Is Racedeck Mechanic friendly?

[kxed]

I want to do something with my floor. I have been looking at going the epoxy route but I have a lot of salt damage and I'm not sure how it will look. Racedeck seems really nice but can I still use my garage as a garage? I do a fair amount of work on cars in my garage. Will it hold up or is epoxy the better route?

 

[PCMusicGuy]

It will hold up to pretty much anything you can throw at it.

 

[goodysgotacuda]

It will hold up to pretty much anything you can throw at it.

MIG welding slag?

 

[wingnut_1]

I always wondered about road salt in the northern states that use it. I would think that it would seep between the tiles and be trapped underneath. What about floor jack wheels or jack stands? I've never seen Racedeck installed anywhere but it sure looks nice!

 

[TheShrine]

It will hold up to pretty much anything you can throw at it.

Do you have it?

It doesn't appear to be roll friendly. It looks like rolling an engine, on a hoist, might be challenging. All those "bumps", regardless of type/design look good but.....?

Any feedback on that?

 

[Shea]

It doesn't appear to be roll friendly. It looks like rolling an engine, on a hoist, might be challenging. All those "bumps", regardless of type/design look good but.....?

Creepers, tool boxes, engine hoists - they all roll just fine over it.

I always wondered about road salt in the northern states that use it. I would think that it would seep between the tiles and be trapped underneath. What about floor jack wheels or jack stands? I've never seen Racedeck installed anywhere but it sure looks nice!

If you live in a snow climate, it's a good idea to spend $50 on a concrete penetrating sealer to put down on the floor before you install the tile. It will protect the concrete from salt damage if any seeps in between the tiles. If you go with a free-flow type of design then it really is a cheap investment to protect the concrete underneath.

As long as you don't use jack stands with the sharp pointed legs then you won't have a problem. If that is all you have, just lay down a cut piece of plywood or something similar under the stand first. People lift vehicles with rolling jacks on these tile floors all the time.

MIG welding slag?

Of course not. In fact, most floors are not going to hold up to that. Just protect the area with a welding blanket.

If you do some searching here I think you will find dozens of examples from people who work in their garage all the time and have interlocking tiles on their floor. I believe Jorgen from RaceDeck has even posted pics somewhere of mechanics garages using RaceDeck tiles.

 

[RaceDeck1]

RaceDeck is commonly used in both residential and commercial working garages. It is extremely durable, resists chemicals, easy to clean, and looks cool - Of course hot molten slag will pit and damage the floor... really most any floor other than raw concrete ( which could also mar )

 

[one320b]

This is the same question I was wondering honestly as I'm searching flooring options for both my attached garage and soon-to-be-built detached building.

Is there a pro/con to using the free-flow style shown above over the coin/circle style also available? I'm just concerned that it would be hard to clean up oil/coolant spills on the free-flow style.

 

[kd3pc]

one thing you all forget, is that the RD flooring is SO MUCH better on the knees and feet than just plain concrete. You can actually kneel on RD for a bit and then easily stand up.

All that - times 300 days a year and 30 years of work....may keep you from a knee or hip replacement down the road.

 

[one320b]

That's one of the biggest reasons I want flooring in my garages now... spent the last ten years on epoxy standing at the bench or kneeling/laying to work on something and I can tell you I'm tired of it.. I want some padding, lol.

 

[PCMusicGuy]

Do you have it?

It doesn't appear to be roll friendly. It looks like rolling an engine, on a hoist, might be challenging. All those "bumps", regardless of type/design look good but.....?

Any feedback on that?

No, I don't personally have it in my garage yet, but have been/worked in places with it. The OP mentioned road salt, but nothing else specific. I still think that it will stand up to pretty much anything you'd do in the average garage. Welding is not something I would consider average.

 

[kxed]

Thanks for all the replies. It seems that it is a good choice. My main concerns where jacks, jack stands, rolling a creeper and engine lift over the diamond pattern and if it will hold up to normal shop abuse.

 

[turfgnome]

I have done some damage to mine but I would put it down again in a second. when you spill gas or oil on the flooring you can wipe it up easier then you can on anything else I have worked on. Also I have found it to be warmer in the winter, and my back, feet, and knees hurt less after working on it all day. Well worth it if you can get it past the wife.

 

[kxed]

The wife is in favor of the racedeck floor since the install will only be a couple of hours vs a couple of days

 

[jacks2000]

I will be putting in in-floor heat. Does Race Deck insulate the heat transfer from the floor?
Thanks
Jack

 

[RaceDeck1]

I will be putting in in-floor heat. Does Race Deck insulate the heat transfer from the floor?
Thanks
Jack

It's will transfer some of the heat, I have a heated floor in our new garage and you can feel the heat on your bare feet in the winter and it melted the snow as well.

 

[WanderingSol07]

I have a non Racedeck floor. Mine is an open grid to allow water/snow melt to flow through to the concrete floor. This is very nice! I put a piece of 1/8" Masonite under my jack stands and floor jack wheels to spread the load and prevent dents. I use a regular electric carpet vacuum to clean the floor and **** out stuff below. The open grid is fine enough to allow creeper and other small wheels to roll without effort. Again, in winter it is nice to not have puddles around the car due to snow melt.

 

[ramairthree]

I have had GarageTrac for four years. It is the same company that makes RaceDeck.

It costs about half as much as the RaceDeck.

It has held up well to various spills, fluids, etc. Fading has not been bad except for the black tiles near the garage door that get more sun.

The pattern on GarageTrac is different than race deck.

I had polished concrete under the flooring. That was way better for the creeper, tool chest, etc.

And also much better feeling on the feet if your run out to the garage barefoot in the middle of the night.

My Racedeck samples felt like they would have less impact than the Garagetrac on rolling.

It is louder to walk on.

Splatter from welding never had any impact on the polished floor.

Driving on it, dropping stuff on it, etc. was all fine.

The edges of jack stands, front wheels from a floor jack, etc.,
have, at times trashed a few tiles. Other times been fine.

Again, the tiles I have are the companies less expensive version than RaceDeck.

I was very, very happy with it.

The ONE single issue I had,
was I have gone to expand,
and had also used up my few spare tiles,
and they changed the way the pattern lines up.

This has been a very, very angry event for me with hours and hours wasted for a new sized floor I can no longer finish in a tile pattern that matches unless getting all new tile.

Again, it held up to stuff as bad as brake fluid,
was usually OK with jacks, etc.

But if you go to get some new tiles and they don't match anymore....

 

[kxed]

Other than the tile matching issue how do you like your floor? GarageTrac would be about $500 less than Racedeck. is it worth the extra cash to go with Racedeck?

 

[FloridaharleyRider]

Other than the tile matching issue how do you like your floor? GarageTrac would be about $500 less than Racedeck. is it worth the extra cash to go with Racedeck?

I received samples of both - IMO the RaceDeck is constructed better and seemed to have a more robust locking system. Also the pattern on RD is not as sharp and raised up so should be easier to sweep and roll things on. I ended up with the 18" XL RD tiles and will install in a few weeks. The cost per sq ft was not that much of a diff for me with a 4 car garage. I figure if doing this once why not go with the best?

 

[ramairthree]

I liked the looks of the double diamond garage track better and went with that.

But over time I have decided it is too raised and sharp.

I have damaged some.

If you are set on tiles, ok with the race deck look, you are probably better off to get it,
As I think they are more durable and roll friendly.

As I said, the only issue I have is the matching, and I am so irate about the wasted hours of time and inability to get more tiles,
I am not very happy right now. I mean like completely disgusted.

I will objectively comment on their tile's good points, but
I could not in good faith recommend a tile floor to anyone as a new install right now based on this.

Just wait until it is YOU that tries to replace some damaged tiles, expand coverage, or change a pattern.

 

[brickG-man]

My garage is a combination auto/woodworking shop. It wouldn't make sense to get the flow through type of Race Deck because the sawdust would fall through. Anyone have any opinions as to how easily sawdust would sweep up off of the Race Deck floor?

 

[Shea]

A good shop vac ***** the sawdust right up off the concrete and through the free-flow style tile. It sweeps up easy off the diamond and coined design, though it can leave small traces of dust behind the coins. Again, a shop vac with a brush attachment will take of that for the solid tile designs.

 

[dubber]

A good shop vac ***** the sawdust right up off the concrete and through the free-flow style tile. It sweeps up easy off the diamond and coined design, though it can leave small traces of dust behind the coins. Again, a shop vac with a brush attachment will take of that for the solid tile designs.

I agree with this completely.

 

[mikeyr]

I have my 4-post lift sitting on Racedeck for a good decade now, closer to 15 years I think. I have pulled many a motor or gearbox and the Racedeck is fine. Restored 3 cars in that time, down to bare frame and back to on the road, Racedeck is fine. The only time I really damaged it was MIG welding and Plasma cutting but both of those are to be expected. I actually bought a TIG because of the Racedeck and its one of the better purchases I made. Best part was when I moved to the new house/garage, I picked up the Racedeck and moved it with me to my new garage.