I'd like this floor finish... What is it?

[BamfordsGarage]

I saw this concrete floor finish in a Florida Home Depot a week ago. It appears to be a smooth, clear finish with no tint or texture.

I want this or something very similar in my new garage. I do not like the typical polyurea pebble texture and the natural appearance of the concrete is a pleasing look to me.

My slab is 27'-6" x 28', smooth-but-not-highly-polished finish, no sealer. No vehicles yet, no oil stains, poured last October. Usage will be vehicle storage and restoration, light grinding, rolling jacks, jackstands, etc.

What might this example finish be, and is it reasonable for a DIY install?

 

[protegeV]

Pretty sure that's just polished concrete, not a coating.

You might be able to pull it off yourself but it's a TON of work and a messy process.

 

[BucksCtyMike]

Micro finish I believe

Any thing is possible for diy with the right tools, but from what I learned, it’s a fairly intensive grind and polish procedure with a troweled in top coat. More polish and finish.

Just got an estimate on this for a commercial kitchen.


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[BamfordsGarage]

Hmmm...

So maybe what I want is a smooth durable clear coating resistant/impervious to automotive fluids (as per my avatar — there will be leaks).

Is there such a thing practical for DIY?

 

[Kaizen]

Epoxy is good for leaks. Does scratch and burn though. Really depends on your budget. You look into stain? Some translucent ones still show concrete.
I opened a new Home Depot and that kind of floor finishing is super slippery until it wears in.


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[Negen]

Used stuff at work to polish the floors the coatings need to be applied every 6 months in high traffic areas and is probably the most toxic stuff available today.

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[BamfordsGarage]

Epoxy is good for leaks. Does scratch and burn though. Really depends on your budget. You look into stain?...

Thanks everyone for your replies. A friend has an eight-year-old shop with what he calls "aircraft-hanger-grade epoxy" floors that have stood up quite well.

Kaizen, sould you please elaborate on budget are you referring to different grades of epoxy or alternatives to epoxy? Also I'm unclear about your stain question — stain in and of itself would not affect durability would it?

 

[BucksCtyMike]

Epoxy starts to discolor at about 225 degrees.

Ultimately went with a similar product, but more robust to wear vs epoxy.




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[Shea]

Take a look at using a single-part polyurea. These are excellent DIY coatings that are highly chemical and abrasion resistant. They are also U.V. stable and will not amber. The article below states the benefits and also has an image of bare concrete coated in clear.

https://allgaragefloors.com/polyurea-best-garage-floor-coating-kits/

A few of the quality vendors that participate on the Garage Journal offer this product.

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

New Home Depot stores are power-troweled very very well. The floor is densified and burnished too.

Older stores are polished.

Polished concrete is not the greatest solution for a garage. They are not resistant to even OIL!!! Pickle juice and cool-aid will stain them as well. Road salt will eat up the finish. High performance coatings are the ticket for a garage.


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[Shea]

I forgot to mention, this article explains how concrete is polished and what to expect when using it in a garage environment.

https://allgaragefloors.com/polished-concrete-garage-floor/

 

[Kaizen]

Thanks everyone for your replies. A friend has an eight-year-old shop with what he calls "aircraft-hanger-grade epoxy" floors that have stood up quite well.

Kaizen, sould you please elaborate on budget are you referring to different grades of epoxy or alternatives to epoxy? Also I'm unclear about your stain question — stain in and of itself would not affect durability would it?

recommend starting to read some posts here and do some googleing. Just because it says epoxy doesnt mean ****. So you are looking at different grades of quality for the product itself. Keep in mind without proper prep no product is good.
Bottom of the line budget imo is the kits sold at stores. When i looked at them and the sq ft they cover it was a no brainer to jump up to the next level. For me that was epoxy-coat. For me to do all the work i was about 1500 for 1050 sq ft.
So if you can't do this yourself or don't want to spend that money that directs where you should be looking. My epoxy is great for most of my garage but in my auto/welding part i have scratches and burns. If you just want a coating like a sealer you can do that as well. But don't think its going to be cheap. I was looking at ghostshield (i think) and the total cost was more then i wanted for just a clear coating that protects.
So lets start with how much do you want to spend? Can you do it yourself? sq ft you have is 784 so look at 8 to 900 sq ft coverage for a little thicker coverage.
Also strongly recommend similar questions and responses from Shea, legacy, and any other pros. They do this day in and day out. I'm just a one off hack that managed to do ok.

 

[MDM]

Would HD40 be a good recommendation for this look?

 

[Cobradriver]

Take a look at using a single-part polyurea. These are excellent DIY coatings that are highly chemical and abrasion resistant. They are also U.V. stable and will not amber. The article below states the benefits and also has an image of bare concrete coated in clear.

https://allgaragefloors.com/polyurea-best-garage-floor-coating-kits/

A few of the quality vendors that participate on the Garage Journal offer this product.

Shea,

Dumb question....Next month I'm having someone remove the tile from my house. They are going to make the floor good enough/smooth enough to live with until I pick a covering. If I went with just a clear polyurea for the industrial look, how would you address minor cracks and the expansion joints?

I'm not adverse to leaving the expansion joints alone for more character....or if you fill them will it look like **** when sealed?

Sorry to clutter up this thread.

Chris

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

Would HD40 be a good recommendation for this look?

HD40 needs a good power-troweled floor to start with.
It almost has to have a sheen existing from the trowel-process.

 

[BamfordsGarage]

Again thanks to everyone for their comments, also for the PMs. Thinking cap on...

 

[Shea]

Shea,

Dumb question....Next month I'm having someone remove the tile from my house. They are going to make the floor good enough/smooth enough to live with until I pick a covering. If I went with just a clear polyurea for the industrial look, how would you address minor cracks and the expansion joints?

I'm not adverse to leaving the expansion joints alone for more character....or if you fill them will it look like **** when sealed?

Sorry to clutter up this thread.

Chris

The first I want to say is that there is never a dumb question

One thing to be aware of is that a clear coating on bare concrete is always going to highlight all the different irregularities, flaws, repairs, and etc. in the concrete surface. This is what creates the "character" of a clear coat that some people like. So, any crack repairs or joint fills are going to stand out.

I'm assuming that you are referring to contraction joints running down the middle of your slab and not expansion joints. You don't want to fill expansion joints with the intent of coating over as these are joints that separate two different slabs and will expanded and contract too much for a coating. We have an article below that explains the differences in these joints and what type of product to use for each.

Ideally, for your cracks and contraction joints I would recommend using 100% epoxy gel made for filling joints with some sand mixed in or Legacy Industrial's Xtreme Set 100. The sand will help to darken the material somewhat so that it doesn't stand out as much. Grind it all smooth afterwards. You will still easily see where the contraction joints are, but it will help to keep the repairs from standing as much. Not filling the contraction joints would be much less noticeable or more natural looking in my opinion.

https://allgaragefloors.com/can-i-fill-my-contraction-joints/

 

[Armorpoxy]

Looks like polished concrete. You can get that look by using a coat of our one-part SPGX Polyurea.