Epoxy garage floor is complete - results inside

[thomapa1]

Recap -
Had a crappy painted floor from the previous owner - probably @15 years old.
I used a Bosch hand grinder and edger to prep the floor
Used Legacy HD-105 to fill spalls
Used Armorclad primer - 2 gallons
Used Armorclad 100% solids epoxy and topcoat

Lessons Learned =
- Hand grinder (the Bosch unit is excellent), while a cheap alternative, requires a good vacuum system (I used a dust deputy) and respirator. End result is fine for residential garage floors, but certainly not for showroom floors. Had numerous swirl marks, etc. there were mostly covered or hidden by the epoxy / flakes. Again, the final product looks great for a residential garage. I got lucky perhaps where the concrete was soft, allowing me the fly thru the hand grind - this may have also contributed to aggressive removal of areas as well.
- My biggest problem was knowing how much primer / epoxy to use per section without running out in the end. Unfortunately I was light on the highest traffic areas whereas other areas where it was thick looked great. If I did it again...I would doubleup on primer or get an extra gallon of Epoxy (whichever was cheaper)
- Have your wife spread the flakes. Now she cannot give me any $hit if they do not look even or appropriate. This was my best move.

Final question = Was it worth it to hand grind or should I have spent the money to hire someone?
It was certainly worth my effort to hand grind. Best quote I got was $1k for someone to come out and do the grind...In the end, I spent about $200 on my grind (taking into account what I will recoup from the tools purchased if/when I sell them).

Total cost was way over what I wanted to spend, but I went for quality and 'do it once' vs going cheap with questionable longevity. Omit the grinding costs...
While the kit was $460 (plus shipping), there were additional hidden costs
1) Primer (pretty much a necessity if grinding, eliminates outgassing as well) +$160
{If you go for a nicer thick coat - add another primer kit (+$160) or another 300 sq ft of Epoxy (+$180)}
2) Patch repair / spall repair +$60, go with the good stuff, do not get Home Depot stuff
3) Extra prep tools, buckets, brushes, doodads +$50
or an extra $270-$450
Bringing total Epoxy cost to $730 - $910 (DIY)


Pictures of the final product

And a video of the floor after each stage <you can see the end result imperfections better here>

http://vimeo.com/38446505

 

[john2409]

That looks great. Keep us posted how it holds up.

 

[racerbob4]

The floor looks fabulous and I like what you did with the wainscoting. I'm partial to grey so I like your wall color choices. This will make a faboulous garage.

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

Excellent floor!

 

[regguy1]

Very Nice, neat and clean space

 

[Edger]

Love your write ups, honest, informative, helpful, good job.

 

[dcs Inc]

Job well done and good write up. gene

 

[Garage-Tech]

I get questions all the time like:
"Why do you charge so much to do floors" or "Your prices are really expensive, that only costs $100 at Home Depot"

Your write up explains the costs installers have. If I could get my epoxy for $20 a gallon I'd get a lot more jobs, but material costs are high. Your floor turned out really nice by the way. Also, every floor has some slight imperfections if you want to look hard enough.

 

[dcs Inc]

I've never done a perfect application. We are our own worse critics when it comes to final observations. I don't push my products to DIY'rs because it isn't as easy peasy as some suggest. We require training before purchase and this really does cut down on failure rates. A phone call or a piece of paper explaining the procedure and then no one to call in the middle of it the "oh shitz" just doesn't cut it with me.

I know you guys are looking for the shortest, cheapest route to take but look at it this way, this stuff isn't cheap..... well the good stuff isn't. Why take a chance at failure when you're throwing it out on a slab? By the way, you wouldn't believe the raw material costs of a good epoxy. They have you by the proverbials.

I really appreciate seeing a guy that does his homework and applies it correctly. I apply my epoxies a little thicker than whats suggested on here but I am applying over commercial/industrial applications. These guys have meters that measure the mil thickness and ya gotta do it correctly. The longevity really depends on the thickness applied. Enough of this, good job! gene

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