Garage floors

[slaughterj]

Making a move and looking for garage floor information, any suggestions on sealants / treatments / flooring that I should or shouldn't consider would be appreciated - note that I am looking for inexpensive and whatever is good for me since I change my own fluids and make a mess

 

[viperdrummer]

I waited for years on this issue and watched my neighbors do the do it yourself stuff from Lowes etc. I researched stuff forever and then when I put in my lift hired Premier Garage to come out and do it right.

My brother had used them 3 yrs ago and his still looked new. They were here 3 days--the key is surface prep and doing it right. Mine looks like aggregate , cleans easily and is smooth but not slippery. Most folks that come in the garage ignor the cars and lift and say "damn what a nice floor" I change oil and do other stuff and you can't see a hint of spills or dirt.

It is not cheap but very very good.

 

[SkyBob]

hired Premier Garage to come out and do it right.

What did that cost?

Bob

 

[2snakes4us]

I used VCT and when waxed. Oil just wipes right up with a paper towel
If you ever damage the floor its easy to fix good and new.

 

[06blueviper]

I waited for years on this issue and watched my neighbors do the do it yourself stuff from Lowes etc. I researched stuff forever and then when I put in my lift hired Premier Garage to come out and do it right.

My brother had used them 3 yrs ago and his still looked new. They were here 3 days--the key is surface prep and doing it right. Mine looks like aggregate , cleans easily and is smooth but not slippery. Most folks that come in the garage ignor the cars and lift and say "damn what a nice floor" I change oil and do other stuff and you can't see a hint of spills or dirt.

It is not cheap but very very good.

Sounds like the floor I want for my garage. Any Pics?

 

[eucharistos]

I used VCT and when waxed. Oil just wipes right up with a paper towel
If you ever damage the floor its easy to fix good and new.

what is the "C" in VCT

tai

 

[woosch]

I just did my floor with the UCoatit stuff and am very happy with the results. Like mentioned the key is the prep, spent a lot of time washing, scrubing and more scrubing of the floor before the acid cleaning... Floor looked better than when it was first poured.
The UCoatit stuff went on easy and looks great. Of course I didn't take any pics of it yet....

 

[GBS]

I waited for years on this issue and watched my neighbors do the do it yourself stuff from Lowes etc. I researched stuff forever and then when I put in my lift hired Premier Garage to come out and do it right.

My brother had used them 3 yrs ago and his still looked new. They were here 3 days--the key is surface prep and doing it right. Mine looks like aggregate , cleans easily and is smooth but not slippery. Most folks that come in the garage ignor the cars and lift and say "damn what a nice floor" I change oil and do other stuff and you can't see a hint of spills or dirt.

It is not cheap but very very good.

What type of Floor is it? Epoxy?

 

[viperdrummer]

It is a polymer coating developed by Premier-- they have a good website which is easy to find but i don't want to post it here if that violates rules. They have pics there.

My service prep included smoothing the concrete completley and they were sanding for a full day. After watching what they did and the equipment involved there is no way I could have done the job right myself.

I can't recall price because that week I was putting in a Rotary lift and painting the garage--it is all kind of a blurr. I want to say $2500-$3000 but may be wrong.
One of best things I have done.

Attached is a pic although not very good of the floor.

 

[dave6666]

I do industrial construction in the chemical industry and every roll-on or brush-on coating I have ever seen has failed. The most durable is the kind that is troweled on (1/8" to 1/4" build), and is also the most expensive. The best surface prep method is shot blast. That is a specialized machine.

If you do the ********* scrubbing and etching you probably get the floor clean enough for light duty home service, as far as coating adhesion goes. I would be sure and do a moisture test first. You can do that before you even clean the floor.

Several things that the DIY coatings are not typically resistant to are high pH (like aggressive cleaners) and solvents like brake and carb cleaners.

If you are just a light weekend warrior kind of mechanic and do the prep work as has been pointed out in posts above, your floor might last a lifetime. But you get what you pay for.

 

[dave6666]

what is the "C" in VCT

tai

Vinyl Composition Tile. A vinyl polymer with a reinforcement component for durability. Same stuff they use in hospitals & schools, lunchrooms, etc.

 

[Canyon707]

I have done a lot of work in pharmaceuticall clean rooms and have found that the best and I do mean best floor is Stonehard. nothing penetrates, dents, or stains. You anc even use floor jacks with no problems here is the link. www.stonehard.com/

 

[dave6666]

I have done much work in clean rooms and have found that the best and I do mean best floor is Stonehard. nothing penetrates, dents, or stains. You anc even use floor jacks with no problems here is the link. www.stonehard.com/

That's what we use when the customer says I want something that will last. The last quote I got from them was about $5.5K for a 300 sq ft lab area. That's about $18 per sq ft.

 

[Canyon707]

That's what we use when the customer says I want something that will last. The last quote I got from them was about $5.5K for a 300 sq ft lab area. That's about $18 per sq ft.

It's the best product out there. I hooked up with one of the guys to do my garage and got a great deal. To me it's worth saving up the money. I only had a single car garage for my Viper.

 

[SylvanSRT]

find a local industrial coatings guy, i used 2-part 100% epoxy industrial coating on mine 9 yrs ago and floor is still in like new condtion. just make sure they use some sort of traction additive preferably glass beads

also use search feature numerous threads on this over the yrs(that will keep you busy for a while ! )

 

[Limit]

industrial epoxy's the way to go. you can do it yourself and looks great.

 

[bluesrt]

vct tile-cheap and looks like a million bucks-maybe a billion bucks

 

[dave6666]

How resistant to floor jacks, jack stands and dropped hammers is VCT tile?

 

[ViperTony]

find a local industrial coatings guy

That's what I did. I consider him the coatings guru. I figured someone that coats nuclear subs, testing rooms, and manufacturing facilities must know what he's doing. I got an education, more than I'll ever remember, on coatings. Long story short, he had some leftover industrial coating and we knocked out my garage floor in about a week. He's now a good friend, neighbor and fellow Viper owner. With a coating, any coating, it's all about the prep work. Our garage is now the nicest room in the house.

 

[bluesrt]

How resistant to floor jacks, jack stands and dropped hammers is VCT tile?

well thats another story!not so good

 

[DRBSRT]

I hired a guy to prep my floor and apply the Lowe's product (Quickrete). We both contacted the manufacturer of the product to ensure the floor prep and the application processs were correct. After following the instructions to the letter, it still didn't work. After about a week of parking the cars on the floor, the dreaded hot tire pick up started. I decided to stop screwing around and hired a company called Great Garages of America. Their floor prep process inlcudes diamond grinding the floor and then they apply a commercial grade 5 layer epoxy system (including acrylic fake chips). The entire process takes 4 days and the floor looks awesome!!

 

[Wayne Finch]

I have done a lot of work in pharmaceuticall clean rooms and have found that the best and I do mean best floor is Stonehard. nothing penetrates, dents, or stains. You anc even use floor jacks with no problems here is the link. www.stonehard.com/

Far and away the best stuff out there.

 

[slaughterj]

From this thread, it sounds like you either go big or don't do anything at all?

 

[viperdrummer]

From this thread, it sounds like you either go big or don't do anything at all?

Yep................

 

[ViperTony]

More like do it right or don't do it all.

 

[2snakes4us]

Vinyl Composition Tile. A vinyl polymer with a reinforcement component for durability. Same stuff they use in hospitals & schools, lunchrooms, etc.

Just what dave said..

How resistant to floor jacks, jack stands and dropped hammers is VCT tile?

not too bad i have dropped stuff with no problem. With a pointed jack stand you can use something under it to protect the tile like a peice of carpet,wood etc. If you go with VCT .
Azrock > Products
http://www.congoleum.com/pdf/CommercialLiterature.pdf

well thats another story!not so good

you can hurt any floor surface. Some floors surfaces to fix can be very costly and not look "good as new". VCT is a quick easy fix providing you have extra tiles.
VCT also allows you to be very creative in design and patterns with a array of colors. Create your own personal look in your garage.

 

[Brad04Mamba]

Here is my Premier Garage job. Another advantage of their work is that after 24 hours you could park your car on it, I didn't but they said you could.

 

[viper k]

your garage is nice er than my house

 

[BigJag]

I have Race Deck tile in both of my garages and love it. Easy to install and doesn't stain. Cost is about $3.50 per square foot.

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[slaughterj]

How's RaceDeck compare with some of these high-end coatings? It seems to be a bit cheaper as well as easier to self-install, but functionality matters (e.g., stain resistance, dropping heavy stuff on it, etc.).