Epoxy Clears vs Polyurethanes top coats

[cj6]

I am so lost about Top Coats. It seems that their is so many various names used on here on GJ for the final/protective coats.
Not sure if most are like me and just call it what ever they want. Clear, clear epoxy, poly, polyurethane etc..... confusion

Is a particular one used for Stain? Epoxy? Or both?

Please someone help me make sense of this.

I like the deep look "almost looks like water"
Not sure if that is multiple coats of the polyurethane.

All I know is, if you do not do some type of final clear coat the look is completely different without it. Per pictures posted here on GJ

 

[tbaz]

Epoxy and poly are different beasts but do the same jobs, google is your friend here. Long story short a top coat or clear is the protection layer over a coating of some sort , it will give you the look of wetness and smooth finish. I just did mine with epoxy , I put a thick layer of clear 100% epoxy over another layer of epoxy and it dramatically changed the finish, I am now however sourcing a poly to go on top because I am scared the epoxy will yellow .

 

[argulator]

If you want that deep look, you need a deep (thick) layer of clear. Probably with a thick layer of clear epoxy, topped with polyurethane. You could do multiple coats of polyurethane, but it is expensive and goes on thin compared to epoxy. You want to top with poly for its toughness/durability and yellowing protection for the epoxy as tbaz noted.

 

[benwah]

It's early, please bare with me.

People say whatever they say, it can be confusing, especially with coatings. You will hear one guy go "Yeah I put a clear on there, but it yellowed so this stuff is ****!" Guy probably doesn't know that he used an epoxy instead of a urethane, dig?

Your epoxies absorb into and bond with your concrete floor. They essentially become part of the floor once cured. You use them to build mil thickness for protection, impact resistance, abrasion resistance, chemical resistance etc. Epoxies chalk and yellow with UV (sunlight) exposure. Epoxy also comes clear and pigmented.

This is where polyurethanes come in. You can apply urethane over the epoxy to give it UV resistance, chemical resistance, abrasion resistance, stain resistance and really extend the life of your floor. Polyurethanes come clear and pigmented. It just depends on they type of floor you're doing and what you want your end result to be. There are a ton of options out there, it's just a matter of preference. Here are some common systems people use from the floor up:

100% solids epoxy

Epoxy primer > 100% solids epoxy

Epoxy Primer > 100% solids epoxy > Flake > clear 100% solids epoxy

Epoxy Primer > 100% solids epoxy > Flake > clear Polyurethane

Epoxy Primer > 100% solids epoxy > Flake > 100% solids epoxy > Flake > clear Polyurethane

Epoxy primer > 100% solids epoxy > Polyurethane

Epoxy primer > 100% solids epoxy > Pigmented Polyurethane > clear Polyurethane

Those are just a few examples.

If your floor never sees a lick of sunlight and you never introduce any chemicals to it you would probably be fine with just a good epoxy.

If your floor sees any sunlight and you use any type of solvents for cleaning or if you introduce your floor to oil, transmission fluid, hydraulic fluid, brake fluid etc etc I would highly suggest a polyurethane finish. It will help to protect anything underneath it. If your polyurethane finish gets compromised by a harsh chemical spill you didn't clean up for a week or whatever, usually you can abrade the affected area and re-apply. Keep in mind each situation is different.

 

[windward]

So, does putting a urethane coating on top of clear epoxy help stop yellowing? Just the other day in another thread I got the impression that it would not help.

Thanks
Matt

 

[benwah]

If you're talking about a clear urethane yes it will help, but it will not completely prevent it.

It will take a long time to notice any color changes, they don't just happen overnight. Usually it takes years of exposure, depending on the situation, for one to notice anything.

 

[Garage Flooring]

I am so lost about Top Coats. It seems that their is so many various names used on here on GJ for the final/protective coats.
Not sure if most are like me and just call it what ever they want. Clear, clear epoxy, poly, polyurethane etc..... confusion

Is a particular one used for Stain? Epoxy? Or both?

Please someone help me make sense of this.

I like the deep look "almost looks like water"
Not sure if that is multiple coats of the polyurethane.

All I know is, if you do not do some type of final clear coat the look is completely different without it. Per pictures posted here on GJ

You are 100% correct. It is confusing!!! I would even go as far as to say it is very confusing.

There are a lot of things you need to look at: How thick you want it and how many coats you are willing to do (and the system will allow without getting cloudy) How much UV light you are going to expose the system to and what chemicals the system will be exposed to.

For example... the average garage, for a quick and inexpensive random broadcast for the average Joe I would do a basic DIY system with epoxy base and top coats... WHY? Because it gives them a much thicker system thickness at the same price.

NOW.... A Southern California, south exposure full broadcast system where they guy leaves his garage door open all day... I am going to go with a high end aliphatic urethane.

Take it a step further... The garage above but the guy has an area of about 15" that extends beyond the garage door and it 'must match'... I am going to suggest 100% solids base coat, full broadcast and at least one layer of polyurea for a top coat and perhaps two. In some cases I would even get a very light tint in the top coat.

The bottom line is this. You should not have to answer that question. Companies like Legacy industrial and others who do this day in and day out have both the product and the knowledge to get you the right fit. Make a list of everything you need this floor to do, and then give someone who specializes in epoxy coatings a call.

 

[Shea]

Yep, it can be confusing. This is good article that should help simplify things.

Polyurethane vs Epoxy Coatings for your Garage Floor

 

[benwah]

Wow Shea, you have an article for everything, great read!

 

[Shea]

Thanks Benwah. We don't have everything but we are working on it. There is so much misinformation and sometimes lack of info for garage flooring that we decided it was time to eliminate a lot of the confusion and help people out.

 

[benwah]

That's awesome, love the site. If people would read a few articles on it, it would surely shore up a lot of questions.

Just to add to the ever changing industry, the company I work for has just formulated a 100% solids aliphatic polyurethane for direct to concrete application. I don't know how much we will see in AZ with a 10 minute pot life @ 75 degrees. I want to get some for the winter though and test it out.

 

[cj6]

Thank you guys, you pulled through again.

Even with the advent of wwweb you still get a lot of "he said she said" sites and you still do not know who to believe.

Thanks again for the comments back.

 

[chiplee]

So would something like this make a good finish clear coat? http://www.ipaint.us/plsuglmocucl.html?gclid=CIrI6fKVo8ACFaY-MgodVxQARA

And while we're at it, would you abrade the epoxy before applying the Polyurethane? I plan to apply Rustoleum pro, wait 24 hours, apply a second coat with chips, wait 12 hours, apply clear epoxy, wait 12 hours and apply this product I linked to with a nonskid additive. Thoughts?

 

[cj6]

I really think this thread may help a lot of people understand a little more about top coats.

I know it is only the tip of the iceberg about epoxy's but at least we have some clarity from the experts about the final top coats.

Very helpful

 

[shaun oriold1]

Epoxy Primer > 100% solids epoxy > Flake > clear Polyurethane.

I'm going to say this should be avoided if possibly. Urethane is really thin and if you put it over flake it won't provide the protection a proper (thicker) top coat would.

In my business I use a polyaspartic top coat since I don't want to deal with a epoxy top coat yellowing. Urethane as an optional second top coat.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

A few pounds per 100 sq ft is about the limit for one coat of urethane.
More than that and (2) coats are really required for an even and protective finish.

We recommend (2) coats of Poly-A as well when full broadcasting.

 

[benwah]

I would use 2 coats of polyurethane for a full broadcast system as well. Random light broadcast, it's not really necessary, but provides more protection of course.