Vinyl Comp. Tile (VCT) / clear epoxy over tile questions

[Doug427]

I have the typical black and white vinyl tile floor in my garage. I've poked around this site and seen some where they put clear epoxy over the vinyl tiles for a wet shine look. I'd like to do that, but I have a few questions that I'm hoping one of the floor experts and/or guys who have done this can answer.

I put the floor down two years ago. Overall it's held up ok, but I have a couple of staining and lifting issues that I need to solve.

As for staining, I get tire stains predominantly on the white tiles. There is no coating on the floor whatsoever. No wax, etc, I just removed from the box, glued them down as is and left it that way. I always planned on going back and finishing them off somehow, but you know how that goes..... Where the tires of the car sit I get a brownish stain on the tiles. How do I remove this? I see that guys who have done the clear epoxy say the have to sand the floor first. Will the sanding typically remove the tire stains, or will I need to remove the tiles and replace with new ones? I bought many extra tiles so replacing, while a pain in the neck, is not really a big deal if necessary.

Will the clear epoxy coating typically resist the tire staining that I get now?

I get tiles being lifted by the tires, typically after I jack the car and then put it down again. When jacked up one of my cars gets a huge camber in the rear, then when it's back on the ground the tires try to push out at the bottom to return to it's normal weighted camber position and it will occasionally pop a tile out or break one as this happens. Will the epoxy coating keep this from happening? Is it strong enough to prevent that?

How many coats of epoxy are recommended?

What's the current go to epoxy to be used for this purpose and where to get it? Costs?

Thanks, guys.

 

[Armorpoxy]

Hi
We don’t recommend coating over vct tiles, we have seen massive failures with curling over time, and peeling due to the difficulty of adhesion. Also you can’t use clear epoxy as it will yellow.

 

[The Cobbler]

changing the stained tiles will likely be noticeable .I would sand the spots , and even at that it may show. tiles that have been laid will look different (from aging) than a new tile from the same dye lot
not sure that epoxy will do anything with the lift you are experiencing

 

[Doug427]

Wow, this is confusing. I see some knowledgeable flooring product pros in other threads touting the benefits of epoxy and similar products applied over VCT. Then another pro (Armorpoxy) who obviously also knows what he's talking about chime in on this thread that it's not a good idea. Ugh, nothing is ever easy. No idea what to do.

 

[Armorpoxy]

We are speaking g from experience and have seen really bad results from this. VCT is a finish product that is non porous and not designed to be coated. Each tile is made differently and can react with the coating.

We had a job that was over 5,000 sq feet of VCT that they attempted to coat and about a month later all of the tiles curled up! Since there is no way to know what your tiles of made up and it’s obviously impossible to test every type of tile with epoxy combination for that reason we do not recommend under any circumstance of trying to coat these surfaces.

If you want to try that ok but there is no warranty and you could have problems so we like to be upfront about that.


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[Doug427]

I appreciate the info. Sounds like you're saying that sometimes it works and sometimes not. I have tons of spare tiles. I guess I can try it on a few of the spares and see what the result is over a month or two of being coated and go from there?

 

[Shea]

Yeah, it's a hit and miss type of thing. We know of people who have been successful and those that have not. We have an article about how to do it, but we preface that it doesn't work for everyone.

https://allgaragefloors.com/epoxy-over-vinyl-composite-tile/

 

[Doug427]

The concrete floor is about 30 years old, and there has never been one iota of evidence of moisture. I would certainly do a moisture test on it anyway but Id be completely surprised if any evidence of moisture showed up. As the article suggests I would rent a smaller floor sander and use mesh to sand the tiles well. Hopefully that sanding would remove most if not all brown tire stains. I have had a couple of oil drops on the tiles before, I would clean them very very thoroughly with denatured alcohol. If there were any doubt as to the effective removal of the small oil spots, I would just replace those tiles. Same thing if the tire stains don't come out. I understand thet epoxy may yellow. What are the ideal combination of products for strength, durability, clarity and super high gloss if I was to attempt this? I know what epoxy is, and I sort of use that as a catch all phrase. I know that epoxy is a very specific product. I know there are also newer epoxy like products. If you were to try this, what product(s) would you use to get a thick, super shiny and durable finish?

 

[39CAMC]

It probably wouldn't be as maintenance free as you desire, but there are tons of janitorial products (and procedures) for stripping, sealing and waxing VCT floors that make them resistant to dirt/staining and shiny.

You might check with a commercial janitorial supply company...

DaveW

 

[ford33]

The OP placed the tiles and did nothing afterwards to protect the installation. The finishing after placement is part of the installation. Instead of attempting an unproven fix, why not follow the manufacturers recommendations?

OP, check the manufacturers website for installation instructions. They will clearly tell you how to complete the installation and maintain the tiles. There are numerous posts here showing people restoring their VCT tiles after years of use and abuse. A floor buffer, some cleaner and polish and wax may be all that you need to do to get your floor to a nice appearance.

Good luck and post some before and after pictures.

 

[FJ4FUN]

We've had great success with our BondTite 1115 clear epoxy & EnduraShield 2254 hybrid-urethane over VCT. That being said, the fact that you have tiles lifting would preclude me from advising this approach. At the end of the day the coating is only as good as the substrate it's attached too...

 

[Doug427]

Thanks all for the responses. I'd really like to avoid the constant strip/wax/polish routine.

FJ4FUN, I appreciate that input. I'm not having a "lifting" issue really. I have one car that gets a huge camber in the rear end when I jack it up. I learned that if I just let it down and leave it to sit for days as lowered, the outward push of the tires can eventually pop a tile loose. It has happened twice under the identical circumstance. I have since learned that after jacking up the rear of the car, I simply move it forward or back a few feet and all is well as the tires return to their normal position. No other tile has ever popped or lifted without the 'help" of the car in question.

I'll send you an email to get more details on your products.

Thanks again to all.

 

[Gunteh]

here’s an example of my garage where I put down epoxy over vct. Obviously this is a diy project so it’s amateur, but I did all the work myself.

 

[Armorpoxy]

Looks great! In our experience though since there are thousands of different VCT formulations some of them can and have reacted with epoxy coatings. This problem can be minimized by using a clear 100% solids epoxy or polyaspartic (we carry both) which have zero solvents since solvents in the coating can react with the VCT causing curling and such.

 

[Jason B]

Just clean and wax the floor. A good wax will last a long long time. No spots. I put this floor in back in 2007! Also, not all tires leave yellow stains, only certain brand tires. If you're worried about yellow stains, then just put some extra tiles overtop of those areas (or use clear projector transparency film over those tiles) and same thing when you jack the car. Put extra tiles under those jacks.

 

[CombatNinja]

All of your issues can be solved with using stripper/buffer and wax products intended for VCT. This includes the issue of the camber of the car trying to pop up tiles as the greatly reduced friction will allow them to slide instead of grab.

 

[duneslider]

I would second the suggestion of using the correct VCT wax for the flooring and not using epoxy. I think you will be much happier long term with a product designed for VCT.