danieldd
Well-known member
Specs: 24x24 power troweled bare concrete floor. Approximately 4 years old and has some rather long, but minor surface cracks. I have a MaxJax lift installed. This is my shop out back of the house and not the attached garage where we keep our daily vehicles. I always have some sort of projecte vehicle in my shop that I'm working on.
Every stinking time I either pull an engine or rebuild an engine, I have to contend with oil and coolant spillage and then its a race to get it cleaned up as my floor seems to act like a sponge if any liquids are left there for a period of time.
Presently I have a large metal drip pan under the engine stand - you would think that would be enough insurance to keep the surrounding floor clean, but as I was knocking some pistons out of an engine earlier this week, one of them slipped thru my hands and unfortunately had oil inside of the piston and when it hit the metal pan, it literally sprayed oil within a 10 foot radius! I found myself in a rush to quickly grab a can of BrakeCleen and the mop and get that **** up before it had time to seep into and discolor the floor. This time I was lucky, other times I have been less fortunate and been rewarded with a discolored floor.
I'm living with a nightmare floor! I've got to cover it with something. Herein lies my dilemma. What to cover the floor with?
I will list my options in no particular order with my thoughts on each...
1.) Racedeck - Nice stuff. I love it. Don't like the price and worried about buckling(sp) of the floor tiles when the sun hits it in the afternoons. Furthermore, I have already installed the black plastic edging on the lower portion of the walls where it meets the floor, so there would be an issue making the transition from the tiles to the wall. Hard to justify the cost. Easy to install though.
2.) Ceramic tile - Simply, it would take me forever to do this. I've done tile before in our bathroom and it took me all day to do a 5x5 foot floor. Besides, after buying all the materials and spending time doing it, I figure it will cost me around $1K, plug lugging all that heavy stuff back to my shop will be a pain.
3.) VCT tile - Cheaper alternative although it would take a while to install, but maybe doeable as I could do sections at my leisure. Concern is keeping a top coat of wax/sealer on it and how often I would have to do this and then concerned about tiles moving/sliding when tires hit it when lowering the lift.
4.) Epoxy/Rust Bullet or some other magic potion - Painful to install. Since I have a power troweled floor, I would be looking at roughing up the floor and then going thru the pain of application, plus I've got stuff in my garage that I would have to move and I can't do it all at once. I would only be able to do 1/2at a time, so there is that constraint to consider.
5.) Acid Etching - Looks cool, but I'm sure that is going to be a lot of work as well. Don't know a whole lot about it. I like the effect, but its probably a real problem trying to locate that dropped nut that just slipped thru my fingers.
6.) Roll out floor mats - Eh, maybe. Sure would be quick enough, but by the time I buy enough to do the whole floor, I'm looking at least $1K.
So now, you get the idea. While I can afford any of these alternatives (as long as I do the work) I'm cheap and I don't want to bust my *** working on my floor.
Is it time for me to buy a case of BrakeCleen and a better mop?
Every stinking time I either pull an engine or rebuild an engine, I have to contend with oil and coolant spillage and then its a race to get it cleaned up as my floor seems to act like a sponge if any liquids are left there for a period of time.
Presently I have a large metal drip pan under the engine stand - you would think that would be enough insurance to keep the surrounding floor clean, but as I was knocking some pistons out of an engine earlier this week, one of them slipped thru my hands and unfortunately had oil inside of the piston and when it hit the metal pan, it literally sprayed oil within a 10 foot radius! I found myself in a rush to quickly grab a can of BrakeCleen and the mop and get that **** up before it had time to seep into and discolor the floor. This time I was lucky, other times I have been less fortunate and been rewarded with a discolored floor.
I'm living with a nightmare floor! I've got to cover it with something. Herein lies my dilemma. What to cover the floor with?
I will list my options in no particular order with my thoughts on each...
1.) Racedeck - Nice stuff. I love it. Don't like the price and worried about buckling(sp) of the floor tiles when the sun hits it in the afternoons. Furthermore, I have already installed the black plastic edging on the lower portion of the walls where it meets the floor, so there would be an issue making the transition from the tiles to the wall. Hard to justify the cost. Easy to install though.
2.) Ceramic tile - Simply, it would take me forever to do this. I've done tile before in our bathroom and it took me all day to do a 5x5 foot floor. Besides, after buying all the materials and spending time doing it, I figure it will cost me around $1K, plug lugging all that heavy stuff back to my shop will be a pain.
3.) VCT tile - Cheaper alternative although it would take a while to install, but maybe doeable as I could do sections at my leisure. Concern is keeping a top coat of wax/sealer on it and how often I would have to do this and then concerned about tiles moving/sliding when tires hit it when lowering the lift.
4.) Epoxy/Rust Bullet or some other magic potion - Painful to install. Since I have a power troweled floor, I would be looking at roughing up the floor and then going thru the pain of application, plus I've got stuff in my garage that I would have to move and I can't do it all at once. I would only be able to do 1/2at a time, so there is that constraint to consider.
5.) Acid Etching - Looks cool, but I'm sure that is going to be a lot of work as well. Don't know a whole lot about it. I like the effect, but its probably a real problem trying to locate that dropped nut that just slipped thru my fingers.
6.) Roll out floor mats - Eh, maybe. Sure would be quick enough, but by the time I buy enough to do the whole floor, I'm looking at least $1K.
So now, you get the idea. While I can afford any of these alternatives (as long as I do the work) I'm cheap and I don't want to bust my *** working on my floor.
Is it time for me to buy a case of BrakeCleen and a better mop?
