Armorpoxy SPGX Prep

[K C]

I posted my progress in the gallery, but thought I might as well post here regarding the floor prep. This is a link to my recent gallery post regarding the floor: http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showpost.php?p=5414767&postcount=24

Basically, I am unsure if I should grind the entire floor now that some spots are a lighter shade from grinding out oil stains. I dig the blemished look, but these ground down stains are too obvious. Perhaps there is a way to blend in those spots without having to grind the entire floor?

 

[Shea]

Grinding will lighten up the floor color and blend nicely with the spots creating a fairly consistent look. Acid etching however is another alternative that will lighten the floor color as well, but have an inconsistent look as the process cannot be controlled like grinding. It won't create an aged and blemished look, but many times the floor color will vary in shades and tones. Acid etching won't hinder the bond as long as you neutralize and rinse well.

 

[K C]

Thanks for your input. Do you think the existing ground spots would stand out after etching? It would be great if I didn't have to grind because I already have the acid. Just don't want it to look like spots that were obviously repaired.

 

[Shea]

Acid etching is going to lighten the concrete overall, so the spots will not stand out as much. You won't know for sure however whether they will blend in with the rest of the floor or not until you do it.

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

A blemished floor that will be cleared is a good candidate for acid stain. Chaos is your friend when staining, makes for a more interesting look.


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[K C]

If I don't grind the entire floor, I will probably feather the edges of the most noticeable ground spots just in case.

Thought about doing an acid stain- is this something you would do after etching/grinding? Not sure if I want chaos since it may be hard to find dropped nuts and bolts!

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

It is muriatic acid and therefore you are prepping as you add color and interest.


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[K C]

Etching is not the same as acid staining, correct? Perhaps I am mistaken?

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

Acid stain is Muriatic Acid with mineral based colorants added. It can be used to etch your floor and impart color in one step. Our customers do this all the time.

In some cases a grind is a necessity due to a particularly hard floor.


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[K C]

Thanks for your helpful inputs. It looks like I'm going to just etch the floor at this point. I will probably feather the edges of the really obvious spots and wash the floor. Not sure if I will use a pressure washer, though.

 

[Armorpoxy]

Etching lightens a bit, grinding will often even out color somewhat. Once it's completed and the stuff is moved in it should look good.

 

[K C]

One more thing- should I wash the floor with a floor degreaser of some sort and rinse it before applying the acid or is that what the acid is for?

 

[benwah]

Yes you should clean the floor before etching. Acid etching ≠ degreasing

 

[K C]

Washed half the floor with a floor scrubber and some simple green today. The spots that were ground down showed through so I will need to spray them tomorrow to check for beading.

It took about three hours of scrubbing and a lot of rinsing and squeegeeing to do about a 16 x 20 section. The floor is clean and the spots don't look too bad so we will see how they look when the floor is mostly dry in the morning. May need to use an emulsifier for the spots depending on how much beading they get from the water test.

My neighbor lent me his 170k btu kerosine/diesel torpedo heater to speed up the drying and to keep the garage warm while I coat the floors. Since it's going to get below freezing some nights, I will probably wait at least 4 days before doing the coat. Can't wait to get the floor done and move everything back in. I've had most of the floor covered with old carpets that I got for free on Craigslist and some large cardboard. Probably won't be comfortable parking the pickup or the FJ40 without some kind of floor protection until I fix the leaks but at least spills will be easy to clean up.

 

[navin]

Anxious to see how the SPGX looks on your floor! Looks like an awesome solution for people that actually do work in their garage.

 

[K C]

Etched the floor the other day but the floor doesn't look much different. I expected it to be whiter and more dramatic looking but it's been about zero degrees at night so it may be taking longer than usual to dry. I used a 170k btu torpedo heater to heat the space to 60-70 degrees after the floor was etched. I let it run for about eight hours with a little bit of ventilation.

We will see how it looks as the week progresses.

 

[K C]

Floor is dry for sure and I could probably coat it now, but I can't find myself doing it with the stains that are visible. The etch did bring out the natural look of the concrete, although I diluted it too much and did not leave it on long enough to whiten the floor.

You can tell where the floor is lighter in some areas from the etching, which is why I'm thinking about etching again. Also, those black blemishes mentioned earlier are still there, so I will have to live with it. At least the water test did not reveal any beading. Any ideas for getting the stains to blend in?

 

[Slowgsr]

I don't know about etching since I did grinding but it seems the most important things for prep are

- profiling the concrete so the coating adheres. Don't want a slick smooth finish, need the pores open.
- water test, make sure water absorbs quickly. - dirty or greasy spots, stains etc won't ubsorb.
- the surface is sound, and pieces aren't going to chip/break away.

Then using a primer or multiple topcoats depending on coating will make a consistent finish on the surface

 

[K C]

I did all the above and the floor is ready for coating, but I am not happy with the look of the oil stains.

The black blemishes are super smooth, though and I cannot figure out how to get to the pores other than doing a heavier etching or grinding with a diamond wheel.

 

[benwah]

Sprinkle some water on the spots and see if it beads. If the water beads, more cleaning/de-greasing needs to be done. If the water absorbs after a while you should be okay.

 

[K C]

I had to move everything in before the snow storm and it was frustrating knowing the floor was not finished. I covered it with large plastic sheeting, but still had to wash the entire floor again!

Every day, I think I'm ready to coat and find myself fixing something such as fuel leaks from the torpedo heater I've been using to keep the garage warm. Today, the idea to use a heat gun for the oil stains came to mind and that worked like a charm until I overdid it with the heat on the worst stain, causing the concrete to explode! Now I need to patch up the floor but at least the stain spots are taken care of!

Any suggestions on what I can use to patch this? Its less than 1/8 of an inch at the deepest. I read that epoxy patches are good for situations like this but unsure if the armorpoxy SPGX will adhere.

 

[K C]

I used DAP Ready-Mixed Concrete Patch to fill in the pit and it worked really well. I would have liked to apply another patch coat so that it was perfectly flush, but I did not want to wait another day. It dries to the same color as concrete and is hardly noticeable.

First coat of Armorpoxy is down! Application was fairly labor intensive as it took over 4 hours and the fumes were so strong that I had to wear a military gask mask and seal off parts of my house with plastic. Had to keep the space heated since it was in the 40's when I started and creeped into the 30's. the 175k btu torpedo heater I was using kept acting up, so I used my old 35k btu heater which kept the space at about 60 degrees. Armorpoxy recommends coating above 50 but I was told 40 degrees is possible although the space should at least have some heat if the temp is that low. It was dry to the touch in 4 hours and is curing well. The first coat is just about cured and looks great, but I am kind of disappointed the stains showed through. Just need to sand down some blots before I can apply the second and final coat.

It is glossy now, but will have a matte look after the second coat is applied because I am adding anti-skid into the mix. If somebody has any helpful advice on how to make the stains look better before I apply the second coat, that would be great. Otherwise, I'm just going to leave it alone because I need to get this done.

 

[Armorpoxy]

We don't know of a way to jot show stains through clears since clears generally show everything on the floor surface,and often magnify things a bit. The natural look of the floor most people like and the reason clears are usually used. Floor looks great so far!


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[K C]

Thanks. Thought about painting over the large stains, but that may interfere with the coating and look worse than it really is. Is there anything I can do about the large drip spots such as sanding em down?

I really like the look and am happy that the coating brought out the natural look of the concrete.

 

[Shea]

Looking good! Just knock down the drip spots by sanding them. As ArmorPoxy stated, clear generally highlights all the irregularities in a concrete floor. It's what gives the floor character and is the reason why most people like that look. Who knows, the stains just might grow on you

 

[Abeo]

I really like the character of the floor showing through the clear. Please update with pictures when you do the final coat!

 

[K C]

Not happy with the final coat of Armorpoxy. The morning after, the coating looked like it was applied unevenly, as if it needed another coat, which I was ok with. This was most likely due to mixing in the anti-skid in the second coat. However, the first can out of 3 during the 2nd coat look significantly different and I am not quite sure why. The first two pics show this difference, and its even quite possible this is from the first coat and I am just noticing this after the second coat. The third pic shows the unevenness. I've already invested at least $1200 into the project and put more than 40 hours worth of work into the floor. What can I do at this point?

 

[bedn0009]

Sir,

Did you ever get an answer to this? I'm curious....

 

[racerex]

Sir,

Did you ever get an answer to this? I'm curious....

I'm also interested in knowing because I had similar results with my SPGX application (two coats, with anti-skid added to the second coat). I'm very happy so far with the performance of the product. As for the look, I'm living with it. My floor is going to see some abuse over the next year or so during the body-off resto of my Corvette. I was really looking for a product that would protect the floor, as I see myself installing RaceDeck down the road.

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

I'm also interested in knowing because I had similar results with my SPGX application (two coats, with anti-skid added to the second coat). I'm very happy so far with the performance of the product. As for the look, I'm living with it. My floor is going to see some abuse over the next year or so during the body-off resto of my Corvette. I was really looking for a product that would protect the floor, as I see myself installing RaceDeck down the road.

Racerex:

Love the vette. I just sold my white C3 .

Need to get another one!! Is that a 76?

 

[racerex]

Racerex:

Love the vette. I just sold my white C3 .

Need to get another one!! Is that a 76?

Thanks. You had a nice car.

It's a '74. Purchased it from the original owner, who purchased it from the dealership where he worked for around 20 years. He worked in the Parts department and the car came with a ton of NOS parts that he collected over the years. I don't see myself needing over 50% of them. For example, I have two of every gauge (i.e., speedo, tach, oil, temp, clock, etc.), gears 1-4 for the M21 trans, etc. Once I finish the resto, I'll start selling off all the extra parts.

The car is pretty much fully loaded (L-82, M21 4-speed, PB, PS, AC, etc.). It only has 36k miles, but it sat for 15+ years in an unheated garage. The garage had a concrete floor, but the underside has light surface rust and all the rubber bushings are shot.....including the body mount bushings.....that's why I'm going body off.

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

Very nice!!


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[westray]

I was also wondering because my second coat looks the same. Very uneven colorness to it. It's like two cans or multiple cans had different ingredients.

 

[bedn0009]

This thread alone turns me off SPGX, and potentially armorpoxy.com in general since there has been no real response. That's actually why I revived the thread

 

[Armorpoxy]

We apologize for the late response the main person that monitors the forum had a family emergency and was out a while. Our signature requests emails to our main office for immediate response.

Spgx is a super high performance product that is made in small batches. Apparently one of our resin suppers had slight color shifts in raw materials we were not made aware of and did not show up during qc testing since the specs are fine and clears are difficult to test for color. We have addressed this problem with our supplier.

We would be happy to supply no charge a recoat with pigment to solve this issue if requested.

We have many thousands of applications with zero issues including many GJ members. The issue shown here is strictly cosmetic and not performance related. Thanks!


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[westray]

We apologize for the late response the main person that monitors the forum had a family emergency and was out a while. Our signature requests emails to our main office for immediate response.

Spgx is a super high performance product that is made in small batches. Apparently one of our resin suppers had slight color shifts in raw materials we were not made aware of and did not show up during qc testing since the specs are fine and clears are difficult to test for color. We have addressed this problem with our supplier.

We would be happy to supply no charge a recoat with pigment to solve this issue if requested.

We have many thousands of applications with zero issues including many GJ members. The issue shown here is strictly cosmetic and not performance related. Thanks!


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It's not a problem and understand things happen.

I would be up for or trying to solve the issue. What info or who do we need to call or contact to help us fix the problem? Thanks

 

[Armorpoxy]

Contact our office 9-5 EST for Customer Service and advise of this string as GJ is not circulated to our Sales Dept. Many thanks.


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[racerex]

We apologize for the late response the main person that monitors the forum had a family emergency and was out a while. Our signature requests emails to our main office for immediate response.

Spgx is a super high performance product that is made in small batches. Apparently one of our resin suppers had slight color shifts in raw materials we were not made aware of and did not show up during qc testing since the specs are fine and clears are difficult to test for color. We have addressed this problem with our supplier.

We would be happy to supply no charge a recoat with pigment to solve this issue if requested.

We have many thousands of applications with zero issues including many GJ members. The issue shown here is strictly cosmetic and not performance related. Thanks!


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I'd also be up for a re-coat, but what prep would I have to do? Other than moving my car into the garage (no fluid leaks) and my rolling tool boxes, I have yet to do any work in there beyond finishing the interior of the garage (i.e., hanging light, trim, etc). The only thing that I've spilled on the floor is a bottle of spring water.

 

[Armorpoxy]

A light buffing or light scratching up then wipe down with denatured alcohol is recommended.


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[K C]

I've been awol for a couple months. Having another problem with the coating, which lifted in a certain area and is easily scraped. Surprised to see bare concrete underneath cuz I thought this was a more permanent coating, which i guess is good or bad depending on one's perspective. I feel that I could probably end up scraping the entire floor if I wanted to. At least the rest of it seems to hold up ok so far.

It is easily scratched if something heavy or metallic is dragged across it. Pics show the lifted area and scratches. I wheeled the floor jack across some dirt grits which is my fault cuz I should have swept it clean prior to using the jack. Pics below: