-JP
Well-known member
My research to find the best floor coating led me to this forum 3 years ago. I was trying to find all the issues others discovered prior to making my decision on the various types of epoxy available. I joined the forum to ask questions and also to offer some information of my expertise in return to others on the forum.
It is with this viewpoint that I offer this post as a source of information on my experience with my floor coating installation so that others can hopefully benefit. Seldom do we find a post on flooring that provides information on long term results as many share their install photos but never return after years later to offer an update.
I found the discussions on polyaspartic coatings very interesting when comparing it to an epoxy. The touted benefits of being resistant to a multitude of harsh chemicals including break fluid, higher abrasion resistance, a higher gloss finish, and no detrimental effects from UV were all key issues in comparison to the epoxy product. I found myself giving the polyaspartic coating serious consideration but still had some concerns and questions so I contacted Citadel/Rock Solid to see if they could satisfy my requirements.
I wanted to do a solid color floor, no color chips as I did not want to hunt forever when I drop a “Jesus Clip” on the floor and I also wanted the floor to really shine. Citadel/Rock Solid did offer some solid color floors but I had a certain color in mind and their color choices were limited. They said they could do any custom color I wanted. All I had to do was give them the Sherwin Williams color code and they would match it. I also wanted to do a non-slip coating as I was planning to have water, snow and ice on the floor at times. I told them I had some Sherwin Williams shark bite left over from a previous project and they said it would work with their product to give me the slip resistance I was looking for. I also told them I was planning to install a large decal on the floor and they indicated this would be no problem with their product. After many phone calls for questions and discussions with Citadel/Rock Solid I convinced myself to use their product for my flooring.
My project was new construction. The floor area to be covered is 30 by 35 feet. The slab was minimum 6” thick with fiber reinforcement. Power trowled to a smooth finish. The floor was covered with plastic after the poor and was over a year old before the plastic was removed to prep for the new coating. I waited until late fall (1st week of November, 2008) to insure the temperature and humidity was low.
I purchased the product along with the all the recommended accessories including the mixing paddles, booties, and spiked shoes from Citadel/Rock solid. They arrived in multiple boxes in good condition. I had my decal made and in hand ready to go.
I prepared the floor by choosing to use a diamond grinder instead of chemical etching just to make sure I had the best condition possible for proper adhesion. I worked that grinder for an entire day and late into the night. What a mess all that dust makes! After grinding the floor to cover every square inch and working down any high spots, I started to clean and clean and clean until I had the floor ready to go.
I had a friend volunteer to help as I knew one of the issues with the polyaspartic product is a very short working time. Everything was laid out and organized with a plan in place to manage the install knowing this was an issue I was forced to deal with.
I was ready to start the base primer coat. I began by opening the cans and pouring the contents into a larger mixing bucket and adding the colorant they provided. I noticed a strange color of dark gray to almost black product at the bottom of the cans when using a wooden stir stick to remove all the product from some of the cans. I immediately called Citadel/Rock Solid to see if this was a problem and they said it was a small bit of corrosion inside the can and would not have any effect on the product in any way so I continued. I used the mixing paddle with an electric drill to mix thoroughly. I began cutting in around the edge of the room and then started to roll out the rest of the room. This is where the first real problem showed up. After rolling out good size area of the floor with the primer coat, I noticed what looked like very small rocks or beads in the coating laying on top of the floor. When I realized these hard chucks were in the primer, I quickly grabbed some automotive paint filters I luckily had on hand and started to run the remaining primer through them from one container to another. What a mess! I had to hurry as to try and keep a wet edge on the primer coat. After finishing the primer coat, I once again called Citadel/Rock Solid to see what they had to say about the chunks. They indicated some of the product must have solidified in the can and when I used the mixing paddle it chopped it up into small pieces. They were apologetic about the problem and said I should be able to walk out on the floor wearing the booties and pick up all the chunks. So after a good hour of trying to find all the chunks I was ready to put down the second color coat.
I now took the time to filter each can I opened before mixing and found more solidified product. This was aggravating to do but also the high cost of the product I was throwing away made it worse. Fortunately I ordered enough product to make sure I would not run short so I still had enough to finish the color coat.
I waited several hours after the last color coat to apply my large 10 by 5 foot decal. It took the help of a few more hands but went down without mishap and looked good. Now I was ready to apply the clear top coat.
I mixed the product and added the shark bite as directed on the label. I was moving quick to cut in around the walls as I knew the top coat was the most limiting in working time. I started rolling out the clear coat in a cross pattern and noticed the product was really getting thick or stiff as I approached the end of the first batch. My helper was mixing the next batch as I was finishing the first but I could tell my roller marks were showing. I put down the clear coat in three batches of about 350 square feet each and overlapped my roller pattern to try and blend everything together. I continued and finished the floor even though I could see my roller marks only hoping they would disappear once the floor cured. They did not.
Outside of the roller marks, the floor looked good and had a high gloss. I called Citadel/Rock Solid and told them I was not very happy with the roller marks and how the clear coat had really set up faster than expected. When we reviewed my mixing and application method, they said “Oh, you added the shark bite into the clear coat? You should have just broadcast it over the top after rolling out the clear coat.“ This was frustrating to hear after going over this with them prior to the install. They even told me when I asked about adding the shark bite that they recommend using about half what the label indicated to use. I did not want the shark bite to lay on top of the clear coat and take away from the high gloss, attract more dirt, and allow a solvent to break down the beads. I wanted the shark bite in the clear coat so I would have the chemical protection and easy cleaning up. I knew from experience that having the shark bite lay on top of any coating is impossible to get really clean.
Citadel/Rock Solid said I could put down another clear coat on top without the shark bite and it would eliminate the roller marks but I would have to sand the existing surface to create a good bond. The shark bite was aggressive enough that I thought it would still provide some slip resistance. Citadel/Rock Solid offered to sell me the second clear coat product at a discount even though that was still pretty expensive. I was not happy with the roller marks so I decided to put on the second layer. After renting a large sander and scuffing the entire floor I had to clean it with an acetone. I then mixed up another three batches of clear and started the process again to lay down three separate areas the same as before only without any shark bite. This time I did not have any issues with the roller marks and the floor looked good.
Out of room...continued on next post
It is with this viewpoint that I offer this post as a source of information on my experience with my floor coating installation so that others can hopefully benefit. Seldom do we find a post on flooring that provides information on long term results as many share their install photos but never return after years later to offer an update.
I found the discussions on polyaspartic coatings very interesting when comparing it to an epoxy. The touted benefits of being resistant to a multitude of harsh chemicals including break fluid, higher abrasion resistance, a higher gloss finish, and no detrimental effects from UV were all key issues in comparison to the epoxy product. I found myself giving the polyaspartic coating serious consideration but still had some concerns and questions so I contacted Citadel/Rock Solid to see if they could satisfy my requirements.
I wanted to do a solid color floor, no color chips as I did not want to hunt forever when I drop a “Jesus Clip” on the floor and I also wanted the floor to really shine. Citadel/Rock Solid did offer some solid color floors but I had a certain color in mind and their color choices were limited. They said they could do any custom color I wanted. All I had to do was give them the Sherwin Williams color code and they would match it. I also wanted to do a non-slip coating as I was planning to have water, snow and ice on the floor at times. I told them I had some Sherwin Williams shark bite left over from a previous project and they said it would work with their product to give me the slip resistance I was looking for. I also told them I was planning to install a large decal on the floor and they indicated this would be no problem with their product. After many phone calls for questions and discussions with Citadel/Rock Solid I convinced myself to use their product for my flooring.
My project was new construction. The floor area to be covered is 30 by 35 feet. The slab was minimum 6” thick with fiber reinforcement. Power trowled to a smooth finish. The floor was covered with plastic after the poor and was over a year old before the plastic was removed to prep for the new coating. I waited until late fall (1st week of November, 2008) to insure the temperature and humidity was low.
I purchased the product along with the all the recommended accessories including the mixing paddles, booties, and spiked shoes from Citadel/Rock solid. They arrived in multiple boxes in good condition. I had my decal made and in hand ready to go.
I prepared the floor by choosing to use a diamond grinder instead of chemical etching just to make sure I had the best condition possible for proper adhesion. I worked that grinder for an entire day and late into the night. What a mess all that dust makes! After grinding the floor to cover every square inch and working down any high spots, I started to clean and clean and clean until I had the floor ready to go.
I had a friend volunteer to help as I knew one of the issues with the polyaspartic product is a very short working time. Everything was laid out and organized with a plan in place to manage the install knowing this was an issue I was forced to deal with.
I was ready to start the base primer coat. I began by opening the cans and pouring the contents into a larger mixing bucket and adding the colorant they provided. I noticed a strange color of dark gray to almost black product at the bottom of the cans when using a wooden stir stick to remove all the product from some of the cans. I immediately called Citadel/Rock Solid to see if this was a problem and they said it was a small bit of corrosion inside the can and would not have any effect on the product in any way so I continued. I used the mixing paddle with an electric drill to mix thoroughly. I began cutting in around the edge of the room and then started to roll out the rest of the room. This is where the first real problem showed up. After rolling out good size area of the floor with the primer coat, I noticed what looked like very small rocks or beads in the coating laying on top of the floor. When I realized these hard chucks were in the primer, I quickly grabbed some automotive paint filters I luckily had on hand and started to run the remaining primer through them from one container to another. What a mess! I had to hurry as to try and keep a wet edge on the primer coat. After finishing the primer coat, I once again called Citadel/Rock Solid to see what they had to say about the chunks. They indicated some of the product must have solidified in the can and when I used the mixing paddle it chopped it up into small pieces. They were apologetic about the problem and said I should be able to walk out on the floor wearing the booties and pick up all the chunks. So after a good hour of trying to find all the chunks I was ready to put down the second color coat.
I now took the time to filter each can I opened before mixing and found more solidified product. This was aggravating to do but also the high cost of the product I was throwing away made it worse. Fortunately I ordered enough product to make sure I would not run short so I still had enough to finish the color coat.
I waited several hours after the last color coat to apply my large 10 by 5 foot decal. It took the help of a few more hands but went down without mishap and looked good. Now I was ready to apply the clear top coat.
I mixed the product and added the shark bite as directed on the label. I was moving quick to cut in around the walls as I knew the top coat was the most limiting in working time. I started rolling out the clear coat in a cross pattern and noticed the product was really getting thick or stiff as I approached the end of the first batch. My helper was mixing the next batch as I was finishing the first but I could tell my roller marks were showing. I put down the clear coat in three batches of about 350 square feet each and overlapped my roller pattern to try and blend everything together. I continued and finished the floor even though I could see my roller marks only hoping they would disappear once the floor cured. They did not.
Outside of the roller marks, the floor looked good and had a high gloss. I called Citadel/Rock Solid and told them I was not very happy with the roller marks and how the clear coat had really set up faster than expected. When we reviewed my mixing and application method, they said “Oh, you added the shark bite into the clear coat? You should have just broadcast it over the top after rolling out the clear coat.“ This was frustrating to hear after going over this with them prior to the install. They even told me when I asked about adding the shark bite that they recommend using about half what the label indicated to use. I did not want the shark bite to lay on top of the clear coat and take away from the high gloss, attract more dirt, and allow a solvent to break down the beads. I wanted the shark bite in the clear coat so I would have the chemical protection and easy cleaning up. I knew from experience that having the shark bite lay on top of any coating is impossible to get really clean.
Citadel/Rock Solid said I could put down another clear coat on top without the shark bite and it would eliminate the roller marks but I would have to sand the existing surface to create a good bond. The shark bite was aggressive enough that I thought it would still provide some slip resistance. Citadel/Rock Solid offered to sell me the second clear coat product at a discount even though that was still pretty expensive. I was not happy with the roller marks so I decided to put on the second layer. After renting a large sander and scuffing the entire floor I had to clean it with an acetone. I then mixed up another three batches of clear and started the process again to lay down three separate areas the same as before only without any shark bite. This time I did not have any issues with the roller marks and the floor looked good.
Out of room...continued on next post
