Hey everyone, first off thanks for all the great info here! I apologize for any stupid questions I could find by searching--a friend just clued me into this forum, I need to coat my floor in a week, and I've done my best to read as much as I can here over the past few days!
I need to coat the floor in a 3-car garage in a house my wife are buying. It's newly poured concrete. I have a few days to figure out what to do.
Based on what I've read here, I'm planning to coat it with 100% solids epoxy and some kind of skid-resistant top coat. The install would be professionally done and the surface prepared using a grinder since I won't have time to do it myself.
Do you think this is the best choice?
To help understand the use conditions, I:
- work on cars regularly, spilling oil and brake fluid regularly
- will be washing cars in the garage
- have a leaky old british sports car
- occasionally weld stuff
- will park cars on it for up to a month or two without moving them
- would like something light in color and uniform to find parts when I drop them, and to help me ensure the floor is clean (I keep it very clean)
- would like something as close to maintenance-free as possible
- am cost-conscious, but I'm more interested in longevity and being maintenance-free
I've ruled out:
- VCT. My understanding is it's porous, I don't want any maintenance like waxing it, and I think welding would damage it?
- Ceramic/porcelain tiles. I don't care so much how the floor looks--mainly want it to be light in color and uniform so don't see the need for tiles. Also I have a feeling if the floor isn't perfect water would pool up more than with epoxy.
- Race deck/etc tiles. Since I'll be washing cars, just don't want to think about moisture beneath tiles (though I read it's minimal), and don't see the advantages of this over epoxy in my case.
- Terrazzo. Too slippery when wet.
- Mats. Don't want moisture under them.
Does this sound like a good choice? Would YOU use epoxy with skid-resistance or something else?
I need to coat the floor in a 3-car garage in a house my wife are buying. It's newly poured concrete. I have a few days to figure out what to do.
Based on what I've read here, I'm planning to coat it with 100% solids epoxy and some kind of skid-resistant top coat. The install would be professionally done and the surface prepared using a grinder since I won't have time to do it myself.
Do you think this is the best choice?
To help understand the use conditions, I:
- work on cars regularly, spilling oil and brake fluid regularly
- will be washing cars in the garage
- have a leaky old british sports car
- occasionally weld stuff
- will park cars on it for up to a month or two without moving them
- would like something light in color and uniform to find parts when I drop them, and to help me ensure the floor is clean (I keep it very clean)
- would like something as close to maintenance-free as possible
- am cost-conscious, but I'm more interested in longevity and being maintenance-free
I've ruled out:
- VCT. My understanding is it's porous, I don't want any maintenance like waxing it, and I think welding would damage it?
- Ceramic/porcelain tiles. I don't care so much how the floor looks--mainly want it to be light in color and uniform so don't see the need for tiles. Also I have a feeling if the floor isn't perfect water would pool up more than with epoxy.
- Race deck/etc tiles. Since I'll be washing cars, just don't want to think about moisture beneath tiles (though I read it's minimal), and don't see the advantages of this over epoxy in my case.
- Terrazzo. Too slippery when wet.
- Mats. Don't want moisture under them.
Does this sound like a good choice? Would YOU use epoxy with skid-resistance or something else?
