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Can't decide on Ucoatit color Lt. Grey vs. Black.

Cleophus

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Sep 19, 2007
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I really like the look of the black, but I am concerned about lack of light for working under cars, finding dropped bolts, o-rings, nuts, etc. Has anyone had experience with working on a black floor?
 
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MXtras

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No experience but I can not imagine it would look good for long.

I vote for light gray for the reasons you mentioned.

Welcome! I see this is your first post!

Scott
 

sjsfire

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Feb 21, 2006
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I really like the look of the black, but I am concerned about lack of light for working under cars, finding dropped bolts, o-rings, nuts, etc. Has anyone had experience with working on a black floor?


I think you stated the best reasons not to have a black floor. And it will never look clean. Gray will hide the dust.
 

timgr

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Dec 19, 2006
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Medford, MA USA
Chassis black is used for chassis for just that reason - so the ugly underbody details can't be seen. I'd think you want a light colored floor, to diffusely refect as much light from the ceiling as possible.
 

PoorOwner

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Light grey is nice that is same color I have, it like white when you don't have a real white to compare to, lots of light and yes easy to find the parts.

The only part is the cuts and nicks would get dirt stuck in them on a white, where as black would show all kinds of imperfections that has to do with gloss I think it will look patchy after a while.
 
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Cleophus

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Sep 19, 2007
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Thanks for the replies.

I suppose I'll let you know a bit about the garage. It's about 1000sqft 4 car. It's a 3 bay with one tandem being the 4th. It's all finished white walls and cieling and has 40 48'' flourescent lights.

I thought about going with a white floor for that clean-room-spaceship in Close encounters of the third-king brightness, but didn't like the cost of the extra material.

My only concern about the lt. grey AF finish with canyon fleks is that it is a little... boring I guess.
 

Hammerdown

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Like a black car a black floor will show more dirt than a gray one. If you like cleaning, black would be the way to go. I have installed this system in black with the flake option and it looked great! One of the best looking floors I have seen, but it does show more dirt than the gray floors. If you want to add a little life to the floor, consider a stripe or alternate colored bay. Doing two different colors will liven up the floor and provide some interesting contrast.
 

PoorOwner

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another suggestion do a checkered black and lt grey then you have both!

Alot of work though.
 
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boiler7904

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Apr 4, 2006
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I don't have black but I do have dark red. It's a nightmare trying to find dropped parts on the ground. My floor is never clean - even the day after it gets mopped there is dirt and dust all over the place. The other thing that bugs me is that I have a clear coat on top of the color. All scratches in the clear show up white. If I was doing it again, I would definitely go with a lighter color.
 
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Cleophus

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Sep 19, 2007
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Lots of great info. Thanks.

I think I am going to stick with the lt. grey and canyon fleks as I plan to work on my 67 landcruiser in there quite a bit and a black floor just isn't compatible. I thought about the checker, but WAY too much work and hassle for me.

The stripe idea is interesting, but I don't really have anything to stripe. No lift... yet. :)
 

sjsfire

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illinois
Heres a picture of mine the day after I finished. It's a solvent based colored sealer called "Gull Gray" The lighter color difference is due to the sunlight coming in.floor1.jpg
 

Hammerdown

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The stripe idea is interesting, but I don't really have anything to stripe. No lift... yet. :)[/QUOTE]

You could always do a border around the perimeter of the garage, like a walkway. Leave it a solid color without the flakes to provide a good contrast. Just a suggestion to help you jazz it up and be less "boring":shocking:
 

Wardrum

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Jan 31, 2006
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Wisconsin
I thought about going with a white floor for that clean-room-spaceship in Close encounters of the third-king brightness, but didn't like the cost of the extra material.

You are right about the extra materials needed. I have a U-Coat-It white floor. The part under the four post hoist (installed after these pics were taken) is white with no flecks and the part outside the hoist area has U-Coat-It's red, black and gray flecks. In addition to the base coat, I have 2 coats of antique white and 1 coat of bright white over them so a total of 4 coats before the clear. U-Coat-It says the antique white covers the gray of the concrete better than the bright white and they are correct but, even after the base coat and 2 coats of antique white, there were still a few areas that looked like a very light gray. After the bright white was applied, the floor is now "WHITE":shocking::shocking:

It is easy to find small parts in the area without the flecks but, if they end up in the area with the flecks, it is still hard to find them. The white sure does reflect the light though. I work under my cars frequently and I have yet to need a drop light. These pics were taken with only 2 of my five 400 watt metal hallide lights on. When they are all on and the hoist is up, it is like daylight under the car. The white does show the dirt more than gray would though.

 

JohnZ

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Dec 28, 2005
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Washington, Michigan
Mine is light gray (they called it "taupe" ;) ), and its light color and reflectivity really improves lighting effectiveness.

707_3.JPG


:beer:
 
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