New Floor Slip Resistance

[farmer.ron.99]

I am going to be building a garage this year and am trying to figure out what to do with the concrete floor. I want to seal it or coat it with something, but have some concerns about how slick it will become.

If a sealant is applied will that make it more slick than bare concrete? Are there durable anti-slip options?

What about the epoxy coatings, they look nice, but can they be made with anti-slip properties?

The floor will be about 1500 sqft.

Thanks for your thoughts in advance.

 

[Matti]

You can buy an anti slip product that you mix in. It was on the same shelf as the epoxy at Home Depot....little bags if I remember correctly but that was 9 years ago.

 

[Ray-CA]

We put flakes in our flooring and it's pretty good footing. On an older floor several years ago, I mixed some anti-slip pumice into the second coat. Should have put it in the first coat. It grabbed everything I swept up or mopped and was a pain to clean up spills.

Ray

 

[UTCiv]

Yes, many brands offer anti-skid, anti-slip additives for epoxy coating in addition to the traction offered by the flakes.

With a clear coat epoxy can be very slick. How slick or grippy you want to make it depends on your use, and as stated above, ease of cleanliness.

I went with Legacy and they offered multiple grades of grit size as well.



On my floors I used grit on each, I went with the fine grit for the latest and it was mixed into the coating. If you have areas that you know to be a bit treacherous (wet around parked cars, or a significant slopes) you can also broadcast higher or lighter concentrations. The more you put down, the more it may catch bits of dirt when sweeping.

In my barn I mixed in the fine grit, and in my attached garage I used a heavier grit, higher in the system. My barn squeegee's clean with a light rinse, and my attached garage may take some mopping to get it back to tip-top shape (maybe not perfect as new, but it's now 11 years old). I did one batch (1/4) of my barn with lighter grit/flake where I plan to keep the mowers and use as a wash bay. I think it was unnecessary as it's been easy enough for the rest of the floor (lift bay and parking) to be cleaned from snow melt by pushing the snow to the doors with the squeegee or let it dry and sweep up the dirt.

 

[Garage Flooring]

I am going to be building a garage this year and am trying to figure out what to do with the concrete floor. I want to seal it or coat it with something, but have some concerns about how slick it will become.

If a sealant is applied will that make it more slick than bare concrete? Are there durable anti-slip options?

What about the epoxy coatings, they look nice, but can they be made with anti-slip properties?

The floor will be about 1500 sqft.

Thanks for your thoughts in advance.

Penetrating sealers will not impact slip resistance

Coatings can make the floor more or less slip resistant depending on the anti slip compound and the quantity you use. We can walk you through that once we know your needs

 

[Armorpoxy]

Penetrating sealers won't change the surface since they penetrate in so the floor will be as slippery as it was before you use a penetrating sealer like Ghostshield.

Topcoat coatings like epoxy and topical sealers will make the floor more slippery, and a non skid additive should be added to the final coat. These products are added in the field and we offer a wide array of non skid additives. It's a 'fine line' as to which one you use as the 'grittier' it is, the less sheen it has, and the harder it is to keep clean. Also if you select a very large size like would be used in a car wash, you now have millions of 'high spots' which can wear out first and become dirt collectors.

About 85% of our sales we use two non skids, both are 'mix in' products into the topcoat and these are on the smaller particle size.

If you go with a larger size non skid such as sand or aluminum oxides they have to be broadcast onto the epoxy, and then topcoated.

For general use our standard ones for the 85% are usually fine. Best to contact us directly at below for further info.