Recent content by Shea

I'm not sure why they are telling you it's a bad idea to have a polyurea base coat with a polyaspartic top coat. It's very common. Unfortunately, many garage floor coating companies locked into using only one product type (typically polyaspartic only) frequently make false claims about other...

What kind of shape is the concrete in? Is there any permanent staining, and are there cracks or pits that need repair? Would a clear coating that highlights the character of the concrete be enough, or do you want color?

If you need your garage floor done in one day, then the polyurea base coat will allow for that. An epoxy base coat will provide a thicker build, better moisture tolerance, and even better adhesion. The only drawback is that it takes an extra day to install and may amber (yellow tint) at some...

Just to clear up some information... Polyaspartic coatings are not harder than epoxy. Hardness for coatings is measured using the Shore D Scale, which measures hardness and indentation resistance on a range of 0-100. 100% solids epoxy generally tests between 80D and 90D, and polyaspartic between...

If you strip it with Xylene, you should be able to apply the densifier and oil-repelling sealer combo without further prep. Just verify with a water drop test in various areas that the concrete will absorb the water and not be blocked by residual acrylic left in the concrete pores. You may want...

I would double-check the application methods for 8510. I believe only one flood coat should be applied past the saturation point at an approximate rate of 300 sf. per gallon.

Concrete or wood floor?

Gotcha. Yes, Versatile offers their 5018m polyaspartic, which comes in a matte finish. What is your intended use for the matte finish?

Acid?

Densifiers do not fix bad concrete. It would be a waste of money to apply one to concrete dusting as badly as yours. The primary problem with dusting is a weak surface layer. This is most commonly caused by too much bleed water in the mix, though it can be other issues as well. When the bleed...

I can see dusting of the exposed concrete, which is most likely why the epoxy is peeling up. Did the installer grind the floor or etch? Dusting is due to a weak surface layer, which etching won't remove. You can grind the affected area to remove the epoxy and weak surface layer (sanding won't...

Yikes... I hate hearing stories like this. I feel for your problem. This is one of two primary reasons why we have always felt that polyaspartic is not the best for a base coat. The first is that the fast cure rate does not allow for the best penetration into the concrete pores to achieve the...

Yes, a penetrating sealer is what you need. A siloxane sealer typically works best for outdoor applications. What you don't want for colored concrete are penetrating sealers that use any siliconate. They can cause surface whitening. That is why some companies do not recommend certain products...

Ahh... OK. So the concrete was integrally colored and a powdered release agent was used for stamping the surface, correct? If so, did you want a penetrating sealer to maintain the natural look or a topical sealer to enhance the color and provide more protection?

Was the release agent solvent- based?