My Microsoft Paint Garage

[itsmeanuj]

I figure I would make my intro and post up my questions in one thread. My name is Anuj and I neglected my garage. Now that I am past admitting my problem, time to get working on ideas.

[I found this site on google when searching for garage floor paint and started lurking around, I love this site. I am a very active member of www.s2ki.com and am the Community Organizer of my region. I have decided to go with Rustoleum Epoxyshield Professional--the chemical solvent based one and not the water based one.]

I originally was planning to go with a two tone paint job for the garage walls and I may still do so! I am very confused on what to do but I want to start painting soon. I do know that AT LEAST the top portion of the wall is going to be White. The Bottom half is undecided. Any suggestions?

What kind of paint should I go with? Flat for Ceiling and Eggshell Interior for walls? I am sure I have many imperfections so I would like to stay away from Semi-Gloss. How is Satin? What do you (the experts) recommend?

The floor will be a light Grey but after the coating and curing, I plan to add the Black/White garage tiles. I know, I'm original.

 

[Moonbeam]

Thats a garage? How do you open your car doors when you pull in?

 

[itsmeanuj]

My questions/summary in a neater format:

-The Rustoleum Pro is good for 400-500 SqFt. My garage is 200. Do I save the rest? Or can I use it up and add 1 thin coat and 3 thick coats, maybe 4.
-What color should I paint my Walls? All White?
- In the last few minutes after pricing out garage tiles, I decided to just stick with the Epoxy
-What kind of paint to use on the walls? Satin, Eggshell, or Semi-Gloss
-What is the BEST degreaser. As you can see in the pictures, I have quite a lot of oil. I am using a concrete cleaner I have at home. If there is anything stronger or better, please recommend a product.
-What is a good Etcher I can pick up at Home Depot? Behr?
-Do I need to prime the floor for the Epoxy or will a thin coat of the Epoxy suffice?

 

[itsmeanuj]

Thats a garage? How do you open your car doors when you pull in?

Easy, I don't drive an Escalade.

 

[itsmeanuj]

It may be a very small garage but it's better than no garage. I'm being optimistic and trying to make the most out of it.

 

[89MustangGX]

I can't quite see everything, but maybe some additional lighting would be in order?

I like the ideas so far.

Adam

 

[PoorOwner]

Do you have some kind of travertine tile or something on there, I can't tell from the pictures?

To be honest, I would just wash it real good and put down some garage tiles over it, because whatever is on that floor now looks nasty with all that oil.

Check out costco they are blowing out the motofloors in some locations, I seem they marked it down to less than $100 a box, one box is about 48 square feet.

I like the paint job proposal the grey will make any stain in that area not look as dirty.
I have good luck with eggshell, the glossier the easier to clean though.

 

[Kevin54]

Great plan but I would get that oil leak fixed before I would do anything to the floor.

 

[R1Jester]

My answers in red

My questions/summary in a neater format:

-The Rustoleum Pro is good for 400-500 SqFt. My garage is 200. Do I save the rest? Or can I use it up and add 1 thin coat and 3 thick coats, maybe 4.
-What color should I paint my Walls? All White?
The more white you have the better the lighting, but keep the gray towards the floor, it will hide the dirt a little better.
- In the last few minutes after pricing out garage tiles, I decided to just stick with the Epoxy
-What kind of paint to use on the walls? Satin, Eggshell, or Semi-Gloss
Semi-gloss will be easiest to wipe off without dulling the paint, it's what I will be using(basically I am doing the same color scheme as you jsut with a blue stripe
-What is the BEST degreaser. As you can see in the pictures, I have quite a lot of oil. I am using a concrete cleaner I have at home. If there is anything stronger or better, please recommend a product.
Check your local building suppliers, they sell tons of concrete related products, I have one that is a "enviro-friendly" one that you scrub in with a brush and then just hose off
-What is a good Etcher I can pick up at Home Depot? Behr?
-Do I need to prime the floor for the Epoxy or will a thin coat of the Epoxy suffice?

Sorry, don't know much about the epoxy floors to give you sound advice on that.

 

[itsmeanuj]

I can't quite see everything, but maybe some additional lighting would be in order?

I like the ideas so far.

Adam

Adam, most definitely. Thank you for the suggestion. I want fluorescent lighting. Maybe a few T12/T8 strips. I wonder how I am going to place it in front of the garage though because when the door is up, it will be hidden. To counter that, when the lights are on, it will usually be dark anyway so the garage would be closed. I doubt I have the clearance for it though. I'll check!

Do you have some kind of travertine tile or something on there, I can't tell from the pictures?

To be honest, I would just wash it real good and put down some garage tiles over it, because whatever is on that floor now looks nasty with all that oil.

Check out costco they are blowing out the motofloors in some locations, I seem they marked it down to less than $100 a box, one box is about 48 square feet.

I like the paint job proposal the grey will make any stain in that area not look as dirty.
I have good luck with eggshell, the glossier the easier to clean though.

I really do not know what Travertine tiles are but I did search. I got hits on google for products starting at $3/sqft. I doubt it. These tiles looked like they went for significantly less. They were here when we moved in. I finished removing them yesterday.

I will definitely check out Costco! That is where I planned to purchase the tiles. I have about 200 sqft so 4 boxes will do and a finisher. This may be optional. Depends on how well I do my job with the epoxy. If I like it a lot, I may have to skip this and save $400--but I will go to Costco to check it out since I need to pick up a pressure washer anyway. Epoxy job is only $150 plus my time which I have a lot of now.

There is really not a lot of traffic in my garage. I do work on my car in there but it's very mild work. Change fluids, change wheels, change exhausts from time to time, that's about it. I will be picking up a power washer today.

Great plan but I would get that oil leak fixed before I would do anything to the floor.

Absolutely! It wasn't really an oil leak, it was my fault. ...I knocked over oil in that area. It was fresh(few days). I got a lot of it out yesterday. I have read if there is a significant amt of oil on the floor, the epoxy won't stick well in those areas.

My answers in red



Sorry, don't know much about the epoxy floors to give you sound advice on that.

Thank you for your advice.

 

[revlover]

Hahahaha MS paint at its finest!

 

[Jaguar Fan]

Hi Anuj, you say you just removed the tiles that show in your digital photos? What did it look like underneath? were they set in with mortar & thinset (the way you would put tiles inside the house?) If so, that might complicate things for you as the concrete may have a bunch of mortar on top.

In any event, especially in that small an area, purchase a good quality respirator before even thinking of applying the solvent based epoxy.


Keep us posted!

 

[OUZO Power]

Your in the same boat I am. Starting my 1 car garage soon.

BTW you live in the GTA?

 

[kwb210]

A fluorescent light strip should only be about 3-4 inches high. You must have at least a couple of inches of clearance between the garage door and ceiling. You could run a few wires inside plastic conduit, grey colour against a bright high gloss ceiling paint to reflect the light. Might be able to use the outlet that powers the door opener on the ceiling. The difference is stunning over a basic garage style bulb that usually resides in garages.
On the flooring I would ONLY do epoxy if you can grind the floor. After looking at your pics the floor looks stained. Its all about prep. Repeat: Its all about prep. So many stories of great floors that have been preped in a proper fashion. That usually means lots of labor and money. But the results sure look good, and not just for a year or so. You'll have a great space when done.

Adam, most definitely. Thank you for the suggestion. I want fluorescent lighting. Maybe a few T12/T8 strips. I wonder how I am going to place it in front of the garage though because when the door is up, it will be hidden. To counter that, when the lights are on, it will usually be dark anyway so the garage would be closed. I doubt I have the clearance for it though. I'll check!

 

[milkovich]

Easy, I don't drive an Escalade.

Nice car!

I can't hate on someone with that much waste oil laying around!

 

[itsmeanuj]

Hahahaha MS paint at its finest!

Hi Anuj, you say you just removed the tiles that show in your digital photos? What did it look like underneath? were they set in with mortar & thinset (the way you would put tiles inside the house?) If so, that might complicate things for you as the concrete may have a bunch of mortar on top.

In any event, especially in that small an area, purchase a good quality respirator before even thinking of applying the solvent based epoxy.


Keep us posted!

I purchased a power washer today and started using it. It started blowing away stuff that I thought was embedded in the ground (most of it still is). I have decided to go against the Epoxy route. What does everyone suggest? I will be getting those snap in black/white garage tiles but should I paint the floor with cement paint first?

Your in the same boat I am. Starting my 1 car garage soon.

BTW you live in the GTA?

Good luck! I live in Northern New Jersey.

A fluorescent light strip should only be about 3-4 inches high. You must have at least a couple of inches of clearance between the garage door and ceiling. You could run a few wires inside plastic conduit, grey colour against a bright high gloss ceiling paint to reflect the light. Might be able to use the outlet that powers the door opener on the ceiling. The difference is stunning over a basic garage style bulb that usually resides in garages.
On the flooring I would ONLY do epoxy if you can grind the floor. After looking at your pics the floor looks stained. Its all about prep. Repeat: Its all about prep. So many stories of great floors that have been preped in a proper fashion. That usually means lots of labor and money. But the results sure look good, and not just for a year or so. You'll have a great space when done.

I checked the clearance today. I will be picking up 4' fluorescents. Do you think 1 dual on each side would suffice? I agree. I am stepping away from the epoxy route. Maybe another time or in another house.

Nice car!

I can't hate on someone with that much waste oil laying around!

Thanks! I had so much more and coolant. I will be getting rid of the excess oil today at the local auto store. Coolant next month. Mobil1 Synthetic and Honda PCX filter.

 

[kvom]

Given all those lawn tools on the back wall, it seems you spend too much time on the lawn and not enough in the garage.

Hopefully some good lighting will rectify the situation.

 

[Mr. Welsh]

I am a very active member of www.s2ki.com and am the Community Organizer of my region.

I read this 3 times before I figured out that it says region and not religion.

I was dumbfounded as to how that could be pertinent. Nice s2k. Perhaps a multicolor stripe with Mugen's colors would be appropriate for a Honda fan?

 

[StanBo]

It is good to see a familiar face on here

Did you use a solvant with the power washer? A friend left a car in my garage and it pissed power steering fluid on my floor. I have straight concrete so now there is a stain. He also left a stain on the front pad when he was leaving.

 

[itsmeanuj]

I read this 3 times before I figured out that it says region and not religion.

I was dumbfounded as to how that could be pertinent. Nice s2k. Perhaps a multicolor stripe with Mugen's colors would be appropriate for a Honda fan?

well ... it can be a religion too we all love the car lol

i am not much of a mugen fan. i like j's racing and powerhouse amuse.

Given all those lawn tools on the back wall, it seems you spend too much time on the lawn and not enough in the garage.

Hopefully some good lighting will rectify the situation.

lighting soon! no more lawn stuff in the garage. i hope! well, maybe some light tools. but im hoping to build or buy a shed for the backyard. something small.

It is good to see a familiar face on here

Did you use a solvant with the power washer? A friend left a car in my garage and it pissed power steering fluid on my floor. I have straight concrete so now there is a stain. He also left a stain on the front pad when he was leaving.

yikes, i hope you got it off asap. i did use a solvent. it is a concrete degreaser. i would recommend the same. i hope it's taken care of Stan! You may not even need a power washer. I used a "deck cleaner" head on a handle and 50:50 dilution as recommended on the label and water stopped beading so I hope I got it off.

.................


I have been working on it little by little. Painting is NOT fun.

I'm going to have to cut the tiles to fit the right side... i'll get to that this weekend. need to buy some tools. Have to finish the cutting, need to purchase an edger set. Also next up is storage and other things to keep items neat. I am waiting on my gift cards for Sears (redeemed $200 worth from my reward points).

Red stripe needs 2nd coat. It looks messy but there is masking tape there so once it pulls off, it should be straight.

 

[StanBo]

Looking good! I am going to leave a section of the garage as a "clean" area and I would like to put a floor like that down.

The car is out of the garage and the owner will be stopping by with a powerwasher to take care of the mess. After that we will be way more careful.

 

[Kevin54]

Did you use a solvant with the power washer? A friend left a car in my garage and it pissed power steering fluid on my floor. I have straight concrete so now there is a stain. He also left a stain on the front pad when he was leaving.

Just "marking" its territory.

Looks great. Also looks way smaller with the car in there now. I really don't think an Escalade could have gotten in there if you had a 70 mph running start. Good job though. You need to paint the trim on the wall the same color as your ride!!