Just purchased Epoxy-Coat at Lowes.

[Freefallin2000]

Paid a little over $170 with tax. What a killer deal eh!? Since I want a lot of gray on the walls, I decided I really liked the Taupe color. I got the Full Kit, as I have a 400 sq ft garage. Other than the kit being smokin deal, I have a few questions.

Regarding clear coat: I know most of you are going to recommend the EC clear kit, but I really don't have the money for it at the moment. Aside from not having the money, I am wondering if my floor will be OK without any kind of clear on it? I can live with it not being quite as shiny. I am really not that hard at all on my garage. All that I really do is move my jack and stands around. I am more so doing this for re-sale in the future and for it to look very clean and modern.

I was also wondering; how many hours do I need to wait to actually apply the coating after I use the supplied acid wash on the floor and spray it out? The garage floor was poured about 35 days ago and no cars have been in it, just light foot traffic from construction workers.

Some other small questions I have:

Do I need a power drill to mix the product?

Does anyone have a "How To" video or writeup on how to mix, how to clean the floor, how to apply, etc?

What kind of brush is needed to scrub the acid solution which is provided with the kit?

Aside from a garden sprinkler, is there any other products people use to aply the acid solution to spread it?

How big of sections should I be doing at a time with the solution?

Is there a "sweat" time for the product to sit and cure before applying it?

I would appreciate any and all feedback here as I have searched for many hours on this topic.

 

[Brinskan]

I actually bought Behr's 2-part today at HD, but after spending all afternoon prepping my garage floor, I have decided to drive 40 mins to the one Loews near LA that stocks Epoxy-coat. For only an extra 40-50$ it seems like Epoxy Coat is a better deal. And after all that prep work, I'd prefer to put down 100% solid epoxy.

But back on topic: I used muriatic acid to clean my floor today and it worked really well. The garden sprayer worked amazing. It was 15$ and made the job quite easier, plus it seems to promote the acid activating on the concrete. Not sure what etching acid the Epoxy kit contains, but I used a plastic bristle bush, labeled solvent safe. Bought it at HD.

 

[Sam Navarro]

#1- Does your garage get direct sun light? If not you can just use the epoxy. Epoxy resins are not UV stable and chalk up in sunlight. Urethanes are typically used as a top coat because they are UV stable. If you are doing a decorative finish like flakes or a logo on it go with clear, otherwise just have the store tint up the urethane to the same color as the epoxy.

#2-Your concrete should be good to coat now,when you wash your concrete I would give it minimum 24hrs to dry but if you are in a high humidity area or have had a lot of rain go 48hrs because moisture tends to lay on top of the floor.

#3-I would recommend a "Jiffy" mixer on a power drill, you do not want to mix at the highest speed possible either,the faster your mixer is going the hoteer the product is getting which results in less pot life.

#4-PM me if you need info on cleaning and applying product, I do this for a living so I can give you more info then you want to hear! Lol

#5-Apply the acid mix with a pump up sprayer and work it in with a 8" to 12" deck brush, make sure that you are wearing PPE please, this stuff is toxic.

#6-Protect your walls, if you don't want the acid to get on your nicely painted walls use 36" paper and tape.

#7- You can do your whole garage in one application, work in 2foot circles with the wand of the sprayer. You will see smoke coming up from the concrete when done properly. The acid only works on direct contact so moping on doesnt work.

#8- Standard epoxies have a 20-30 minute "Sweat" in time, they usually have a 4hr pot life as well but check the PDS sheet for all the details.

Good luck and if you need anymore info regarding surface prep or coating application let me know.

Cheers,
Sam Navarro

 

[Freefallin2000]

Wow, Sam, thanks a million for the outstanding response. I do not have a pump sprayer, so I think I will stick with a garden sprinkler for the acid solution. Our home faces south, so I am not sure we will be getting a ton of direct sunlight, but definitely some.

Sounds like I will need to get a stiff bristled brush from Lowes or HD soon.

 

[rugerlady]

Our product, when mixed needs to be poured out immediately. Pot life for 100% solids is MUCh shorter than water based.
If you have more questions regarding our product in particular, please call me.

 

[Freefallin2000]

I will be sure to do that. Do you recommend poring the mixed product into a paint tray and using the roller to roll onto floor? For some reason, I have the notion that some people poor it directly onto the floor and use a squeegee to move it around then roll it on?

 

[rugerlady]

Your going to pour the mixed product directly on the floor, spread it around with the squeegee, then roll it. Let me know if you have more questions before you get started.

 

[Freefallin2000]

Really!? Sound interesting. I had the impression I was suppose to poor it into a paint trowel and roll it on out of that? So, now that I know do poor it onto the floor, am I pouring the ENTIRE mixture of product onto the floor at once? If not, how much do I poor and how much do I know to spread?

 

[NNate]

Most people do it in batches. Divide your floor up into sections (and the product accordingly). Go section by section. From what I've read, it helps to have someone there helping you to mix while you're spreading.

 

[rugerlady]

True, For a full kit you will have 4 batches. We recommend beginners only do 1 batch at a time.

 

[GTViper]

I put epoxy coat down 10 days ago with flakes. Did not use clear and am not sure why I would. Looks fine--is there any real reason for clear?

 

[Freefallin2000]

True, For a full kit you will have 4 batches. We recommend beginners only do 1 batch at a time.

Little confused still. Sorry for redundancy Ruger.....

So, your basically saying I mix the product in batches, meaning, just mix and poor a little at a time, right? If you could elobarote on this, I would appreciate it. Possibly shoot me a PM with some more detailed infor from start to finish if you would be so kind.

Is there any way for me to get a "how to" video of start to finish of the process?

 

[Freefallin2000]

I put epoxy coat down 10 days ago with flakes. Did not use clear and am not sure why I would. Looks fine--is there any real reason for clear?

To protect it more so and to also give it a glossier look.

Ruger, I forgot to ask; is it acceptable to use any other brands of clear to seal the floor? I dont have the money for your kit so I was curios to see if there was a less expensive alternative out there??

 

[GarageEnvy]

I have done a grand total of 1 floor so take my knowledge for what it's worth but I'm guessing you haven't opened your kit from Lowe's yet. When you do you will find an instructional DVD in there. Also Youtube has a series on it I believe. Spend the $10-15 and get a small pump sprayer for the acid. It will make your life easier. If you have a small garage I'd just go with the rollers and squeegee in the kit. My space was a bit larger so I bought 18" rollers and a 24" squeegee. I'd highly recommend it. Work batches. You probably have about 15-20 minutes to work it. With the larger rollers and squeegee I probably could have done double batches but there was no need to chance it. Have at least one helper. My wife and I did 1800sf in about 6 hours, including cleanup. We did not use the stick method of measuring since other people had problems. We simply mixed by ratio and it came out perfectly. We used a new bucket for each batch and never wiped the sides to get the last bit out. We applied it in the afternoon to avoid concrete outgassing and we had very few bubbles which were easily popped with a leaf blower. I did do a top coat. Epoxy Coat was the only vendor I found that did not strongly recommend it with flakes. The other vendors said it would attract dirt. It's plenty shiny w/o the topcoat but that's really the protective layer. It does scratch so moving things like a jack or stands around will probably leave a mark. I used their polyurea top coat which is supposed to be more durable and UV resistant. However, Epoxy Coat will tell you that you have 18-24 hours after the epoxy goes down to apply the top coat or you have to sand it. In other words, if you're going to do it, now would be the time. The polyurea is expensive though. More expensive than the epoxy kits.

Oh, and I used a digital timer and an electric drill for mixing. The "jiffy" mixer came with the kit. I had two drills. One for the Part A and one for the mix. Set up a mixing area with a drop cloth under it. The timer was to make sure I did it for the prescribed amount of time (3 minutes IIRC)

 

[Freefallin2000]

Thanks for the great post Envy! I guess I will watch the DVD soon. SO do not mix it all at once, mix in batches and use the squeegee to spread and roll on.

 

[Brinskan]

Freefallin,

So I finally laid my Epoxy-Coat floor today. Here are a few tips I wish someone really explained to me before I did my first batch.

- Don't get too worried about spreading the epoxy perfectly even with the squeegee. Yes, it's important to get it evenly distributed, but the roller will smooth it out ALOT. I spent way too much time on my first batch worrying about the squeegee step.

- Have a helping hand. I did it by myself and really wish I had someone there to help. It would have been great to just have someone mix the next batch while I was backrolling the previous section.

- The key to an even floor is backrolling. At first I was a bit confused as to what Backrolling was, but then I realized that as the epoxy began to cure, backrolling would fix any fish-eyes or cracks that were showing though the epoxy. It's also the best way to even out the coating.

- If you plan to use the flakes and want it to be evenly distributed, consider buying the special shoes Epoxy-Coat sells. No matter how hard you throw that stuff, if you have rolled out 10-12 feet, you will have a hard time getting the coverage even. There are two spots that no matter what, I just couldn't get the flakes to hit. That said, the flakes make the floor look so much better.

- Don't get too scared about the 15 min working time Epoxy-Coat warns you about once you mix the contents. While yes you need to get it out on the floor ASAP, you will actually have a bit of time to work with it after you squeegee it. That said, don't take a coffee break mid batch.

- Keep a marker handy to remark the lines on the mixing stick. The ink they use to mark this with fades away in the epoxy and it becomes hard to see where to measure too.

- Make sure your roller handle extends far enough to cover a 10x12 area... Mine did not and I had to get Macgyver with it.

Have fun... while the prep part is likely the most important, and the most time consuming, the actual laying of the epoxy is somewhat enjoyable.

Oh, and invest in a 15$ sprayer for the acid.

 

[ZeroSignal]

@Brinskan.. Pics?

 

[Freefallin2000]

Brink, are you referring to a small pressurized sprayer one can find at Lowes, because I have osme of those. Or are you referring to the large garden-style ones for roundup and such that have a hose and wand?

So backrolling is simply working the eopxy with the roller until it is uniform, even, and smooth; essentially pulling the roller towards you, correct? I would imagine one would simpyl roll forward and backwards many, many times on a single section to make sure the material is spread nice and evenly, correct?

I guess I am realyl confused on mixing still. When referring to "batches", how do I know how much of the product to mix? What are you mixing the product with; a drill and the wand or simply a paint stick?

More I feel like I have everything down aside from the batching or mixing, or whatever you want to refer to it as.

 

[rugerlady]

Brink, are you referring to a small pressurized sprayer one can find at Lowes, because I have osme of those. Or are you referring to the large garden-style ones for roundup and such that have a hose and wand?

So backrolling is simply working the eopxy with the roller until it is uniform, even, and smooth; essentially pulling the roller towards you, correct? I would imagine one would simpyl roll forward and backwards many, many times on a single section to make sure the material is spread nice and evenly, correct?

I guess I am realyl confused on mixing still. When referring to "batches", how do I know how much of the product to mix? What are you mixing the product with; a drill and the wand or simply a paint stick?

More I feel like I have everything down aside from the batching or mixing, or whatever you want to refer to it as.

I sent you a link via PM. Call me if you still have questions.

 

[Freefallin2000]

Got it! Checked out the video with no sound. Is that essentially what the DVD is Christine? It looks fairly simple to be completely honest with you. I think the only think I am confused on is the batch mixing and really more so, how much to mix.

 

[formek]

From the video I saw on there web site they send you a paint stick with lines on them. the marks are for a single batch and a double batch. You stand the stick in the mixing bucket they sent you and fill to the first line with part A them pour to the second line with part B. There is a second stick that is for a double batch. I assume that a batch will cover a 10X10 and a double would do a 20X10.

PS Do not take this as fact I am trying to get it figured out also

Formek from TX

 

[Freefallin2000]

Haha, that sounds right. Thanks for clarifying. I watched the video as well and that is what I got from it as well.

 

[Freefallin2000]

Oh, and FYi, the computers here don't have sound, so that's probably why I couldn't tell. I am, sure sound will make me undersand a bit better!

 

[JamieK]

GarageEnvy advised not to use the stick measuring method. What kind of problems were people having, and what is the better way to measure out the ratios?

 

[GarageEnvy]

Some people found that the mark on the stick was constantly getting covered so they made multiple sticks. Other people were getting to the end and having too much or too little of one component or another. It seemed like the biggest problems people were having were resulting from poor prep, poor mixing or moisture. The plastic test and humidity level at the time of application will minimize the moisture problems. The prep has been covered. Grind, etch, clean, etc. So to avoid contamination and mixing problems and keep production up (since I had 1800 sf) I simply batch mixed all of my part A kits (I had to use several kits), used one mixer for part A and one for the combined mixture. I bought clear containers with measuring marks on the side. I believe the ratio was 2:1 but don't quote me. This way all part B is always from the same mark on the same container. I started with a fresh bucket for each batch. If you mix all your part A and part B together, you'd better work like Flash Gordon or you're screwed. It's too much area to do in one mixture. This was my routine. I mixed and dumped. Wife squeegeed and rolled. I came back with another batch and dumped. Wife squeegeed and rolled. After the second batch it was right at 10 minutes later and she went back to the first batch and back rolled it in the opposite direction. THEN we threw the flakes on the first section. We used enough flake that it took about 10 minutes for this process so after that we could start the back roll and flake on section 2. Usually while she flaked section 2 I went and mixed another batch and we started the routine over. We had about 16 batches to do and with this routine there was no down time for either of us. Barely enough time for either of us to grab a water bottle. Once you start, don't stop. Organize your sections so you're working a wet edge.

Remember, I'm a homeowner, not a pro. I've done 1 floor. These are just my tips from that one experience. There are pros on this board that have way more experience and knowledge than I do.

It seems like the epoxy installations either go as planned or horribly wrong. You really don't find too many little mistakes on here. That's why I was so overly cautious and paranoid about the application. Plus, I had to time my weather window for the application of a top coat which was moisture cure and humidity sensitive.

 

[Freefallin2000]

Hmm, well I need to figure out which method for mixing and so on. However, I have some questions.

My builder just told me today that if I don't lay down a clear coat over the top, the paint chips will start to peal up in excessive heat. We average 110 in the summer here in Phoenix. I really don't want to do a clear coat to be honest. More work, more money. Can I get away with no clear guys?

I am going to twatch the videa one more time.

 

[dcs Inc]

I'm not usre what videos you guys are watching, doesn't matter. If you don't clear coat your chip floor, the chips will come off on the higher used areas.

As far as mixing, purchase some of the cups with the graduated measurements on them. Most epoxies are a 2-1 mix. Pre stir both a and b with separate sticks. Pour into your measuring cups and then into you mixing bucket. Mix well but slowly. Scrape side walls and the bottom. Pour out of the bucket as soon as mixed. Epoxy is exothermic, it will create it's own heat and flash on you if left in a large volume.

Mark your bowels and mixing sticks A and B so you don't mix them up and contaminate your unmixed epoxy.

Oh, pre wipe the surface with denatured alcohol and micro fiber mop pads. It will clean all of the fine dust off the floor. A cheap set of shoe spikes will help you big time being able to get onto the wet epoxy when applying. gene

 

[Freefallin2000]

Where do I purchase shoe spikes?

 

[rugerlady]

The spikes can be ordered through us, you can purchase lawn aeration spikes at any lawn and garden center or you can make homemade spikes with some wood, screws and duct tape. There is a thread on here somewhere about making the homemade version.

 

[GarageEnvy]

Thrift stores have older metal golf shoes with the metal spikes. I took an old pair of sandals, cut a piece of plywood for the bottom and drove drywall screws through it. Just screwed right through the sandal to attach the plywood. Works fine for a one shot deal.

 

[Freefallin2000]

I may have to do that! Lol, I haven't owned metal spikes for a long time. As a jr. golfer I owned a few pair. I now work for PING Golf in Phoenix, Az. Not more metal spikes! Althouhg very few tour players still wear them, they are otherwise deemed illegal by the USGA for public and amateur play.

At any rate, I may not worry about the spikes. Does one REALLY need to work with Epoxy-Coat?

 

[pima67]

I found out the sprinkler can method doesn't give even coverage. I had to redo the etch using a small poly sprayer. Given the cost of the epoxy, the sprayer is worth the additional "investment". Then you can use the sprayer with Roundup to go after the weeds that spring up during the monsoon. (I'm in Tucson)

 

[Freefallin2000]

Haha, nice! I am a detailer as well on the side so I need a large sprayer anyhow. I will pick one up at HD or Lowes real soon. Wish you were closer to give me a hand!

 

[rburke65]

Poor = No Money
POUR = The act of transfering liquids