Anyone regret doing Rigid Plastic tiles?

[imgn tht]

Anyone use Rigid Plastic tiles (Racedeck, True Lock HD, Swisstrax, etc...) and regret the choice? What about it did/do you regret?

I would like to redo my current setup. I've done the big box epoxy DIY kit and currently have wall to wall g-floor rollout vinyl mats. Time for a change. I've got a 420 sq ft two car garage. Basic suburban dad use...Park cars, store bikes and lawn mower/snow blower, etc...occassional shade tree mechanic on our daily drivers.

 

[SteveCh]

No (Racedeck)

 

[CSRPenFab]

Zero regrets from RaceDeck in my prior 4 garages.

 

[Shea]

Just a reminder - PVC tiles are flexible polyvinyl chloride. Rigid plastic tiles such as RaceDeck, etc. are polypropylene tiles.

 

[SteveCh]

oops, forgot that

 

[imgn tht]

Just a reminder - PVC tiles are flexible polyvinyl chloride. Rigid plastic tiles such as RaceDeck, etc. are polypropylene tiles.

Thanks just edited the original post. Still learning here.

 

[sol]

I have had racedeck for 10 years in Ontario Canada harsh winter weather. It’s held up great. Looks good and easy to clean.

What I feel is the draw backs. This is personal but I don’t like the clacky clack sounds when walking on it. Not major but not a fan. I also don’t like how in direct sunlight the tiles expand from the sunlight heat and bulge up. This only happens when I leave the doors open for a bit in summer. Not a big deal.

Lastly outside my garage I had the driveway section redone and till the ground settled placed some 1” stone on the gravel to prevent dirt from entering garage. Well the odd time my tires have picked up the stones and brought into garage as o drove the stones left huge permanent dents in the tile.

If I was to redo it for the cost I would go porcelain tile. Since you doing 420 square feet. I would forsure go porcelain. It will work out to the same price as racedeck or less and will last longer and look much nicer.

 

[kngelv]

I have the RaceDeck FreeFlow and would do it again in a heartbeat. No noise at all. Use landscape fabric under the solid tiles to mitigate noise. Most people won't notice it after a week or so.

James

 

[CSRPenFab]

I had landscape fabric under my previous garage with solid diamond RD tiles, and it really helped keep the noise down. Now I've got 1,000 sq. ft. of FreeFlow tiles with no fabric and I don't feel it's even needed. The open tiles really don't make much noise.

 

[Garage Flooring]

I have had racedeck for 10 years in Ontario Canada harsh winter weather. It’s held up great. Looks good and easy to clean.

What I feel is the draw backs. This is personal but I don’t like the clacky clack sounds when walking on it. Not major but not a fan. I also don’t like how in direct sunlight the tiles expand from the sunlight heat and bulge up. This only happens when I leave the doors open for a bit in summer. Not a big deal.

Lastly outside my garage I had the driveway section redone and till the ground settled placed some 1” stone on the gravel to prevent dirt from entering garage. Well the odd time my tires have picked up the stones and brought into garage as o drove the stones left huge permanent dents in the tile.

If I was to redo it for the cost I would go porcelain tile. Since you doing 420 square feet. I would forsure go porcelain. It will work out to the same price as racedeck or less and will last longer and look much nicer.

These are definitely some drawbacks to rigid tiles, but cat be addressed at the time of installation. Landscape fabric under the tile and placing tiles in the sun and loading immediately on install helps a ton.

 

[imgn tht]

These are definitely some drawbacks to rigid tiles, but cat be addressed at the time of installation. Landscape fabric under the tile and placing tiles in the sun and loading immediately on install helps a ton.

My garage door faces West and gets afternoon full sun. Family tends to keep the door open all day , but from what I've been reading it sounds like using flow through in the first few rows of the entry will likely prevent the potential for buckling. I haven't decided on a design yet, but originally thought I'd have a mixture of coin top and flow through. May just go full flow through or keep the coin top for the middle parking pads...though that would defeat partial purpose of allowing snow melt to pass through. Lots of decisions to consider.

If full flow through is used, there is no need to use the fabric right? I presume it would just get wet and moldy?

 

[Garage Flooring]

My garage door faces West and gets afternoon full sun. Family tends to keep the door open all day , but from what I've been reading it sounds like using flow through in the first few rows of the entry will likely prevent the potential for buckling. I haven't decided on a design yet, but originally thought I'd have a mixture of coin top and flow through. May just go full flow through or keep the coin top for the middle parking pads...though that would defeat partial purpose of allowing snow melt to pass through. Lots of decisions to consider.

If full flow through is used, there is no need to use the fabric right? I presume it would just get wet and moldy?

The key will be to get them heated up and put anything heavy back on right away. I can walk you through it. Go with a lighter tile and edge at the front like Alloy

 

[kngelv]

No need for fabric if all FreeFlow. Mine is very quiet. In fact it quieted down the whole garage because sound no longer echos off the concrete. If you are parking cars with snow then all FreeFlow is the way to go. My garage faces west and I have no expansion issues at all. Solid tiles are the ones with slight issues because of more material.

James

 

[Garage Flooring]

No need for fabric if all FreeFlow. Mine is very quiet. In fact it quieted down the whole garage because sound no longer echos off the concrete. If you are parking cars with snow then all FreeFlow is the way to go. My garage faces west and I have no expansion issues at all. Solid tiles are the ones with slight issues because of more material.

James

I may have misread the OP, but I thought he was only doing free-flow style on the edges. You are correct, typically no landscape fabric under it

 

[DirtyV]

No complaints about noise from my free flow tiles, just the occasional click where they are locking into place. There are areas where the slope of the garage can create a slight gap under a few tiles, so obviously stepping on or around those areas produces a little bit of a plastic, hollow type noise, but it's nothing that bugs me. This is purely subjective, as some may be more sensitive to these noises. My garage is typically pretty noisy, so some of the noise may be masked by other noises.

Also, no regrets about my free flow. It's not perfect, but no product is. For the cost, it is super easy to install and overall a great product that adds a fantastic design element to the garage. Downsides? This past week I had a brake fluid change mishap, which required me to peel up the tiles to clean underneath them. Then, a few days later my nephew had an oil change mishap in the same location (under the lift), which also led to me having to peel up those same tiles and clean under them again. I've got the process down to a science, but certainly it is a bit more work than simply cleaning up a spill off of an epoxy floor. Further, it can get a little dirty underneath the tiles. The good: The tiles always look clean. The bad: The floor underneath needs cleaning as much as it would otherwise, which can be slightly trickier with tiles in place.

Overall, I highly suggest tiles, but would also suggest a DIY epoxy kit underneath for easier cleaning. Definitely research a bit and know what you are getting into (especially with the free flow).

I highly recommend RaceDeck

Cheers,
JD

 

[kngelv]

When I have a fluid spill I usually dump my oil eater liquid mix over it and scrub with a stiff broom. I then flush with water and vacuum it up. If I had a specific area where auto fluids was always spilling then I might put solid tiles in that area. I have access to a boatload of large cardboard sheets through my employer so I usually put that down anyway so spills getting through the tiles are quite rare.

James

 

[DirtyV]

Great point about putting something down.. I'm in a habit now of putting down a tarp, or cardboard, but the oil spill was an unsupervised accident :/

 

[imgn tht]

If the floor was previously coated with a DIY box store bought epoxy, would you still use something like TrueLock B4?

How noticeable would the old epoxy be using free flow tiles? Assuming mostly when looking directly down through the openings, otherwise not so much. Fortunately the original coating color is close to what I was thinking for tiles anyway, but just curious.

Lastly, if the surface has slightly raised areas (I had used some self-leveling concrete mix in areas that were spalling at one point) I assume it won't necessarily be a problem to install tiles still, but that would be potential tiles that create a bit more noise when walking on. I suppose I could get a grinder and knock down rough areas if needed.

 

[DirtyV]

If the floor was previously coated with a DIY box store bought epoxy, would you still use something like TrueLock B4?

How noticeable would the old epoxy be using free flow tiles? Assuming mostly when looking directly down through the openings, otherwise not so much. Fortunately the original coating color is close to what I was thinking for tiles anyway, but just curious.

Lastly, if the surface has slightly raised areas (I had used some self-leveling concrete mix in areas that were spalling at one point) I assume it won't necessarily be a problem to install tiles still, but that would be potential tiles that create a bit more noise when walking on. I suppose I could get a grinder and knock down rough areas if needed.

My floor was coated with DIY box store epoxy and I put free flow tiles right over the top of it (after a good cleaning). No issues and it makes the floor easier to clean since stuff isn't absorbing into the concrete. I was tempted to paint the grey epoxy a black color, for fear it would look weird being grey epoxy underneath black tiles, but this is definitely not the case, and I'm glad I didn't do it. The epoxy underneath is practically unnoticeable. The only time you really see it is if you are looking directly through the free flow tiles and even then, it doesn't look bad at all.

I'm not sure regarding the raised areas. My garage floor is relatively flat, with a few slopes (as mentioned) and the tiles flex over these areas with no problem. Depending on how much the areas in your garage are raised, you may want to grind them down a bit. Do you have any pics you could share?

 

[imgn tht]

No recent pictures and its covered up now by roll out mats. Having said that, they must not be bad or I would have had projections through the mats. I'm just overthinking this tile plan.

 

[imgn tht]

The key will be to get them heated up and put anything heavy back on right away. I can walk you through it. Go with a lighter tile and edge at the front like Alloy

If I do all free flow, can I get away with a darker color at the doorway still without concern of buckling? Current colors of garage are Beige walls and Beige cabinet faces with black boxes Just not sure how much Beige I want on the floors too...

What about tire creep? I have to back in my car in a tight 's' turn. I'm usually turning the wheels without rolling to get in final position.

 

[mepstein]

I think the best way to make a decision is to demo the tile. Buy a box and spread them out on the floor. Don't just get a single sample tile, it won't give you the same experience as 20 sq/ft. If you don't like it, return the box. I have free flow in my workshop and solid tile on the second floor. I am very happy about both. If I had the time and money, I would do porcelain on the concrete floor but racedeck was just so easy to do, I just went for it.

 

[CSRPenFab]

If I do all free flow, can I get away with a darker color at the doorway still without concern of buckling? Current colors of garage are Beige walls and Beige cabinet faces with black boxes Just not sure how much Beige I want on the floors too...

What about tire creep? I have to back in my car in a tight 's' turn. I'm usually turning the wheels without rolling to get in final position.

I have all black FreeFlow across 3 Southwest facing bays. No issues with buckling at all in full sun. The open mesh tiles don’t expand like solid tiles. I had solid in my prior CA house and my floor buckled in the sun. Turning wheels is fine on the tiles.

 

[Garage Flooring]

If I do all free flow, can I get away with a darker color at the doorway still without concern of buckling? Current colors of garage are Beige walls and Beige cabinet faces with black boxes Just not sure how much Beige I want on the floors too...

What about tire creep? I have to back in my car in a tight 's' turn. I'm usually turning the wheels without rolling to get in final position.

People do and 9/10 nonissues. Personally I’d go alloy

 

[frankd]

My "Garagedeck" flooring is maybe about 3-4 years old and while I like it and don't have any regrets, it wouldn't have been my first choice. The concrete floor in my garage was in bad shape. Cracked, pitted, and had been patched a few times. Had it been in good shape, I would have just done some sort of sealer and densifier and been done with it. Here's my opinion based on my experience (I have the solid tile- not free flow):
I love the way the floor looks. The installation was fast and easy, and relatively inexpensive (my garage is only around 400sqft). The floor really transformed the look of the garage. Also if I damage a few tiles I can pop them out and replace them.
However... if you're the type of person that does a lot of work in their garage, the tiles kind of makes it a pain in the ***. Any water or fluid that gets on the tile will seep between the cracks and get under the tile and on the concrete beneath it. That's fine for water, but oil or some other fluids would be annoying as you'd then have to pull up the tile and clean underneath it (unless you don't mind just letting dirty oil, etc just sit there. When I'm working on any of my cars or toys in the garage, I first put a thick 10x10 plastic sheet which I tape to the floor. This way if I spill anything, I can easily wipe it up.
I wouldn't do any sort of welding or grinding in the garage unless I put down some sort of protective barrier.

Also, the expansion in the heat is kind of annoying. I went with dark gray tile and my garage faces West. If I leave the door open in the afternoon on a hot day, the tiles start to lift/buckle in about an hour or so. For me its not a big deal as I don't really leave my garage door open often. I left plenty of room around the perimeter to allow for expansion but that didn't help. It almost seems like each individual tile will lift at its center, so the floor takes on a wavy sort of look when exposed to heat/sun. Leaving room for expansion doesn't seem to help because the weight of the floor alone seems to be enough to prevent it from expanding. I put down my floor in the winter so maybe if I had heated up the floor first it would have helped, or maybe a higher quality brand of tile like Racedeck would perform better?

just my 2 cents...

 

[PoorUB]

I wouldn't put in the plastic tiles for the reasons you mention. I did epoxy the shop floor 30 years ago and it really needs it again. I also weld, plus paint in the shop along with other automotive work. Plus here in ND we drag in a lot of salt and sand in the winter. I can take a shovel and scrape off the sand once a week and wash the floor, it gets that bad. (I don't clean it that often, but I could!)

 

[Mark in Baltimore]

Love my Swisstrax ribtrax smooth and simply could not be happier. When I work on the cars, I just put plastic real estate sign panels under the jack and jack stands.

 

[mikeyr]

Absolutely no regrets. My Racedeck floor is around or over 20 years old (purchased around year 2001 +/- a year), some parts of my shop still look new, other parts have a few holes from plasma cutting or welding and middle of the shop has a lot of overspray from painting parts. When I tried to clean up some of the overspray, the tiles looked dull compared to others and stood out from the other tiles around so I gave up cleaning the others and was going to buy a bunch to replace the middle of the shop that is the most damaged but wife said "out of your pocket, not the house funds"

There has been a lot of cars torn apart and built on those tiles, lots of engines and transmissions gone through. Yes some areas are damaged now but overall, I am amazed how well they stood up to the abuse.

 

[Garage Flooring]

My "Garagedeck" flooring is maybe about 3-4 years old and while I like it and don't have any regrets, it wouldn't have been my first choice. The concrete floor in my garage was in bad shape. Cracked, pitted, and had been patched a few times. Had it been in good shape, I would have just done some sort of sealer and densifier and been done with it. Here's my opinion based on my experience (I have the solid tile- not free flow):
I love the way the floor looks. The installation was fast and easy, and relatively inexpensive (my garage is only around 400sqft). The floor really transformed the look of the garage. Also if I damage a few tiles I can pop them out and replace them.
However... if you're the type of person that does a lot of work in their garage, the tiles kind of makes it a pain in the ***. Any water or fluid that gets on the tile will seep between the cracks and get under the tile and on the concrete beneath it. That's fine for water, but oil or some other fluids would be annoying as you'd then have to pull up the tile and clean underneath it (unless you don't mind just letting dirty oil, etc just sit there. When I'm working on any of my cars or toys in the garage, I first put a thick 10x10 plastic sheet which I tape to the floor. This way if I spill anything, I can easily wipe it up.
I wouldn't do any sort of welding or grinding in the garage unless I put down some sort of protective barrier.

Also, the expansion in the heat is kind of annoying. I went with dark gray tile and my garage faces West. If I leave the door open in the afternoon on a hot day, the tiles start to lift/buckle in about an hour or so. For me its not a big deal as I don't really leave my garage door open often. I left plenty of room around the perimeter to allow for expansion but that didn't help. It almost seems like each individual tile will lift at its center, so the floor takes on a wavy sort of look when exposed to heat/sun. Leaving room for expansion doesn't seem to help because the weight of the floor alone seems to be enough to prevent it from expanding. I put down my floor in the winter so maybe if I had heated up the floor first it would have helped, or maybe a higher quality brand of tile like Racedeck would perform better?

just my 2 cents...

It is funny how different experiences can be. Honestly we would not suggest welding on a [any] floor either but https://www.garageflooringllc.com/2014/04/14/truelock-diamond-second-video-review/ and this is the cheapest tile we sell.

Expansion and contraction can be an issue. For winter installs we suggest that you at least get the floor to room temperature in the house and pull from there as you go. A little extra expansion room helps. The layout can be adjusted when summer hits, but it does require some work.

" Any water or fluid that gets on the tile will seep between the cracks and get under the tile and on the concrete beneath it. That's fine for water, but oil or some other fluids would be annoying as you'd then have to pull up the tile and clean underneath it (unless you don't mind just letting dirty oil, etc just sit there. When I'm working on any of my cars or toys in the garage, I first put a thick 10x10 plastic sheet which I tape to the floor. This way if I spill anything, I can easily wipe it up."

One of the advantages, despite the perception of a freeflow or flow-through floor, is that you clean most anything right through it. I have solid tiles in my garage because it also functions as a Gym. If I were changing oil etc I would absolutely use oil dri pads, cardboard or plastic....

I would have just done some sort of sealer and densifier and been done with it.

A densifier will not resolve the issue. A densifier plus 8510 is a decent way to keep oil off the floor temporarily. A good coating, even a clear one will do a better job.

Everything you talk about are valid concerns that we discuss with customers every day. Its just one of the reasons we have so many products. The best floor is going to be the one that fits your application.

 

[TheOtherGoose]

I've always liked free-flow style tiles. My current floor has been a knockoff brand (Block Tiles) for the past ten years or so. I've also had a Race Deck floor at a previous house.

Race Deck is the best quality, but it costs more. I haven't priced it lately, but my knockoff brand was about half the price of Race Deck when I bought it. Race Deck didn't expand/contract as much in the sun. My cheaper tile will buckle up a bit if it bakes in the sun for a while; my tile will flatten back out once the door is closed, though.

Just passing along my experiences...

My Block Tile thread

 

[Dreamshop]

If it's a working garage, I wouldn't. I had racedeck in my last garage, although it looked awesome when it was clean, it wasn't that way for long. I also had the tuff shield shiny stuff. It scratched badly even from sand brought in on the cars in the winter. Now having built a new shop I'm gun shy to even look any farther than just a sealer....