going to be redoing my entire garage in a couple months, just planning it all out ahead of time. wondering what kind of options there are for concrete floor sealant or paint, etc. i know i saw a setup on some show where they had some kind of plastic tile system, or something of that nature, but i don't want to go that route. An old friend of mine had some kind of sealant on his floor that was a blueish silver color and had what felt like sand in it for better traction, i guess. Just curious what you guys have and how you would reccomend it? also if anyone has any links to products of would like to post your own pics i would greatly appreciate it. thanks in advance.
-Woody

 

I used the BEHR garage floor paint on a new floor. Clear sealer first and then a color. Unfortunatly it didnt hold up well. Any place a rubber tire sits, the paint pulls up. It even lifted under the rubber tires of my small portable generator. Does hold up very well to foot trafic and the steel wheels dont hurt it either. It also lifts if you spill any kind of solvent. I would suggest the expoxy paints. Take a look at U-Coatit.

 

used por15 on mine.. no lifting, ect..
U-coatit is another good choice..
btw, painting the floor has to be one of the best kept secrets out there.
easy clean ups, lowered dust levels, good stuff

 

I'm going to try U-Coatit on my new garage next month

 

This is probably a little contrary to what the thinking is on painting floors, but here goes.....

I started coating my floors about 15 years ago using the single part paints, but they didn't hold up real well under tires in AZ and the surface was somewhat porous so they would stain and lift.

In my next shop, I put down a two part epoxy floor. It lasted about five years before it started looking shabby. Tires would pick it up too, but not as bad.

I sanded it and painted it again, but by then the VOC regulations had seriously degraded the quality and durability of the two part epoxy. I'd used Frazee's commercial epoxy.

I sanded that down about 3 years ago, and applied another coat of epoxy, this time followed by a pigmented urethane. It cost me about $700 to do the equivalent of a five car garage (just materials). The urethane top coat was the easiest system I'd ever had to keep clean, but if you droped anything on it it would pop a piece out of the floor covering. If you do any aluminum fabrication, the aluminum dust starts to turn the tan floor gray. If you weld, slag burns holes in the coating.

I sanded it again and put on another coat of urethane only (goes on very thin and it looks like new again)

So I've had various floor systems for about 15 years now, and I've spent alot more time than I want to keep it looking nice. I bought a burisher on ebay for $300 and buff it up with a white pad about every two or three months. If I drop something on it, it go out and mix a little epoxy to go in the pop to keep the floor looking nice.

What a pain in the ***. You can eat off the floor and it is a pleasure to work in the shop, but I've created a monster.

If I had it to do over again I'd use colored concrete and finish it nicely and put a top coat of clear sealer on it and be done with it. Or, just leave it concrete.

 

I used the Rustoleum garage coating product. Too early for me to post anything about how it holds up to wear, but you can see some pics in the following thread:

https://ls1tech.com/forums/tools-fabrication/198187-garage-re-design-complete.html


-Mike

 

wow guys, thanks a ton for the info, i think i'm going to go with the U-Coatit system. i love it in medium blue with the granite U-Flake over it. does anyone know if that will lift at all? or how long it'll take until i have to re-do it? thanks again.

 

The plastic tiles suck . . . . well for a "working" garage, they do. If it is purely for show, go for it. Plus at nearly $5.00 a square foot . . . . . and $1.00 for the edge peices . . .



One good thing about them (Racedeck) you can move them from house to house . . . in my old garage the tiles were under the cars, the new house the tiles are "around" the cars, so there is a flat "working" space. The orginal floor was coated with something by the previous owner, and it is pealing a sticking to the tires . . .

 

I think the only sure-fire ways to keep a painted surface from sticking to hot tires and peeling are to either

a) put door mats where the tires will end up or
b) let the car sit on the driveway for a little while before pulling into the garage

I'm going to go with option A for my garage, as it sort of defeats the purpose of being able to park in the garage if I have to wait a few hours after I get home to move it there.


-Mike

 

I used PPG Aquapon paint on my floor. I park 3 cars in the garage and have yet to have any paint peel up. I've had engine oil, brake fluid, tranny fluid, hot tires and a hydralic jack on the floor. After 2 years it still looks great. It cost me about $200 to do a 3 car garage. By far the best thing I've done to my garage.

Do not buy the paint from home depot/lowes. It won't last long. Aquapon is an indrustial paint for concrete/metal.

 

pacman, where did you get that paint?

 

I bought the paint at the local PPG paint store. I believe the name of the store was Monarch paints. For my 3 car garage I used 2 gallons of paint. Each gallon of paint comes with one gallon of epoxy. I applied 2 coats. I also added in "shark bite" that I bought at Lowe's. Shark bite is a gritty sandlike substance to make the flooring grip better. I applied one coat then waited 24hrs to apply the second coat. I didn't drive any cars on it for 48hrs. I paid about $80 for one gallon of paint/epoxy. I would say the total cost was less than $200. $160 for the paint. $20 for the roller brushes and $10 for the TSP cleaner. This is alot cheap than other floor coatings.

Prior to the paint you need to clean the floor. Since my garage was new I used TSP. TSP looks like dry laundry soap. I bought this at Lowes. From what I was told if your floor is dirty you need to acid etch the floor with muric acid. I let the floor dry for 24 hours before painting.

I applied the paint using a roller attached to a long handle.

Here are some links to the paint:

http://www.amerimexpaints.com/Aquapon_WB.pdf

http://www.ppg.com/ppgaf/special302.htm

http://www.detailcity.com/forums/arc...pic/445-1.html

 

Used the same stuff on my garage floor, works awesome! Just make sure you prep the surface fully before you paint......

 

This is rustoleium with th flakes[IMG]

 

As an aircraft mechanic, I spend a lot of time on hangar floors. Most professional service hangars have some type of coating on the floor, so here is what I've learned.

Two-part urethanes hold up the best, but can be very slippery, and an abrasive grit is usually added in small quantities for traction. If you are parking anything with rubber tires on the urethane, make sure you tell the people supplying the coating...not all urethanes are the same. Some have additional dissolved solids to make the finish resistant to what it commonly called "burning", the action that leaves black stains in the surface from materials in the tire migrating into the painted surface. Good urethanes, designed to reisist this, are available, but tend to cost a little more, so always ask about the resistance to tire compounds.

Lighter colored floors tend to reflect more light "up". This can be real important for aircraft work when working under a wing but it also helps when working under a car, especially on a lift. You don't need as many drop lights. White really shows all the dirt, but a light, dove gray, reflects well and looks "cleaner". Avoid dark colors. They look good, but absorb a lot of light and if you do any painting, they reflect white light poorly, so that what you want isn't always what you get after a touch-up job.

Any floor coat really helps control dust. Not only does it seal the pores of the concrete, but a great percentage of the dust is actually caused by micro-fine concrete particles that seperate from the floor surface. A smoothly painted floor is much easier to keep clean, and it doesn't absorb spilled fluids which can stain an untreated surface.

Most important, check with the manufcturer of the coating about how to prep the floor. Most of the time, concrete must be at least 30-60 days old before any coating goes on. There are also many different procedures to follow before painting to insure proper adhesion of the coating you are using. (Acid washing, neutralizing, abrading, etc.) I have used products fron the Tennant company on several hangars, and have had really good results by following their recommendations. Always check with several different suppliers!