Anyone Use Rustoleum Epoxyshield In Winter Months?

[Winmon]

Has anyone here applied Rustoleum Epoxyshield during the winter months? If so, how did it work out? What temps did you have at the time?

I am ready to do a recoating with Rustoleum Epoxyshield. I am now debating whether or not I need to hold off till spring when it warms up or if I can get away with it now. Rustoleum says that the floor must be 60* to put down the epoxy. My nighttime temps are in the low 30's with daytime highs in the upper 40's. I do have a 75k btu propane heater in the garage and right now, with it being 42* outside, my garage ambient temp is about 80* with the floor at between 57*-62*. However since the Epoxyshield is solvent based, I will have to turn off the heater when I apply the epoxy and leave it off for about 8 hours. I am planning on firing up the heater in the morning, get it up to temp and then shut it off to see how long the garage will hold the temp w/o the heater on.

 

[bmwpower]

Having done my epoxy during December of last year, I can say it is possible. If the temps you note are true temps, it's going to be close. You're on the border of the low side. I had to stay above 40 degrees, which was easier. Remember, once you shut that hear off the floor is going to start dropping in temp. You will need to heat the floor for some time to get an even temp. The outside edges will be colder than the middle. You will probably have to go above 60 in order to account for the drop in temp.

If I had to do it again, I would do it in the warmer weather.

 

[Winmon]

So your temps (outdoor) at the time did not get below 40 degrees at night?

 

[bmwpower]

My outside temp, at times, was low 30's. It was one of the coldest Decembers to date (of course, I have the best luck).

I kept the inside at around 70-75 to heat up the garage a couple days prior to each coat. I then killed the heat, epoxied the floor and waited. I waited until a majority of the fumes went away, then I kicked on the heat again. During the waiting phase, I had a window exhaust fan help pump out the nasty fumes. Over the exterior of the window where the fan was installed I placed several beach towels to help keep the heat in while the fans were off. This was fun since I had to do some acrobatic moves through a window to reach the thermostat to turn on the heat.

To help keep the heat in I even placed 2" thick insulation around the perimeter on the the 3 course block foundation. This was mainly to keep the wall temp up as I epoxied the wall as well, but it helped keep the perimeter of the floor a couple degree warmer.

All in all it was a PITA, but it can be done if you have a way to keep it warm in there.

Oh BTW, the gas bill that month was like $450+ ...
Wife freaked.

For more, you can read here:
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1990

 

[Winmon]

Thanks alot for the info. Actually I did see that thread about when you did yours. That thread is about the only thing that is giving me hope about whether or not it can be done at all right now. I left the heater on most of the day yesterday (at about 75*) and let it run all night last night. Then this morning at about 8am I turned it off. 4 hours later, the coldest spot on the floor was about 55*, with the warmest being 64*. At this point I figured it will just keep dropping in temp and I have no hope of epoxying. Then about an hour later my Dad came over and I was in the garage with him and showed him my IR thermometer. I then noticed the floor temp went UP about 5* everywhere! Now I am thinking I have hope again. I will check it again at 8pm (this is about the time it would be after epoxying and letting it "air" out 8 hours) and see where it is at.

I really should just give up for now and wait till spring. Rustoleum says I should lightly re-scuff it again if I do it in the spring and I REALLY do not want to have to hand sand (palm sander) it AGAIN in a few months. I am just wondering if re-scuffing would really be necessary if I wait a few months? If I do wait, I am planning on laying down tarps to protect the floor in case of oil/grease spills till I am ready to epoxy.

Oh BTW, the gas bill that month was like $450+ ...
Wife freaked.

I can believe your bill being that high. Just in the last few days (Thursday I had it up to 85* in there), our 250 gal. propane tank used about 10% of the tank from having the heat on in the garage!!

 

[bmwpower]

When I say $450, the bill was for my house AND the garage.

Forgot to mention, I did have a few areas (near man door and garage doors) that went below the minimum temperature near the end of the coat, but they came out fine.

I think they were under temp like 3-5 degrees compared to the 40 degree minimum.

 

[Winmon]

I think they were under temp like 3-5 degrees compared to the 40 degree minimum

Wow, the Sherwin William's stuff has a 40 degree minimum?

Well, I just my did final check at 8 pm and my temps remained just about where they were at the last time I "officially" checked at 1pm (still can't figure out why I had a +5 degree spike at 2pm. Guess the heat settled off my 14' ceiling?). The coldest spot was 55 degrees (by the garage doors and back NW corner) and the warmest was 67 degrees. Most spots though were about 61-62 degrees. I checked 25 locations. I did not put the vent fan in the window (along with your towel trick), so I do not know what difference that would have made. Guess I should have tried that.

What to do, What to do..................

 

[bmwpower]

Oops. I just checked...Make that 50 degress minimum. My memory is a little fuzzy from the fumes...

I say go for it. The longer you wait, the colder it may become. Unless there is a rise in temp coming soon, I would go for it now, barring your weather. I know, for example, last weekend was like 70 degress over here, now it's 20+ degress colder...

 

[vinculum]

I've been tracking my floor temps with an infrared thermometer. It tends to be about 10 degrees warmer than the outside air temp with the doors open. Sun shining on it helps. The mass of it helps keep the temp pretty stable. Harbor Freight has a cheap infrared pocket thermometer for under $10. Works well for this sort of thing. Solvent based coatings tend to have lower install temps than water based coatings for obvious reasons. I'm getting ready to do some sealing myself...

Good luck!

 

[Wardrum]

I coated my floor with UCoatIt which also has a recommended 60 degree minimum. They told me that if it was applied at a temp slightly below 60, it would just take longer to dry. It will flash dry on top but will not totally dry for several days longer than normal. I put my last coat down at 51 degrees. I stayed off it for 4 weeks to make sure it was dry. It turned out fine.

 

[bmwpower]

I coated my floor with UCoatIt which also has a recommended 60 degree minimum. They told me that if it was applied at a temp slightly below 60, it would just take longer to dry. It will flash dry on top but will not totally dry for several days longer than normal. I put my last coat down at 51 degrees. I stayed off it for 4 weeks to make sure it was dry. It turned out fine.

I will agree with you here. Mine DID take longer to cure. Almost 2 weeks I believe. And I had the heat going after the coating was down. I guess the initial cold temp affects the reaction.