How to Remove old Paint/Stain for Epoxy?

[sixty4]

Ok Heres what I am up against. The house I am at now has two coats of paint/stain down now. It is starting to peel in alot of areas. I went down to Homey the Clowns and picked up a product called kwik strip for cement wood and metal (it *****). I also picked up there baers Cleaner and Etching products (I plan on doing there epoxy). I know not the best but I may sell soon (not sure). The problem is it is a real slow go of it! Is there a product that will lift the two layers of paint and stain easier, so I can get down to the cement?

I could have someone come in and cut the floor but due to possible sale I would rather cheap out on this. I just want to make it look clean.

Suggestions on how to get this old stuff up......Please!!

 

[mhoffm911]

If you are going with epoxy, you are probably going to have to grind the surface down.

I would probably look at some other type of floor paint (not epoxy) to go over it if you are simply looking for a fast cover up.

Be sure to search the forums for info on other products that you might want to consider instead of the Behr stuff.

 

[sixty4]

Well, I have not purchased the epoxy for this house yet. But what should I do about the worn out spots and lifting areas? Should I just scrape what I can and call it a day? Suggestions for a heavy bodied high hiding paint (if such a thing)?

 

[SC-Eric]

You need a Methylene Chloride based stripper to get the floor stripped... cheap. We make one... but... there are tons of them available for low cost. The shipping on ours would probably be as much as you would pay for a product locally. When someone has a tough coating (or many layers) to strip, MC based stripper is applied and plastic is put over it to keep the vapors in. It is allowed to sit overnight and then scraped up the next day. Pressure washing also works well if you have a place to collect the gunk.

In fact, if it is just cheap acrylic paint... you can probably blast it off with a good pressure washer with a turbo nozzle. A good pressure washer with a turbo nozzle could also be enough prep for a cheap epoxy coating where you don't need high performance.

 

[sixty4]

Thanks! The original floor paint is really old. About 16 years ago I covered the ugly green color with Benjamin Moores garage paint. I have worked a same area all afternoon and have got no where! I will give this a shot.......

 

[Hammerdown]

My 2 cents- Mop down the paint stripper and then cover it with plastic sheeting. Allow it to set for about 8 hours or overnight, then scrape it away. By covering the chemical it will not evaporate as quickly and keep attacking the coating. This should save money on the chemical stripper.

Rent an EDCO surface grinder with diamond tip grinding stones. Grind away the coating to the raw concrete. Clean the stones often to maintain a sharp grinding surface.

Use a media (sand) blaster to remove the coating. Keep moving to avoid creating "ruts".

There are a multitude of removal procedures, find the one which is suitable to your needs- i.e. cost, chemical smell, heavy machinery, etc.