Prep Questions - Stem Walls, Floor Drain, etc

[Flyfishing]

I have been a lurker for the past year and have found the information on the site tremendously helpful. Thanks to all who contribute! I am now in the final planning stages of my garage project and have a few questions.

We recently moved into a newly constructed house and I am getting started on the garage. It is 22’ x 20’ in dimension. As a first step, I have completed mudding the dry wall and plan to paint next weekend. This step is pretty straightforward.

The next step will be to epoxy the floor. Current plan is to use Legacy for primer/epoxy/urethane with flakes. This is the part where I have a few questions related to preparation of stem walls, steps, and drain area in this garage.

First, the stem walls are 7” tall so I think the best option is to use epoxy on them. However, there are a couple of minor challenges. First, the concrete job on the stem walls is lousy. There are chips, holes, cracks, splatters, etc. I’m assuming that I need to do a thorough job of grinding, filling, re-grinding, etc. to make them smooth enough for epoxy. I’ve enclosed several pictures. I’m assuming that I’d use a product such as Legacy’s Epoxy Patch (HD 110) for the large holes as well as pinholes? How much effort should I put into making the stem walls look good?

Second, there is a good sized shrinkage crack around the perimeter of the garage between the slab and the stem wall. (Another pic enclosed). Does it make sense to fill in the crack with Legacy’s Gel Crack Filler followed by grinding prior to installing the epoxy? Alternative is to leave the crack visible.

Third, in the center of the slab is a floor drain (see pic). The outer section of the drain is a fixed piece of metal that cannot be removed (at least manually). The inner section is perforated and can be manually removed. Is there any special prep required for the fixed piece of metal prior to applying the epoxy? I assume that the epoxy will adhere well to the fixed piece of metal(?)

Fourth, there is a two-step wooden stair from the garage into the house (final pic). I am thinking of using some type of porch paint on the stairs instead of epoxy. Should I use tape to protect the bottom of the wood as I install the epoxy? The tape would then be ripped off immediately after applying each coating (e.g. primer, epoxy, urethane). I will have to slop some epoxy on the concrete under the step.

I look forward to sharing my experience and learning.
Thanks in advance for the assistance.

http://s1082.photobucket.com/user/treacyw/library/

 

[dhammond]

Bumping for Legacy expert.
But, that does look rough, no warranty service on any of that to clean it up?

 

[Flyfishing]

Thanks for the bump. The stem walls may take longer than the floor

 

[Armorpoxy]

We generally recommend doing the floor first and then the stem walls as the stem walls/foundations can be very rough and porous and really **** up the expensive epoxy where you could run out.

Since these vertical areas see no traffic, we generally recommend when you do the floor paint some of your chosen epoxy on some cardboard and take it to a local paint store and have them tint some gloss enamel to match. You won't be able to tell it's not epoxy and you just saved hundreds!

Wood and metal should be primed first with the appropriate primer (and we always recommend priming concrete too as this gives a better job). Many primers for concrete can also be used on wood and metal (our Armorclad primer can).