Rust Bullet DuraGrade Prep and Application Questions

[domygarageforsure]

Hi folks, this is my first time here and doing DIY on my garage. I have read posts on Reddit and also articles in this forum, but still have some questions that I'm not sure about.

The condition:
- 20 year old house and concrete was not sealed in the past
- PNW with garage door facing north (merely direct sunlight)
- Bedroom above the garage so heat insulation should not be an issue
- Some oil residues here and there
- Very thin cracks (0.5mm wide, 8ft long)
- There is no joint expansion (will this be an issue?)

My goal:
- Find a product with minimal prep and no grinder rental required
- A product that can last for 5 years or longer, with car parked, without any car maintenance or jack lifting
- A product that can be used in a 3rd car garage as home gym, with power rack, dumbbells and other equipment placed

What I've done:
- 3200PSI gas pressure washer with surface cleaner for the whole area, twice, with ZEP multi-surface cleaner
- ZEP concrete oil degreaser applied, broom brushed and power washed again (not seeing any effect though)

What I'm planning to do:
- Since there are still oil residues there, I'm going to try goof off or brake cleaner to remove the oil stain first
- Since Rust Bullet does not recommend acid etch, I'll just return the HCl powder to Home Depot

My questions:
- Will the DuraGrade product be the proper choice?
- Is there other steps for prep before I do the actual painting work?
- I'm going to use flakes for anti-slip purpose. Do I only need flakes, or I also need other mixture as well?
- Any pro-tips you'd recommend?
- For estimation, I'll do the 2-car garage first (since all stuff are stored in the 3rd car garage so I have to do one after another) which is about 400 sf. I saw people mentioned to have at least 2 coats while 1 gallon can cover around 300 sf, then I'll need 400 * 2 / 300 = 2.67 gallons so I'll just buy 3 gallons.
- Can I use apply the extra during the 2nd coating? Or I need to wait another 6-8 hours, to do a partial 3rd coat for the unused? Or can I just store the product in the garage for some days, and use it when I'm doing the 3rd car garage?

Thanks!

 

[esvee]

From my experience:
Yes this is the right product in that its super durable, easy to get a good finish, and simple to apply.
You don't need to do more prep than you've already done. Ideally, do a water bead test: anywhere water is beading up on the concrete, you should throw down some degreaser or do a bit of grinding. Having said that, I've applied duragrade to oil spots with no issues at all.
I'm about to do another floor with duragrade and I need an anti-slip as well (as duragrade can be very slippery when wet on a good flat floor) and forum member Shea recommended a micronized polymer, like SharkGrip, because it suspends better in a product like Duragrade, which is the route I'm going.

Personally I wouldn't recommend flake.

 

[Shea]

We have a full review of DuraGrade Concrete posted below. There is a lot of information to look at. Rust-Bullet used to recommend applying one of their products called Metal Blast to concrete with remaining oil stains. I would check with them on that. If you do have spots where water beads, sand the surface (not grind) with 60 grit sandpaper. Color flakes do not provide grip when the surface gets wet. They are decorative in function only.

Do you have two separate garages or a three-car garage? I ask because coatings do not blend like paint does if you plan on overlapping the coating. It will stand out with roller overlap marks.

Rust Bullet’s No Etch Duragrade Concrete Floor Coating is on Target

DuraGrade Concrete coating is one of the few coatings that requires no acid etching or grinding to apply. Discover our test results and review of this high performance garage floor coating.

allgaragefloors.com

 

[domygarageforsure]

From my experience:
Yes this is the right product in that its super durable, easy to get a good finish, and simple to apply.
You don't need to do more prep than you've already done. Ideally, do a water bead test: anywhere water is beading up on the concrete, you should throw down some degreaser or do a bit of grinding. Having said that, I've applied duragrade to oil spots with no issues at all.
I'm about to do another floor with duragrade and I need an anti-slip as well (as duragrade can be very slippery when wet on a good flat floor) and forum member Shea recommended a micronized polymer, like SharkGrip, because it suspends better in a product like Duragrade, which is the route I'm going.

Personally I wouldn't recommend flake.

Thank you @esvee for the information! I'll definitely do a water bead test to see if extra degreasing is needed. Do you think I need to repair the very thin but long cracks or just let rust bullet fill the gap?

Personally I don't like flake either, but I've heard the flake will help to hide the imperfection of the surface. If I can really do it perfectly I won't use any flake, but as it's my first time doing painting work, I'm kinda on the fence.

We have a full review of DuraGrade Concrete posted below. There is a lot of information to look at. Rust-Bullet used to recommend applying one of their products called Metal Blast to concrete with remaining oil stains. I would check with them on that. If you do have spots where water beads, sand the surface (not grind) with 60 grit sandpaper. Color flakes do not provide grip when the surface gets wet. They are decorative in function only.

Do you have two separate garages or a three-car garage? I ask because coatings do not blend like paint does if you plan on overlapping the coating. It will stand out with roller overlap marks.

Rust Bullet’s No Etch Duragrade Concrete Floor Coating is on Target

DuraGrade Concrete coating is one of the few coatings that requires no acid etching or grinding to apply. Discover our test results and review of this high performance garage floor coating.

allgaragefloors.com

Hi Shea, I've read the exact article you mentioned and really appreciate the review. I'll do a water bead check as esvee suggested as well. If flake is not the way to go for grip, shall I add anti skid? But will that make the surface no longer smooth, but "bumpy" with small bubbles here and there?


I have a three-car garage but the previous home owner added a wall to separate the 3rd car garage. So overlapping will not be an issue. Would you recommend clear coating after the 2nd layer?

 

[Shea]

The polymer beads in the anti-slip are not that noticeable unless you get down closer to look. The surface still has a somewhat smooth feel, but it won't be like glass. It's fine on bare feet and should not have a bubbled look. We do recommend using a clear coat with the anti-slip media mixed in (final coat) after the 2nd color coat. The clear would be the wear coat and protect the color coats. If the surface starts looking its age after many years, it's easy enough to clean and then scuff it up to apply a new clear coat for a new look.

 

[domygarageforsure]

The polymer beads in the anti-slip are not that noticeable unless you get down closer to look. The surface still has a somewhat smooth feel, but it won't be like glass. It's fine on bare feet and should not have a bubbled look. We do recommend using a clear coat with the anti-slip media mixed in (final coat) after the 2nd color coat. The clear would be the wear coat and protect the color coats. If the surface starts looking its age after many years, it's easy enough to clean and then scuff it up to apply a new clear coat for a new look.

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll definitely consider the clear coat (if the 2 color coats go well with mixtures.

Now I'm getting excited about the work and will finish the wall painting first and start ordering materials and learning how to use a roller!

Maybe one last question, if I'm going to buy a paint spray for the garage wall, can I also use the spray to apply rust bullet concrete coat?

 

[esvee]

Maybe one last question, if I'm going to buy a paint spray for the garage wall, can I also use the spray to apply rust bullet concrete coat?

Definitely not. Roller (and brush) all the way.