Garage Floor Coating

[Dan Vargus]

Does anyone have a suggestion for a garage floor coating that is durable enough for a working garage?
Thanks, Dan Vargus GT2-001

 

[Mr U-2]

Anthony,

I also have a two part epoxy floor. My Jag has discolored it in a couple of spots from the usual Jag oil leaks. I want to redo my floor...did you just paint over the old coats or did you have to treat it?

Paul

 

[Anthony - 98 GTS]

Paul,

I just cleaned the floor and then did an acid wash to help the new coat adhere to the old coat. Let it dry for 12-24 hours then put down the new coat of paint.

I used the same 2-part epoxy system for both coats.

 

[Mr U-2]

Anthony....Thanks....I'll give it a shot again...it's otherwise been a good floor covering...looks good and easy to clean...although it can get slippery when wet... Paul

 

[Bill Pemberton Woodhouse]

You might try RaceDeck, and if you look further, you will probably just decide to use RaceDeck. The fact that the owner of the company has a GTS, which of course makes him a man of utmost wisdom and culture, is sort of important too, but my suggestion would be RaceDeck.

PS - No we didn't sell him his car, but he does have Viperitis and his product is top notch!

Unsolicited Testimonial ---- Ask for RaceDeck !!

 

[JonB]

HEY ! I've been in your garage. Betwwen the lake and the pool, you DONT want epoxy. "Help, Ive fallen and I cant get up" RaceDeck will make your neighbors jealous, too.
www.racedeck.com

racedack 800-457-0174

 

[SNAKOIL VA]

As an architect, we use a number of different coatings on floors to provide stain resistance and provide ease of cleaning. Many of these products have the ability to add a slip resistant grip to the surface by either varying the type of roller that is used or adding a grit to the product.

The US Air Force uses one on their aircraft carriers and decks,that we've used will good results. I don't recall the name of the product, but if there's interest, I'll dig the name out of our spec books.

We've also started using a ceramic type coating that allows you to make any pattern and color you want.

 

[Steve Ferguson]

Dan I just got some samples of the Race Deck flooring and it is very nice. I am bringing up to our cabin to see if it can withstand the studs on our snowmobiles. I will report back. BTW, the owner is also a VCA member. There is a great post in off-topics talking about his product.

 

[Jeff Torrey]

Dan- I had thought about putting Epoxy on my floor. Until I saw a garage floor that had been done. If you get any water or liquid on the floor it is slippery, real bad. Dangerous.

 

[Anthony - 98 GTS]

I have a 2-part epoxy painted floor. I just put a new coat down this week after 4 years and it held up well with light traffic.

I just ordered the Race Deck flooring for the high traffic/work areas. This combination should work well and keep the cost down from doing the entire garage in the Race Deck flooring.

 

[JetMec]

Do not use Behr 2 part epoxy from Home Depot. You will be disappointed.

 

[46hemi]

Guys I just went through this exercise and I decided on a Poly-Urea floor. It is sprayed directly over the concrete and leaves a thick coating which is very durable. The end result is a similar look to a sprayed on bedliner for pickup truck.

I checked out the Reacedeck floor and while it did look nice the things I did not like were the fact that liquids could seep through the cracks and sit on the cement and the sound which it would make when you walk on it.

My new floor looks great and if my research proves correct it should last a very long time. Th eone problem is finding someone who will do a residential job. Most of these guys just do large factories, outdoor parking decks, etc.

 

[Marc Lublin]

I have the Racedeck flooring and love it. I must admit though, when I pulled my motor apart recently I found myself immediately wiping up any spilled oil, antifreeze and gas so it didn't seep between the tiles. I guess it's not a bad thing that it's made me a neater person.

 

[snakoil]

Here's the flooring product I spoke of. You need to be careful about the slip resistance. The surfaces can be made very rough and it makes it difficult to mop or squeege. Make sure you know what finish surface you want before ordering.

Anti-Slip Coating for Concrete Floors (Noted on Drawings as “Non-slip Finish”)

Prime concrete surfaces with PS-100 Primer/Sealer as manufactured by American Safety Technologies, Inc., prior to installation of AS-150 non-slip floor coating.

2) 1 coat or one component epoxy : American Safety Technologies, Inc. “AS-150". Apply with manufacturer’s recommended napless phenolic-resin coated core roller for anti-slip profile. Color - Gray

http://www.astantislip.com/new_pages/brochure.html

 

[GTS-ACR]

I used a polyurethane system made by Chemrex called Sonoglaze which is also used for airplane hangers. I applied it myself with a roller. Easy to do. Has a very wet look witch reflects the viper great. There are several choices of colors. I chose dove grey. More durable than epoxy. Downside is that it is slick when wet. Ok for me since my garage is more of a show garage. You can cast silica sand as it dries for better tread. WWW.chemrex.com 1800.433.9517-cust service, 1.800.243.6739-tech

 

[GTS Dean]

I've not done an epoxy floor before, but I will within the next year. I have read several DIY articles on epoxy floor coating and one was extremely comprehensive. One thing they did that really sounded good was to lightly sprinkle clean masonry sand onto the wet epoxy. This provides a slip-resistant floor but doesn't hamper easy cleanup.

 

[Jerry Dobson]

Race Deck looks good, but how much $$$$$

Can you use a floor jack on Race Deck, or will it be damaged?

 

[Jim Hodel]

I'm trying to understand the point of painted garage floors or tile systems. It must be for looks, right? I'm not willing to have a slippery floor that I can't spill anything on, or a floor that hot tires lift up the paint, or a floor that dents if I put a car up on jack stands, just for looks.

I spend too much time working on cars in the garage to go through the extra hassle of trying to care for the floor.

Am I missing something?

Jim

 

[Vipermed 97.01]

what your missing is what makes a shop or garage stand out from others,thats like saying why not just buy a mustang or vette its just transportation,its about taking pride in something you have worked very hard for,i have a very busy 3200 sq. ft. shop that has black and white checkered coating that is starting to come up and it is driving me crazy,i do know that when people walk into my shop they are amazed at how immaculate it is for being such a busy Viper shop,im pretty sure it relays to a customer that i probably take as much pride in my work as my shop,hence new customers are born,well thats all the time i have ive got to go clean my shop floor

 

[Mike H]

Guys,.....There are many great epoxy coatings on the market. I am a distributor of epoxt coatings manufactured by Thortex America. These are high tech coatings. I just did my new race shop (3300) sq.ft with our Floor Tech FB, to work on my two Vipers.
The trick to any epoxy coating (presumably 100% solids) is in the prep. The epoxy is only as good as it can grip to. If you apply it over oily concrete or old paint that is pulling loose, the new coatings will FAIL!!!
The average cost for our systems which I can walk any through on how to prep and install is in the $ 1.10 to 1.25 sq.ft range.
Look us up at our website....WWW.Thortex.com

 

[GTS Dean]

Vipermed - what's up with your motor, man?

 

[Vipermed 97.01]

sorry it was dirty when i took those pictures,it looks much better now

 

[Paul Fischer]

Regular shop floor paint with a little sand is slip resistant and your can chose where to put the sand. Do the entire floor and let dry. Repaint the areas your want traction control and sprinkle some sand there. Let dry then sweep. That way you have slick areas where you can easily wipe away any spills and traction areas for walking or logos. Not high tech by any means, just works.

 

[00prowler]

Does any one sell the racedeck flooring at a discount? I need around 500 sq. feet and would like to stay around 2.50 per tile, or is there a cheaper alternate brand I could use??? Thanks...PROWLER...

 

[vipernate]

This company makes a non slip product - Seal-Tech - check out their site for more info.

 

[Dan Vargus]

Has anyone used a coating that does NOT fail over time, and is non-slip. My concern is I don't want to have to re-coat the floor every few years. It seams as if all posts here don't seem to address the longevity of the coating. Has anyone had a coating in place longer then 10 years that is as good now as it was new? The Race Deck and simular coverings might trap fluids under it. This is why I am asking about coatings. This weekend I installed a four post car lift in the garage that can be rolled around with casters, this is a very heavy piece and I am wondering if ANY coating can stand up to this rolling rack.
Thanks, Dan Vargus GT2-001

 

[Janni]

Sorry this is off topic...

Dan, did you get my email to your AOL account? Can you help me with my request? Thanks!

Back to our regularly scheduled garage floor coating topic...

 

[Clayton Kresge]

Dan,

I just put down Armorseal 1000 2-part epoxy in my shop. Its supposed to be one of the most durable industrial floor coatings available. I have Globaljig frame machines which are quite heavy and roll around on casters. We have rolled them around in the shop with 3000+ pound cars on them and the floors have held up with no problems whatsoever. As far as longevity goes, I can't say since we just put it down, but its supposed to have a very long life. I'm happy so far. I don't know if you will find anything that's going to be absolutely permanent, short of diamond polishing the concrete which is very nice. Ultimately your results will depend on how hard you are on the floor. Surprisingly, the rep. for the paint company said repeated foot traffic is one of the hardest things on floor coatings because it slowly wears it away.

 

[46hemi]

Dan,
I dont know how long my floor will last because it is relatively new. I can say that it appears far and away better than any epoxy floor I have tried thus far. The coating is thick (maybe 1/8 of an inch), and it is pliable. The company that did mine also had done several outdoor parking decks and apparantly they are pretty common in farm applications because they are so durable and easy to clean. Do a search on YAHOO for Poly-Urea and you should yield some results. The problem seems to be finding someone who will do this residentially as it is fairly expensive and they dont like smaller jobs.

 

[Andrew2KRT10]

Home Depot. I did it, came out great, whole job....4 step process....took about a week including cure time before parking the car on top.....cost about $100.00 for one garage space.

Need more info, e-mail me.

Andrew