Not Looking for Anything Fancy

[bmlocal175]

Three car garage is about 6 years old and has never been sealed. I live in upstate NY so winters are brutal and we park two vehicles in there during winter and one usually during the summer.

I'm looking for the cheapest, easiest, way to do this and hopefully something I can buy locally.

Hopefully some suggestions today because I just emptied the garage, swept and power washed and now it is drying.

I'm guessing a epoxy paint sealant is the way to go other than a water based. I would like some color to it if possible.

I have some local hardware stores, a Ace Hardware, Wal-Mart , Sherwin Williams and Lowes.

Again I'm totally new at this and don't need anything fancy because I will not be doing anything in the garage besides storage and cars in and out.

I'm wondering if this could be a one day job. How long to prep, apply and dry?

Thanks

 

[bmlocal175]

Would I get any responses if I said I wanted to spend thousands?

Garage is around 800 sq ft what kind of number are we talking for something that will last and not have to be re done after a few years? Am I wasting my money looking at the places I listed?

What would it cost to have it done at a garage this size?

I'm very new at this and know nothing about it, I'm just looking for someone to point me in the right direction.

Also the floor sweats a lot when it gets humid, I didn't know if this would be a problem and if the sealing would help.

 

[ka41]

I'm a newbie here as well and I am in the same boat you are in. I've been doing a lot of reading and it seems the most popular systems are Wolverine, U Coat It and Epoxy Floor. Each has their pros and cons and the cost can be anywhere from $500 to $1200 depending what finishes you are looking for. You might want to do a search for epoxy floor coatings and gather as much info as you can.

 

[Shocker]

Well, I hope that Wolverine or Alpha Garage will chime in.

I have read a lot of different postings and info on epoxy's and there are a lot of choices. Alpha can hook you up with a great system that everyone who has used it says it is great.

Costco sells a system from EpoxyCoat that some have used with great results.

I would stay away from the Rustolem and the like that go for 60 or 70 bucks.

The one thing that you need to make sure is done right is the prep. Grinding etc needs to be done. It will take a few days to get it all prepped right and dry. Most epoxies take several days to dry.

 

[rugerlady]

Just to correct the previous post. Epoxy-Coat is not available at Costco. You can either order from them directly or special order it through Lowe's.

 

[AlphaGarage]

Before we can determine your solution we need to zero in on your wants, so what do you want the coating to do?

-slip and fall prevention
-protect concrete from nicks and dings
-keep chem spills from staining concrete
-reflect light to brighten up environment
-contain concrete dust
-look good

...or any other particular goals?

 

[bmlocal175]

To me its "just" a garage. It keeps my car and truck out of the weather and I store stuff in there.

Someone told me I should seal it and I said ok I'll look into it. Didn't think it was going to cost as much as people are saying and seems to be a lot of prep work.

Of course if I'm going to do it I want it done right so I don't have to do it again. A wet shine look, non slip, maybe a light color would be my main concerns.

The cars parked in there during winter bring in a lot of salt and water with the snow melting. Summer brings the humidity and the concrete sweats a lot.