Rust Bullet vs.Rustoleum Rock Solid

[[email protected]]

Hey all, I'd never come across Rust Bullet before until just recently scanning the flooring forum. I'd previously had decent (though not perfect) experience with the Rust-Oleum Epoxy flooring and found it a really great 'bang for buck' product when I did it in 2006.

Having just built a new house I was planning on going with their new Rocksolid Polycuramine floor coating which promises to be 'more better-er and easier-er to apply' and all that. Anyone want to weigh in with experiences, thoughts, opinions or anything else on one vs. the other?

 

[Garage Flooring]

The product has been used in commercial and industrial applications for several years. Also there is a thread above this one where I linked to EMC2's post. He has had it down for a couple of years.

You can find tons of testimonials on the forum as well as within our website http://www.garageflooringllc.com/tag/rust-bullet/

When RockSolid was a private company they made a great product. I have no idea if the formulation has changed. At the end of the day, Legacy, ArmorPoxy and I all have similar products to that.

Rust Bullet is a single component and requires no measuring and combining of parts
Rust Bullet does not require etching or grinding
Rust Bullet will not cure in the can
Rust Bullet Abrasion testing is outstanding, as is its chemical resistance
Rust Bullet has done an outstanding job (behind the scenes) supporting Garage Journal customers.

 

[[email protected]]

I certainly have noticed and appreciate the forum support. I have been reading other people's threads on their experiences.

The big one here, and I want to be clear one, is the no etching. My garage slab is a brand new pour as of May and is clean (except for a couple of unfortunate tiny oil spills I will have to treat); never driven on as the garage has served as storage only until our basement is finished. It is baby-smooth in texture with no coating applied. Yet with a product like RockSolid they want me to etch it for good adhesion. This means washing and proper drying afterward; an extra pain.

So after reading your literature and post, I understand it that your product will be as or more durable than RockSolid and will adhere well to my smooth floor? That's the selling point for me right there.

 

[Garage Flooring]

I certainly have noticed and appreciate the forum support. I have been reading other people's threads on their experiences.

The big one here, and I want to be clear one, is the no etching. My garage slab is a brand new pour as of May and is clean (except for a couple of unfortunate tiny oil spills I will have to treat); never driven on as the garage has served as storage only until our basement is finished. It is baby-smooth in texture with no coating applied. Yet with a product like RockSolid they want me to etch it for good adhesion. This means washing and proper drying afterward; an extra pain.

So after reading your literature and post, I understand it that your product will be as or more durable than RockSolid and will adhere well to my smooth floor? That's the selling point for me right there.

Its not fair for me to make a direct comparison to a brand I do not carry. There original formulation was outstanding.

Here is a summary of the testing

Impact resistance test

Abrasion Testing

Example of chemical resistance (brake fluid and diesel)

Salt water spray

Freeze Thaw

Adhesion

Now, obviously every product has its limits. We have had outstanding success with adhesion over unprepared concrete. If you have a floor that was power troweled, we can send you a 1/4 pint for adhesion testing.

You also need to make sure that no cure n seal was used.

 

[Armorpoxy]

Be cautions of how MUCH material you get from Rock Solid. They offer nice/unique packaging but when you see how much you were paying and how many oz. of material you were getting often it was not enough, or could possibly be thick enough to give a good coating like many of the brands mentioned on the GJ. JWe heard frequent reports from the field about this problem.
Justin is correct, the old company made very good products, but since they were purchased by Rustoleum, we heard changes were going on.

As for basement coating, we have tens of thousands of installs in basements with our www.armorcladepoxy.com by replacing the acid etch and just mopping it with water and TSP which we will provide no charge if requested. A basement is very light duty/usage and usually does not require the prep that a garage does.

 

[Shea]

We did an article on the new RockSolid product. They redeveloped it and came up with their own proprietary formula called polycuramine. It's supposed to be a blend of epoxy, polyurea, and polyurethane that provides the best benefits of each.

While this sounds great in theory, it doesn't really work this way. For example, the RockSolid product is not U.V. stable. You would think it would be since that is one of the nice benefits of polyurea and polyurethane.

It looked to be a promising product, but based on the number of emails and comments in the article we get from people seeking advice about problems with the product, we're not so sure RockSolid has done as well as they would have liked.

You can read the article here if you like.

The biggest issue people are complaining about is a patchy look. Glossy in one area and dull in another.

The problem from our perspective seems to be a combination of not enough material for the stated coverage rates, dependent on surface profile, and the thin application that requires use of a foam roller.

If the end user had a fairly porous surface profile or they had to grind to remove a previous coating or sealer, the concrete absorbs much of the product and provides for a patchy look similar to an epoxy primer. It really is not a very good one coat system. It requires two coats in many cases to get good color uniformity.

Rust-Oleum provides the customer service for this product and to their credit, they are quick to give a free kit to fix issues. However, we have found the quality of technical information they provide is lacking and sometimes confusing to the consumer.

We noticed that Rust-Oleum is now rebranding the product for a separate line of floor coatings called Restore. It's being sold in Lowe's and other locations.

To be honest, we haven't heard that many performance related issues for the coating, so it seems so far that people who have been successful with the initial application are fine with the product, though it still may be too early to tell.

I feel that a consumer would get much better customer service and satisfaction with their floor if they used Rust Bullet as the OP was asking.

That really goes for any of the floor coatings that the various vendors here offer. The quality of the products offered and the customer service can't be matched by the "one coat and done" kits that can be found from the home improvement centers and large online retailers.

 

[benwah]

I agree, it's a marketing scheme. Ask them to provide performance criteria and go off that.

 

[Garage Flooring]

We did an article on the new RockSolid product. They redeveloped it and came up with their own proprietary formula called polycuramine. It's supposed to be a blend of epoxy, polyurea, and polyurethane that provides the best benefits of each.

While this sounds great in theory, it doesn't really work this way. For example, the RockSolid product is not U.V. stable. You would think it would be since that is one of the nice benefits of polyurea and polyurethane.

It looked to be a promising product, but based on the number of emails and comments in the article we get from people seeking advice about problems with the product, we're not so sure RockSolid has done as well as they would have liked.

You can read the article here if you like.

The biggest issue people are complaining about is a patchy look. Glossy in one area and dull in another.

The problem from our perspective seems to be a combination of not enough material for the stated coverage rates, dependent on surface profile, and the thin application that requires use of a foam roller.

If the end user had a fairly porous surface profile or they had to grind to remove a previous coating or sealer, the concrete absorbs much of the product and provides for a patchy look similar to an epoxy primer. It really is not a very good one coat system. It requires two coats in many cases to get good color uniformity.

Rust-Oleum provides the customer service for this product and to their credit, they are quick to give a free kit to fix issues. However, we have found the quality of technical information they provide is lacking and sometimes confusing to the consumer.

We noticed that Rust-Oleum is now rebranding the product for a separate line of floor coatings called Restore. It's being sold in Lowe's and other locations.

To be honest, we haven't heard that many performance related issues for the coating, so it seems so far that people who have been successful with the initial application are fine with the product, though it still may be too early to tell.

I feel that a consumer would get much better customer service and satisfaction with their floor if they used Rust Bullet as the OP was asking.

That really goes for any of the floor coatings that the various vendors here offer. The quality of the products offered and the customer service can't be matched by the "one coat and done" kits that can be found from the home improvement centers and large online retailers.

Thank you sir

 

[Armorpoxy]

Agree with Shea if people are experiencing issues with patchiness, that can often be due to how MUCH material you are getting. They don't like to publish it but when we looked into it a while back it was significantly less than what other kits were giving for the same square footage.

 

[Garage Flooring]

Agree with Shea if people are experiencing issues with patchiness, that can often be due to how MUCH material you are getting. They don't like to publish it but when we looked into it a while back it was significantly less than what other kits were giving for the same square footage.

One of the great things about Shea is he can generally give an opinion that would be unprofessional of you or I to offer. If you or I say something negative about our competitors, there are many here who will react negatively to that.

You will find the same thing is true with Benwah and others.

I forget whose tile it was, but onetime I chimed in on a competitors tile and I took heat for a month. Honestly, I deserved it. Even if the competitor is not here, people would much rather here vendors talk about the pros and cons of their products or types of products than say something negative about anothers brand.

Benwah and Shea don't have a brand, at least not one they promote, so they can give an honest 3rd party opinion and do a darn good job of it.

 

[benwah]

One of the great things about Shea is he can generally give an opinion that would be unprofessional of you or I to offer. If you or I say something negative about our competitors, there are many here who will react negatively to that.

You will find the same thing is true with Benwah and others.

I forget whose tile it was, but onetime I chimed in on a competitors tile and I took heat for a month. Honestly, I deserved it. Even if the competitor is not here, people would much rather here vendors talk about the pros and cons of their products or types of products than say something negative about anothers brand.

Benwah and Shea don't have a brand, at least not one they promote, so they can give an honest 3rd party opinion and do a darn good job of it.

I would like to mention that I don't take pride in talking negatively about brands, and I try no to do it. Just giving you guys my honest opinion on products that I see problems with regularly. Thanks for the kind words Justin

 

[Garage Flooring]

I would like to mention that I don't take pride in talking negatively about brands, and I try no to do it. Just giving you guys my honest opinion on products that I see problems with regularly. Thanks for the kind words Justin

ABSOLUTELY and I did not mean to imply that you speak negatively about any product, more you will call a spade a spade when it comes to a specific application -- and of course the instance where someone is using something ..... well when there are better alternatives out there....

 

[benwah]

I just hate to see failures!!

 

[[email protected]]

Thanks to everyone for weighing in from the vendors to the members. I was asking for an honest comparison so, in that case, i wouldn't fault anyone for truthfully pointing out a negative about a product. I understand that the vendors cannot be as free to contribute in that fashion as it can rarely be seen as unbiased (I sell stuff for a living too), so thanks Shea for the additional info.

I didn't know the background of RockSolid prior to RustOleum; I just thought it was a new product. As such I treated the coverage marketing with the same thoughts I did their epoxy kits; that it [properly] covered about 60% of what they claimed so 'buy twice as much as indicated'.

The main point of my question was my TOTAL unfamiliarity with Rust Bullet until a few days ago (and sorry but I'm just learning about ArmorPoxy, though appreciate you jumping in).

I have plenty of time to do more research and decide. And my garage was hand troweled and not sealed. It just has no 'brush' to it and is nice and smooth as such. Exactly what the epoxy products indicate needs etching.

Thanks again for the info.

 

[Garage Flooring]

Thanks to everyone for weighing in from the vendors to the members. I was asking for an honest comparison so, in that case, i wouldn't fault anyone for truthfully pointing out a negative about a product. I understand that the vendors cannot be as free to contribute in that fashion as it can rarely be seen as unbiased (I sell stuff for a living too), so thanks Shea for the additional info.

I didn't know the background of RockSolid prior to RustOleum; I just thought it was a new product. As such I treated the coverage marketing with the same thoughts I did their epoxy kits; that it [properly] covered about 60% of what they claimed so 'buy twice as much as indicated'.

The main point of my question was my TOTAL unfamiliarity with Rust Bullet until a few days ago (and sorry but I'm just learning about ArmorPoxy, though appreciate you jumping in).

I have plenty of time to do more research and decide. And my garage was hand troweled and not sealed. It just has no 'brush' to it and is nice and smooth as such. Exactly what the epoxy products indicate needs etching.

Thanks again for the info.

If I could make a general suggestion and observation.

Stick with the guys that are active here. Even if you do not buy product from me, most of the guys on the forum will support you to no end.

Second.... I have found that the quality of the product is inversely proportionate to how pretty the box is. Obviously this is not true in all cases, as some of the higher quality stuff is starting to come in nicer packaging, but generally, it holds true.

 

[Shea]

Second.... I have found that the quality of the product is inversely proportionate to how pretty the box is. Obviously this is not true in all cases, as some of the higher quality stuff is starting to come in nicer packaging, but generally, it holds true.

Haha..... Never thought of it that way before, but you are right!

 

[[email protected]]

Great points. And yes the packaging one is an interesting 'soft' way to help make a decision as yes indeed 'commercial' or 'professional' grade products don't bother as much to pretty up the package. Thanks everyone.

 

[MisterMike]

I can't offer a comparison between the two products that you're considering, but I do have experience with Rust Bullet, having installed it on my son's garage floor a couple of months ago. Over the years, I've had experience with epoxy, regular old floor paint, and tiles.

I did a bit more prep than you'd probably have to since my son's floor was sealed and kind of patchy. I stripped, power-washed, and acid etched it to ensure that I had a favorable surface. The Rust Bullet goes on easily, dries hard as a rock and seems to be very durable. As I said, this isn't a long-term experience, but it looks every bit as good as the day I put it down. I don't know if this is relevant to long-term longevity, but the impression I get of the floor is that it's extremely hard (as opposed to epoxy or paint), crazy durable (not showing even a scratch so far), and sticky as hell (when it's going on).

I really do expect it to hold up over the long haul and the cost is pretty reasonable. I'm probably going to do my 30' x 48' shed with Rust Bullet next summer.

 

[benwah]

I don't know if this is relevant to long-term longevity, but the impression I get of the floor is that it's extremely hard (as opposed to epoxy or paint)

To anyone reading this, epoxy cures extremely hard. It is not soft like an acrylic paint would be.

 

[Garage Flooring]

I can't offer a comparison between the two products that you're considering, but I do have experience with Rust Bullet, having installed it on my son's garage floor a couple of months ago. Over the years, I've had experience with epoxy, regular old floor paint, and tiles.

I did a bit more prep than you'd probably have to since my son's floor was sealed and kind of patchy. I stripped, power-washed, and acid etched it to ensure that I had a favorable surface. The Rust Bullet goes on easily, dries hard as a rock and seems to be very durable. As I said, this isn't a long-term experience, but it looks every bit as good as the day I put it down. I don't know if this is relevant to long-term longevity, but the impression I get of the floor is that it's extremely hard (as opposed to epoxy or paint), crazy durable (not showing even a scratch so far), and sticky as hell (when it's going on).

I really do expect it to hold up over the long haul and the cost is pretty reasonable. I'm probably going to do my 30' x 48' shed with Rust Bullet next summer.

Thank you!!! But you don't get to call 30 x 48 a shed Pretty sure that's bigger than my first house

To anyone reading this, epoxy cures extremely hard. It is not soft like an acrylic paint would be.

Good clarification. And so many discussions we could have from there.

 

[buening]

I have no horse in this race, but I noticed Rocksolid has the DIY line sold in stores and also an Industrial line. I'm not knowledgeable enough with this stuff, but wonder if the Industrial line is the old Rocksolid formula and intended for professionals, while the DIY version in stores was revised to make it easier to apply for the homeowner. Polyurea dries pretty quickly and can creep up on you if you don't hurry, and likely caused issues with chips not adhering and thus the Rocksolid hotline was busy with homeowners complaining.

http://www.menards.com/main/p-1444426581697-c-8022.htm?tid=3126515451888268512

http://www.rocksolidfloorsindustrial.com/industrial-products/base-coat-products

 

[C9ZZ]

Now, obviously every product has its limits. We have had outstanding success with adhesion over unprepared concrete. ]If you have a floor that was power troweled, we can send you a 1/4 pint for adhesion testing.

You also need to make sure that no cure n seal was used.

I am fairly new here but am considering Rust Bullet so that I don't have to etch or grind. But I have new 30 x 40 shop with machine troweled floor, is that more of a problem for bonding with Rust Bullet?

Rodney

 

[hhf86]

i would like to see more reviews on rust bullet garage floor coatings from the users

 

[Armorpoxy]

Be VERY careful when considering Rocksolid as while nicely packaged, they give very little material in the pouches that you squeeze together and mix. They don't disclose how much material you get in a box, nor do they disclose on their data sheets, you need to actually call them to find out. Their "2.5 Car Kit' contains about 1.3 gallons which in our opinion is less than half of what we would supply of our 100% solids epoxy.

While nicely packaged, you end up paying close to $175/gal if you do the math, and end up getting less than half of the material really needed vs. the 'coverage' they advertise on the box. There are numerous postings on the GJ about the problems with these products and the need to buy 2x or greater than was budgeted.

Generally speaking professional epoxy installers would never use anything sold at a home center due to quality and callback issues. There are many excellent products on the market, including Rust Bullet, just check about prep on a very smooth floor, some prep may be required.

 

[Garage Flooring]

I am fairly new here but am considering Rust Bullet so that I don't have to etch or grind. But I have new 30 x 40 shop with machine troweled floor, is that more of a problem for bonding with Rust Bullet?

Rodney

i would like to see more reviews on rust bullet garage floor coatings from the users

There are a ton of reviews of Rust Bullet on the forum. I would not however use it on power troweled concrete without preperation

 

[friday88]

I recently applied Rocksolid 2.5 car garage kit to my 2 car garage and found the coverage inadequate. I was pretty irritated about it, but called Rustoleum and they sent me a 2nd package for free. Instead of finishing the back portion of my garage I ended up just recoating the main floor. It turned out looking pretty good, but if I ever do this again I'm just going to buy bulk material from a different company. Maybe from Armorpoxy since they are pushing their product so hard lol

I think it looks okay, but I haven't driven on it or anything yet. total cost about $250 in the Rock solid kit and additional tools, + the hassle of getting Rustoleum to send me more stuff.

 

[Jawgarage]

Justin, thanks for your hundreds of impartial comments on your and others products. Quick question as I prepare to make my decision......

I doubled my garage and in essence is now two halves under one roof with each "side" being 32'X25'. One side is the original cement slab that is 25 years old with homeowner kind of oil stains and I have no idea if it was ever "sealed" or anything. The other side is brand new and while I don't know for sure it any curing sealer was used....I do recall the mason pouring a clear solution on while he was hand troweling the finish and he simply mentioned that it helped provide the final ultra smooth finish it now has. All that said, I like what I see with RUST BULLET but am not sure what kind of prep I really need. The new pour is now 5 months old and clean. I plan on power washing both sides, and have no issues doing a basic acid wash too if recommended. I really don't want to grind.

What do you recommend??

 

[cash68]

Rent a grinder, and grind the entire floor. It's the best way to open up the pores for adhesion.

 

[Garage Flooring]

Justin, thanks for your hundreds of impartial comments on your and others products. Quick question as I prepare to make my decision......

I doubled my garage and in essence is now two halves under one roof with each "side" being 32'X25'. One side is the original cement slab that is 25 years old with homeowner kind of oil stains and I have no idea if it was ever "sealed" or anything. The other side is brand new and while I don't know for sure it any curing sealer was used....I do recall the mason pouring a clear solution on while he was hand troweling the finish and he simply mentioned that it helped provide the final ultra smooth finish it now has. All that said, I like what I see with RUST BULLET but am not sure what kind of prep I really need. The new pour is now 5 months old and clean. I plan on power washing both sides, and have no issues doing a basic acid wash too if recommended. I really don't want to grind.

What do you recommend??

Thank you for the kind words.

When in doubt, grind. Often (with Rust Bullet) you can get by with just a simple cleaning. Usually an acid etch will work for it and other products. But if you want an almost sure thing, grind.

I have really started to prefer our polyurea product, but Rust Bullet is great as well!

 

[Jawgarage]

So it seems that many say rent a grinder and grind. Almost makes it sound easy. Is it? Sorry but what does it really mean? Im very very familiar and comfortable around industrial tools but never ground a floor so Im in the dark about it. Any details on what is needes and how to do it?

 

[Garage Flooring]

So it seems that many say rent a grinder and grind. Almost makes it sound easy. Is it? Sorry but what does it really mean? Im very very familiar and comfortable around industrial tools but never ground a floor so Im in the dark about it. Any details on what is needes and how to do it?

Personally. I think it *****. Its dirty, my muscles hurt after and typically I am on my knees getting at corners, etc. BUT its also relatively fast.

Make sure you have a shroud and a good vac
Leave half a day for an average garage, but its usually faster than that.