Which Flooring (Poll)

[mayday0017]

It seems that lately I am seeing a shift in what people would pick as their ideal flooring. I personally have switched from Epoxy to Ceramic or Porcelin tile. I worked for 3 years on racedeck type tile and hated it, pain to keep clean and always looked dirty.

Anways I am just curious what everyone thinks would be ideal for their next floor. And if you like feel free to post a simple "why" maybe it will change someone's view and help them make the right choice the 1st time.

 

[dngo]

I was dead set on porcelain tile until very recently.

- Despite looking for months, I didn't like any cheap tile that I could find locally. The cheapest tile I liked started around $2.50-3/sq ft.
- It was a fairly significant amount of work to do myself. Having recently had a second child join our family, my free time is extremely limited.
- Local contractors that I trusted were asking for install fees per sq ft that brought the overall cost up significantly.

This led me back to going with a Racedeck/Swisstrax style of flooring, which is obviously very easy to install, but I wanted something that was watertight. I had found Tuff-Seal tiles some time ago, which seemed to meet all my requirements, but dismissed it because of cost. However, I found that they had some on clearance, which brought it back into my acceptable price range. I have 100 sq ft about to go into the laundry area and another 700 sq ft ready to go in the garage.

Nothing against Racedeck or similar other tiles - they are excellent products and have great representation and support here. They just weren't for me.

When I get everything installed, I will post pics. It won't be until October at the least after we get moved back into our house.

Dave

 

[mayday0017]

Thanks for the input Dave! Sorry you were unable to find porcelain in your price range, I really should of posted "money aside" what would you pick... Prices are so different based on location and "who you know". Here in Houston labor would be under $100 to get the tile installed if you didn't want to do it yourself. Also we have so many options with there being a flooring store on about every corner and several very very large surplus stores with some crazy low prices. With money aside would you still pick the Tuff-Seal flooring?

 

[Stee6043]

I put down epoxy and six years later covered it with RaceDeck. Perhaps 12 years from now I'll replace the RaceDeck with porcelain! I hope not...

 

[TigerGA]

I went with RaceDeck due to ease of installation. Also liked the ability to develop my own pattern vs. epoxy. Didn't go with epoxy due to the prep, time involved and those DIY horror stories. Didn't consider ceramic or porc. tiles due to the longer install time. If making the decision today I might bite the bullet, take a week off from work, and install tile. BTW, I still love my RaceDeck.

 

[Bonefishmak]

Subscribing

 

[dngo]

Thanks for the input Dave! Sorry you were unable to find porcelain in your price range, I really should of posted "money aside" what would you pick... Prices are so different based on location and "who you know". Here in Houston labor would be under $100 to get the tile installed if you didn't want to do it yourself. Also we have so many options with there being a flooring store on about every corner and several very very large surplus stores with some crazy low prices. With money aside would you still pick the Tuff-Seal flooring?

Good question. There is one more consideration that I hadn't mentioned - the ceiling of my garage is marginal for the 4 post lift and the two cars I want to store on that side. So, the prospect of losing an inch or so to tile and the mortar was also not exciting.

If the ceiling height was not an issue and cost no object, then I would have picked a nice tile at probably $10+/sq ft and gotten it installed.

Epoxy was certainly considered and I found that it wasn't for me for various reasons, one being that I wanted a warranty on the installation and that required professional installation (which brought cost into the equation again.) It was more expensive to have epoxy professionally installed than purchase the Tuff-Seal.

Dave

 

[cdd1]

I have Racedeck in my current garage--tile and epoxy were out since there are some cracks in the concrete that made those options non-feasible.

Given a newly poured floor, I would have probably gone with tile.

 

[Td_20]

1. Epoxy first choice
2. Race deck
3. Bare concrete

I wouldnt go with tile, I don't want the garage to be like the inside of the house.

 

[turbowoodworker]

I am in the process of permitting and therefore choosing products for 1400 sq ft shop. I have followed with great interest this and many other topics concerning materials and fixtures. In my situation, I think that VCT will be the best option for me. Dave has posed the question "if money was not a concern" (paraphrasing). Unfortunately for most of us, money is very important. As much as I like Racedeck and similar products, cost is a big factor.
I don't think tile is the best choice, again for my particular situation, due to worries about cracks with heavy equipment, tools etc. I had epoxy professionally applied at a previous house and watching it peel, bubble and lift over the years was no fun. I know that some will say the prep was not good, which is likely true, but when a pro puts it down, it's supposed to be done right and last. And you don't find out the prep was bad or other conditions caused lifting, until later long after the bill is paid.
VCT should be easy on dropped tools in the woodshop section. I willl likely leave one section of the shop with sealed concrete only for heavy metal work and welding/cutting.
I look forward to following this thread with great interest and thanks for all the input.
Rick

 

[Stee6043]

I think it's worth noting that this poll will likely show the results of which type of floor is most often installed and NOT the type of floor that is "most preferred or desired". I suspect very few epoxy floor owners are going to vote RaceDeck and vice versa.

I think we could all agree that epoxy floors are more widely utilized than either types of tile mentioned above, by a large factor.

A more meaningful pole would be to ask professional installers who carry all three types which kind they would install in their garage, all things being equal. Or find users that have installed and used all three.

And then to really peg the nerdery-statistics scale you should really adjust for geography. Folks up in Michigan will have a slightly different use case than those in sunny Florida. I laugh every time I see a washer and dryer or a water heater in a garage. They probably laugh when they see us talk about installing a 70,000 btu heater in our garages. Such is life.

Just my two cents.

 

[Familyof8kids]

1. Epoxy first choice
2. Race deck
3. Bare concrete

I wouldnt go with tile, I don't want the garage to be like the inside of the house.

The garage needs to be completely different. Almost want to make the wife mad about the wild look so she slides out of my area into her square tile home.

Epoxy is winning 2 to 1!

Epoxy 16 48.48%
Race Deck Type 7 21.21%
Ceramic/Porcelain Tile 8 24.24%
Other (please post below) 2 6.06%

 

[Grimlock]

I think i'm going to go with the porcelain PEI 5 route. I'm in Austin, but I think i'll take a trip to Houston to pick up the tiles. The main usage for my garage will be working on the car and I don't want my car jacks / jack stands tearing up an epoxy floor.

Can anyone recommend a good tile surplus depot in Houston (or Austin for that matter)?

 

[Chuck W.]

I am going on five years with VCT and wouldn't swap it out for anything else.

 

[Olyar15]

There is no ideal floor. Each has its advantages and disadvantages, some of which are subjective. I would not make my decision based on whichever option wins, since you may not end up with something you like.

I chose porcelain tile because I DO want the garage to look like a part of my house. I have an attached garage and one of my goals is to create a worthy home for my cars. I happen to like the look of tile, wanted a DIY project and figured tiling mistakes were easier to fix than epoxy mistakes. If I had to do it over again, I would still go tile, but might have let a pro install them. It is a lot of work.

 

[mayday0017]

I think i'm going to go with the porcelain PEI 5 route. I'm in Austin, but I think i'll take a trip to Houston to pick up the tiles. The main usage for my garage will be working on the car and I don't want my car jacks / jack stands tearing up an epoxy floor.

Can anyone recommend a good tile surplus depot in Houston (or Austin for that matter)?

Homedepot/Lowes prices really are not that bad, you can find it on sale there and then use a 10% movers coupon to get it even lower.

For really low prices check your local ReStore they might have some tile you like.

Or if you still are out of luck drive down to Houston, check craigslist before you come just incase, because I see TONS of it listed there. But for a good store and on the Austin side of Houston check out Floor and Decor ( http://www.flooranddecoroutlets.com/ ) you can buy it for under a dollar a sqft all day!

I would recommend keeping 1/16" groute lines, and I'm not sure which thinset is strongest but I do know some are better then others, I had a tile guy tell me "white stuff" is the best so I used it in my house, but honestly don't know the truth... Also I have never installed tile in garage but next time I do a garage I'm about 90% sure I'll do tile!

 

[cdd1]

one of my goals is to create a worthy home for my cars.

Let's see 'em!

 

[rickyrj1]

I have had 18" black/grey porcelain tiles on my garage floor now for over 3 yrs. I am very happy with it, very easy to keep clean and looks as good as the day I installed them. The only down side is slippery when wet.

 

[Familyof8kids]

Is there anyway the voters for tile products would say if they had a pre-epoxy experience that moved them toward tile products?

Not bashing anyone just good info for a new epoxy buyer myself and looking for 5 year goal wondering if I will be doing tile over the epoxy.


Familyof8kids
As long as we all agree that our garage is the best place on the property!

 

[mayday0017]

Have had 3 epoxy garages and I would do tile in the next one.

(agree this would be very useful) Almost need 2 polls in 1 thread so we can know what we would pick to be our flooring type, and if we have ever had any of the 3. Maybe everyone looking at epoxy has never had it? Or same could go for tile....

 

[Fastback]

How can you guys stand grout lines? Seriously I cant keep them clean in my house, let alone in a shop environment. And, whats it like dragging a jack across those grout lines? Its gotta chip an edge if someone just starts dragging a big ole jack around without concern.

I personally dont think bare concrete is all that bad myself? Just spill a pack of kool-aid in the mix... they make it in a variety of flavors (And colors)

OF course, this is a before pic, and after rebuilding and painting that car where it sits I destroyed the look of the floor. But, I had a sacrificial coat of cure-n-seal on the slab to catch overspray and had to go over it with a black buffing pad to get it clean again.

Here it is this week, it takes a bit to get a paint booth floor clean, so I purchased a floor machine for $90 that really makes it kinda simple.

Now I just need more clear to make it pop. I am pondering wax this time.

I still dont know how you would get that mess out of a rough grout line joint?


If I ever move and buy a pre-built garage I would do the VCT squares, at least if I melt one I may be able to replace that one square.

 

[slickgt1]

I think most people know where I stand on the subject. lol

If you don't, there be links in the sig.

 

[Olyar15]

Is there anyway the voters for tile products would say if they had a pre-epoxy experience that moved them toward tile products?

Not bashing anyone just good info for a new epoxy buyer myself and looking for 5 year goal wondering if I will be doing tile over the epoxy.


Familyof8kids
As long as we all agree that our garage is the best place on the property!

I had part of my basement floor epoxied in my previous house, and was happy with it, but noticed that it scratched if I wasn't careful. I also saw the garage floor of my new home builder, who had his epoxied a few years ago. It looked good, but I noticed that there were dull areas on the floor from wear and tear. Not that it really deterred me from thinking about epoxy.

The main aspect that turned me off of epoxy is that I found them rather bland. Basically the choice of only a few colours, with or without flakes. They all basically look the same. Now I have seen some really nice designs done by professionals, including TheGarageGuy here on the forum, that look fantastic. I have no idea how he does them, and would probably not tackle such a project even if I did. So in my case it was do a plain epoxy floor as a DIY, or hire someone good that can do a custom floor (which would probably cost an arm and a leg).

Again, I'm not saying that this makes tiles superior to epoxy; just that, personally, I prefer tiles over epoxy. I certainly wouldn't discourage anyone from getting an epoxy coating if that is what they want.

 

[Olyar15]

How can you guys stand grout lines? Seriously I cant keep them clean in my house, let alone in a shop environment. And, whats it like dragging a jack across those grout lines? Its gotta chip an edge if someone just starts dragging a big ole jack around without concern.

Dark coloured grout helps to avoid the appearance of stains. And thin (1/8" or less) grout lines will make dragging jacks and other equipment easier.

 

[Nick-NY]

Polished concrete is a great way to go. but if i could afford it i'd do tile.

 

[jordan369]

Polyurea!

Mike

 

[Cruzin90]

Yep, polyurea.

 

[RaceDeck1]

Hmmmm? I'd have to say "RaceDeck"
Have a great weekend everyone!

 

[mayday0017]

Very impressed with how close the opinions are on each type of flooring, Even more impressed with the tile followers I would be willing to bet that if this same poll was ran a year to 1.5 years ago it would of been epoxy far in the lead followed by racedeck then other then tile

 

[Best Corvette]

I had a 3 car garage done in Fl Professionally done over $3000.
After 2 yrs ZL1 Camaro caused hot tire pick up. This was the 2nd house I made this mistake on.

Looking very seriously at Race deck or Garage trac. Just dont know if I should use the TuffSheild.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Wow, things have changed since 2012. Back from the dead thread warning.

Thread closed.