VCT Tile, Jackstands, Rollers, Cherry Pickers...and YOU!

[47ford - 1.5ton]

Alright all you VCT Tile owners.....


I've heard reports all over the map.... so help me out definitively all you VCT tile owners.....

Will tile withstand a cherry picker with metal wills rolling over it with a small block motor and transmission dangling? Or will it leave a path of depression?

Jackstands.....with a 3000# car atop..... simply place plywood underneath to displace all the point loading? (I would probably actually 'modify' my jackstands and weld platforms to them....)

My biggest condundrum....

My floor slopes to the center were I have a floor drain....will this put the nail in the coffin for me in regards to not being able to do tile? (Slope is gradual but is apparrent)

(I looked and looked but haven't found an example of VCT tile with floor drains/sloping floors)


Edit: More Questions

Wisconsin winters..... my shop stays around 45*F..... some tile manufacturers recommend 55*F or above.... any winter tilers out there? (This is for my shop... not my daily driver garage FYI... so no salt/snow)

 

[cderalow]

VCT is sloped to the floor in commercial buildings constantly.

so it is possible, and does work.

 

[47ford - 1.5ton]

No one else?

 

[garagegeek]

I had VCT tile in my last garage and was not happy with it. I had to use 1/4 " plywood under the jackstands. I never tried a cherry picker. Do not leave the ebrake on when you set a vehicle back down after being jacked up. I made that mistake once and overnight it slowly peeled the tiles up under the back wheels. Over time I had problems with tires permanently marking the tiles. You can use a heat gun during installation to form to slight bends.

 

[47ford - 1.5ton]

I had VCT tile in my last garage and was not happy with it. I had to use 1/4 " plywood under the jackstands. I never tried a cherry picker. Do not leave the ebrake on when you set a vehicle back down after being jacked up. I made that mistake once and overnight it slowly peeled the tiles up under the back wheels. Over time I had problems with tires permanently marking the tiles. You can use a heat gun during installation to form to slight bends.

This isn't looking good for even a 'remotely' working garage....

REALLY not liking my epoxy choices either....... hmmmm

 

[BlueFlame150]

I was a VCT and installer with my father who still is. Now if you plan on working in your garage, your gonna be unhappy. Tile will slide and dent very easy, trust me. A school deck will move and dent VCT

Now if your making more of a show and no work kind of place you could make it work

And to install VCT you need to be at least above 60 and a some what warm floor so it will lay flat

 

[47ford - 1.5ton]

And to install VCT you need to be at least above 60 and a some what warm floor so it will lay flat

It will be 70*F when I install....but after a few days I'll be turning back down to 55* F.... (the winter temp I set teh thermostat at...)

 

[woody2136]

I was planning on VCT until I read this thread...I do engines, transmissions and just about everything under the sun. I guess that's not gonna work.

 

[84944Redline]

This is definitely the forum to learn everything there is to know about flooring options. I have bounced around and considered everything discussed.

By no means am I the expert on this, but there have been some very informative threads about using porcelain tile. Sounded silly as hell when I first read that, but then dug into the nitty gritty details of it and was blown away at just how wrong I was in my initial judgment!!!

For welding, durability, extreme heat/cold climates, aesthetics, maintenance, slip concerns when wet, and all the other major concerns and questions people bring up...porcelain seems to be a good solution for all.

I'll turn it over to those in the know...and look forward to the education/confirmation for what I decide to go with.

 

[036.6turbo]

I have VCT in my "garage" The one attached to the house, where my wife parks her DDs. It's nice clean looks good, I will never put it down in my "shop". It could not take the abuse my shop floor gets. I will do epoxy, or procilin tile back there (in my shop).

 

[slickgt1]

Porcelain is the way to go. I have it, and do a lot more than just work on cars. I build custom furniture sometimes, so drag plywood, wood, paint on it, use a wire wheel to get the paint off, jack up my 5000lb + car with one jack, never put anything down under the jacks, stands or whatever else. Drop tools, hammers, mini sledge, loaded drills from 8' high. Have lots of oils and other chemical spills, sometimes they stay on the floor for days before I can get to them. Yea I don't baby my floor at all.

Oh, here you go.
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=95966

 

[47ford - 1.5ton]

Porcelain is the way to go. I have it, and do a lot more than just work on cars. I build custom furniture sometimes, so drag plywood, wood, paint on it, use a wire wheel to get the paint off, jack up my 5000lb + car with one jack, never put anything down under the jacks, stands or whatever else. Drop tools, hammers, mini sledge, loaded drills from 8' high. Have lots of oils and other chemical spills, sometimes they stay on the floor for days before I can get to them. Yea I don't baby my floor at all.

Oh, here you go.
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=95966

Unfortunately.... 3x the budget isn't an option for me...

I think I'm going to do some soul searching on how I'm REALLY going to use the garage.....(beer drinkers paradise or worker bee garage)

I rarely put it to work.... (my garage is an attached 4 stall... 2 stall... 2 deep with a 13' divider door and wall between the two.... the back 'shop' so to speak sees no daily drivers.. no oil changes, trucks on jacks etc..... was a project truck garage (see screen name) but I had to get out of the project due to a few med bills / wedding....

I want a garage worthy of my next project in a few years....

I still might go with VCT I think...

 

[JimVonBaden]

Stay tuned. I am about to install VCT this weekend on a working garage. Wont be long before I will know if damage is an issue or not.

Jim

 

[slickgt1]

Jim don't do it. Trust me don't do it. Scraping that **** off later on will be a pain in the ***.

At least do a small section for your car and try it out. Trust me, you will thank me later.

Think of the times you have one side of the car jacked up, and the wheel is just not in the right place, so you tug the steering, your tile will come off.

When going up ramps, you know how they sometimes slide out from a heavy car, or slide when you break on top of them. Goodbye tiles.

 

[JimVonBaden]

Jim don't do it. Trust me don't do it. Scraping that **** off later on will be a pain in the ***.

At least do a small section for your car and try it out. Trust me, you will thank me later.

Think of the times you have one side of the car jacked up, and the wheel is just not in the right place, so you tug the steering, your tile will come off.

When going up ramps, you know how they sometimes slide out from a heavy car, or slide when you break on top of them. Goodbye tiles.

Thanks for the warning, but I am pretty confident, based on past experience, that proper adhesion is the key, and I can do it.

I'll unhapily eat crow if I am wrong.

Keep in mind that I work on motorcycles almost exclusively, and rarely need to lift my car.

Jim

 

[slickgt1]

Don't turn the wheels of your car on it either. That glue is like contact cement. Even though it will stick, it will still flex and move.

Please keeps us updated on how it holds up.

 

[47ford - 1.5ton]

Please keeps us updated on how it holds up.

Bingo... fill me in from a week from now.... after that adhesive cures up....

I know some others mention that the 'glue' can still have movement/elasticity but I know they make other 'glues' that are more contact cement then anything and adhere HARD....


I'll be watching/waiting with anticipation.

 

[SteveB]

First off, my 2 car garage houses our vehicles and also becomes my hang out where I do light repairs, hang a bunch of race car and hockey memorabilia and drink beer with my buddies.

It is unheated but insulated and attached to our home. The lowest temperature I have ever seen in there was near 40F or 6C. I live in a part of Canada that has winters, not too severe and hot dry summers.

I installed the Armstrong VCT in July 2006, my first time ever to perform such a task, amateur for sure. They covered a 15 year old concrete floor. Two or three times a year I wipe the floor with a damp foam mop using a floor cleaning liquid. Then I use the same mop to lay down two coats of Armstrong Polish, no buffing - way too much work for this retiree.

Last spring I rented a machine from Home Depot and stripped the wax build-up. The whole process took the best part of a day.

I have never had a tile lift, move or crack, as much as my wife loves to wiggle the steering wheel of her car while backing in and sometimes even when the car is stopped.

Yes, jack stands will leave an outline on the tile. I have some small pieces of carpet for this purpose. Yes, tires will stain the VCT, especially the stickier, high performance ones. I made sure that I installed a darker tile where I knew the tires would contact the tiles and have learned to live with the light brown stain, very hard to see.

Would I install VCT again - yup. It was inexpensive, easy to do and little work to maintain a clean look. It has worked for me.

YMMV

You can check out my install by clicking on the Car Domain link in my signature area below.

 

[garagegeek]

It is not just the glue that is the problem. The car tires grind dirt into the tiles over time that you can't mop up. I also had problems where the tires chemically reacted with the tiles and stained them permanently. For just a woodshop, VCT is great. For car or metal work, I would not recommend it. One caveat is that my tiles were light gray. Maybe a darker color would have helped. I have a polyaspartic floor now and am much happier.

 

[JimVonBaden]

I think many here are wantng a perfect floor for years. I do not exect that. I need it to be smooth enough to mop (my concrete isn't even close) and to look decent with minimal work. A few tire stans wont bother me, nor will a few dings and scratches.

I'm hoping for what Steve got. We have little snow here, and my garage will likely never get below freezing.

Jim

 

[47ford - 1.5ton]

Thanks Steve B....

You confirmed what I've been wanting....

I've decided to go with VCT.... as I won't have any dirt/mud/snow in my shop as my daily's have their own 2 stall....

If it becomes a problem in the future I'll simply strip 1 stall of the 'project area' and epoxy.... but as of right now my shop will be a workshop/beer drinkers retreat until I can get my major finances settled and some play money stocked back up.

The sale of a project is allowing me to pay off some med. bill debt and basically the last few hundred bucks i have left is going back into the garage as flooring and cabinets.

VCT it is...!


By the way Jim... looking good so far..

 

[JimVonBaden]

Thanks, I should have the second half done this weekend.

I think, based on what I have so far, it should hold up well, and look better than bare concrete!

Jim

 

[Tripp P.]

You'll be happy. I really like my VCT. Its been in for about 8 months. I did have 4 tiles move right after it was installed. The front tires on my Pontaic. I peeled up the moved tiles and just replaced them. I tend to be careful when I'm working. There holding up fine. My bike lift isn't leaving marks on them. I sweep up after using the wire wheel so track grit all over. The back tires on the car have discolored the white tiles but I was kind of expecting it. I would recomend the VCT.

 

[STIBuilder]

Are the guys who seal up the VCT still seeing issues with yellowing from tires? My garage will be a semi daily and light hobby work. My issue is the tires on my weekend car are 295 R comps so they will be way more sticky then std car tires.