes with a coating that needs to be removed before you put on the liquid polish.
There are many to choose from, this is one: http://www.installerstore.com/Crystal-Care-Clear-Cut-VCT-Floor-Stripper.html
Armstrong makes some, and you can get an off brand at Home Depot. Us this forst, then add the sealant: http://www.installerstore.com/Crystal-Care-Crystal-VCT-Floor-Finish.html
I got both at HD!
Jim
There are many to choose from, this is one: http://www.installerstore.com/Crystal-Care-Clear-Cut-VCT-Floor-Stripper.html
Armstrong makes some, and you can get an off brand at Home Depot. Us this forst, then add the sealant: http://www.installerstore.com/Crystal-Care-Crystal-VCT-Floor-Finish.html
I got both at HD!
Jim
Jim,
I think bull's confusion lies in that the floor is actually whitney's, not bull's...
Looks good...I have all but decided to go with VCT...since I put down the cheap Rustoleum a few years ago and hate the color...it's peeling in a few areas but nothing serious.
I'm hoping I can get away with tiling over the old epoxy as I am dreading the grinding of the entire 900 sf floor...anyone done this? If so, how does it hold up?
I am a bit concerned about snow melt off the truck as my garage floor sends the water mostly to the back wall of the garage and to the side...it's going to end up right underneath one of my refinished metal cabinets so I am trying to figure out a solution to that as well...
Ugh...dreading the floor job one way or another...except the outcome!
I think bull's confusion lies in that the floor is actually whitney's, not bull's...
Looks good...I have all but decided to go with VCT...since I put down the cheap Rustoleum a few years ago and hate the color...it's peeling in a few areas but nothing serious.
I'm hoping I can get away with tiling over the old epoxy as I am dreading the grinding of the entire 900 sf floor...anyone done this? If so, how does it hold up?
I am a bit concerned about snow melt off the truck as my garage floor sends the water mostly to the back wall of the garage and to the side...it's going to end up right underneath one of my refinished metal cabinets so I am trying to figure out a solution to that as well...
Ugh...dreading the floor job one way or another...except the outcome!
JimVonBaden
Well-known member
:doh
Oh well, good information anyhow!
Jim
Oh well, good information anyhow!
Jim
Shea
Well-known member
The floor looks great.... VCT for the win with this one! Out of curiosity, what are all the plaques on the wall?
My garage floor sweats from time to time. Mainly when the temps change rapidly. I live in missouri so it could be 70 degrees one day and 3 days later in the teens. If I applied this during the dry summer season would this sweating cause issues later on or would the adhesive keep it at bay? Just wondering if I am setting myself up for failure if I go with VCT.
JimVonBaden
Well-known member
Thanks for the heads up Jim. Your floor looks great by the way.
Thanks for the write up Jason B. The floor looks great! Also thanks to the other members for their responses. It really helps with trying to plan for a project like this.
Thanks for the write up Jason B. The floor looks great! Also thanks to the other members for their responses. It really helps with trying to plan for a project like this.
haugy
Well-known member
Has anyone done this with tan tiles? I have a red brick house, brown aggregate driveway, etc. While I love black and white, I think it would match the house better if it was black and tan.
Shea
Well-known member
Here is an article on vinyl composite tiles for the garage with a video of them being installed. The tile color is a two-tone brown and beige. Tiles of this color aren't always in big demand like the traditional black and white and can sometimes be found at great prices. It looks great.
Well, it's been 8 months since I put the VCT floor in. I rented a high-speed polisher and used a little polish on the floor. Bottom line is, I would do it again. There are some brown spots on the white tiles from the tires, but it's a garage.
Chuck
Your floor looks really good. My compliments on your choice of vehicles also.
Jason
Your floor looks really good. Its great that you have been able to provide a real long term review of the product. Seems like a really nice option.
aunsafe2015
Well-known member
Do you wax and polish it? Any maintenance other than sweep/mop?
Lol, no. not yet still. I have a 2nd utility garage that I will park in if there's snow, etc, so I've never let snow or ice melt on the floor as I was worried what would happen with no wax/polish in it. But technically when you strip the floor it gets wet anyway and doesn't cause issues, and I have had water get on it before and no issues to date.
Yea, I know, I need to strip the factory wax it ships with off, but I don't have a machine, etc, to do that.
Notgrownup
Well-known member
I was wondering if I could mix anti slip media with floor finish if I did this.. So I called my rep that sells us floor finish and he said to not do that... the media will find it's way out being that the floor finish is soft unlike Epoxy... He said that the Floor finish actually helps with slip resistance VS not having any... It sounds contraindicative but he said that the finishes need to pass tests I thing laid out by the ASTME (I think it's the right name) So I guess I might just put me some regular VCT down...
Oh, you def want to do it! It's so inexpensive it's crazy. I did a 3 car garage for like $500 total.
Now I see people selling SELF STICK tiles, so no glue needed and the reviews are really good. I can link ya if you want. Not much more than VCT. It's a thinner tile, but could work for most maybe that aren't hard on it.
Now I see people selling SELF STICK tiles, so no glue needed and the reviews are really good. I can link ya if you want. Not much more than VCT. It's a thinner tile, but could work for most maybe that aren't hard on it.
Notgrownup
Well-known member
Those peel and stick tiles feel pretty flimsy though, I wonder how they last?
Notgrownup
Well-known member
Looks decent...
aunsafe2015
Well-known member
Interesting. Do you know if it's the same material as VCT? Similar thickness?
JR 42
Well-known member
I haven't seen this guy's particular product in person, but I feel confident that it's not the same material as VCT- it's a thin printed visual on a flexible vinyl core, similar construction to any other glue- down LVT or LVP. The website says it's 1.2mm thick, which is about 3/64".
Basic VCT is brittle, not flexible (it's mostly ground limestone), and the pattern runs completely through the tile. Most of it is 1/8" thick, some is 3/32".
JR
B T C
Well-known member
On a scale of 1-10, how difficult is this? I would like to do something to my garage floor. I've got a three car, with two drains, that's approximately 850 square feet. Not sure whether the drains, or associated floor slope, would make a lot of difference.
Y2KFirehawk
Active member
That's awesome! Thanks for circling back with us. Any brand VCT better than another?
I ordered samples of it from another supplier as he won't send samples. It's thinner but comes shiny, and no waxing ever needed. It's def thinner.
Looks great! Now you have to paint the back of that garage door.
Ha! Wish they made a wallpaper like it and then that would be easy!
Yea, I got samples. It's thinner but comes shiny... So this would be more flexible I guess?
I didn't think it was hard. You just need to snap a chalk line that is perfectly centered cause you will start at that line so it's need to be perfect. Mine was 3 car.