Epoxy Advice

[adamk23]

Hey guys - tried redoing my garage floor last weekend, and having some issues with the texture consistency. I'm confident it has to do with the floor prep, although hoping you guys might have some ideas to resolve it, outside of redoing it.

Long story short - I rented a floor sander and spent about 8hrs getting the old epoxy up. I wanted to get it off 100% however also didnt want to spend another full day to do it, and assumed the epoxy would even the finish out. Unfortunately - it didnt, nor did applying a sealant help reduce the glossy difference.

Any thoughts/ideas on how to improve finish?

Thanks,
Adam

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

Here is my take.
#1. Coatings take the profile of the floor they are poured onto. Issues will telegraph.
#2. A high-build coating like our SD-Epoxy (100% Solids) will help to hide any surface issues but not elevation issues.
#3. Another texture-hider is a Full-Flake Kit like our Nohr-S® Polyurea Full-Flake, see video:

If it bothers you that much, you will need to grind it off and use another product, a clear-coat will likely exacerbate it.

Good luck.

 

[adamk23]

Thanks for the reply and recommendations. I wonder if I was better off just removing the flaking areas, sanding the old epoxy, and then reapplying on top, versus trying to remove it all? It seemed like the old epoxy was scratch resistant and doubt an orbital sander would have put a dent in it, hence why I went the grinding route. Lesson learned, will know for future applications!

 

[bluedog225]

Curious if these floor epoxies have blush issues. If so, scrub it clean before doing anything.

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

Curious if these floor epoxies have blush issues. If so, scrub it clean before doing anything.

Any two-part epoxy can blush. This a very rare event and if/when happens is typically a very hot day with 100% solids epoxy.
Water & detergent will remove and the one time it happened to me (Fire Engine Red floor, 98 deg & high humidity) we wiped it down good and screen-sanded before applying the next coat. Never have seen it again.

 

[dcg9381]

Some of is texture, some of it appears to be bleed through from different surface types.
I agree with others, more coats, higher solids.

One trick that I like to use is the introduction of texture into paints. For polyurea, I use an anti-slip additive which adds texture. It's easier to hide stuff that way... Thats why we have **** drywall jobs in the south and "popcorn" ceilings.

 

[benwah]

Your first coat should have been a primer. After that, you would apply your body coat and broadcast flake into that. It looks to me from the pictures that the coat you applied is very thin. I always recommend using 100% solids epoxy and applying at 10 to 12 Mils WFT and broadcast flake to rejection.

Personally, I would consider the coat that you put down to be a prime coat.