For you guys that have concrete garage floors, have you put one of those concrete floor epoxy finishes down?

I would like to know how well it went and is it really worth it for durability.

that's a great question as i'd like to know too

If you don't put Sand in the mix it is Very Slick, also it will wear fast, (where you drive or walk on it). Used it in the Navy, ie None Skid.

In the Navy the Amount of sand was pre-mixed and very grainy. When you mix your own you have the choice of Grain Size and Amount. The Sand will Fall Out to the bottom, so stir a lot. Sift the sand, (window screen material) or you could have Lumps.

Heavy Sanding where you Drive, don't want to Go Side Ways in the Garage. Less Sand/Smaller Grain Size where you walk.

Play with it first. Mask first for a good edge line.

Idahofox

Nick,

I've been meaning to ask this question for a while as I think it might class up the garage a little bit. I just want to get some opinions from those that did it and see if they would do it all over again.

I am mostly concerned with durability from sliding stuff and the occasional drop that happens.

The look of a mottled finish might hide the most imperfections and scrapes.

I think the cost of the kits from Lowe's or Home Depot is about $100 per 400 sq ft. if I recall.

I put the epoxysheild on my floor and it sucks it's peeling i even acid washed the floor before i put it down. dave

I did the "Concrete Stain" (it wasn't the epoxy), and I hated it. Everytime I spilled gas, brake or tranny fluid on it the "stain" would come up with wiping of a rag. I stayed away from the epoxy because a friend used it and it would stick to his tires when he pulled out of his garage, pulling the epoxy paint off the floor.

Idaho Fox,

I'm real familiar with the Non-Skid epoxy from my navy days.

I've still got scars on my legs from swim calls, and still remember when we painted the ERLL bilge, the below deck's had to ventilate the boat for 6 hours. I was real popular for while after that...

I wanted something a little less abrasive. The new modern epoxies look slick but have good adhesion to rubber products.

Based on what I'm hearing so far, not too many have had good luck with the products..

I have been looking at some stuff from protectyoursurface.com it is gauranteed for 15 years. order over the phone and buy 5 gallons get 1 free right now. That makes the cost around $90 a gallon. Looks like a nice product. Might even buy some this week sometime.

DavesDmax,

I hear ya'

Idahofox

I put the epoxysheild on my floor and it sucks it's peeling i even acid washed the floor before i put it down. dave

Ditto! I spent 3 days cleaning a 7 year old floor using muratic acid, etc. because I heard the prep was the key in making it stick. Took my time and did a good job only to have the Censored it peel after parking on it a few days. Yes, I let it dry 7 days per instructions before driving on it. Aside from where the tires sit it looks good :) I have a 3 car garage and took 3 of the kits to do it. I may look into the racedeck.com flooring in the future ...pricey but 10 year warranty and looks sweet.

Epoxy looks great, but...

**Dropped items will chip it...It isn't flexible. Jack stands and jacks are murder to the epoxy.
**Hot molten steel burns it... You can't weld on an epoxy floor or you will know you did.
**Will peel if moist... Most epoxy based paints do not allow the floor to breathe, and if there are any hints of ground moisture trying to escape, the epoxy will pop, no matter how well you prepped the floor.

With that said...

My suggestion... Go to a concrete dealer and get a very good sealer/curing agent/hardner. You will spray/brush/roll it on and it will actually make your concrete harder and also provide a water and come a chemical resistance. The only caveat is that the floor must be virgin or the current sealer must be completely removed prior to application. I caution on the application of an acrylic sealer as most are not impervious to chemicals.

I am currently agonizing over what I am going to put on the shop floor, but I think I have it nailed down now... $$, but still cheaper and better than epoxy for my use. I am rough on floors with scraping stuff across it and jacking stuff up.

Funny thing...I epoxied the work area in my garage only to have it come up like others have said. Now my daughter goes and sticks a "Hello Kitty" sticker on the garage floor where my wife drives over and the damn thing is till there after six months....:think:

:lol: :funnypost

Funny thing...I epoxied the work area in my garage only to have it come up like others have said. Now my daughter goes and sticks a "Hello Kitty" sticker on the garage floor where my wife drives over and the damn thing is till there after six months....:think:

Do you have anymore of the "hello kitty" stickers for sale? I need enough to cover 8 separate areas where tires are parked. :)

Maybe some "Bob the Builder" stickers would be a bit more manly...

Just moved into a new place...... did the floor before I moved in....knew I would never empty the garage to do it....

I used the Rustoleum product currently being sold at your local Home Depot. Its been down for 6 months now.... Taking daily abuse from 4 boys and all their bikes, trikes, etc.:eek:

No chipping, no peeling, looks like the day it went down...... well maybe needs to be mopped..... but it is holding up to some pretty good abuse....

I will say this..... the secret is in the prep..... We acid washed the concrete several times and let the last wash dry completely prior to the epoxy application. I firmly believe that's why its holding up so well......

Now if I could just get rid of all those D*** kiddie toys....:(

I wish I could afford what we put in the Mechanical Maintenance Shop floor at work. We had this company come in put down a synthetic concrete looking product. They tenderized the whole floor then poured this epoxy based stuff with some type of plastic aggregate in it about 1/2" thick. It cost about $10.00 a square ft.

That material was put down in 1996 and it still looks pretty decent. I've seen the boys drop a pump casing on it and all it did was dent. Never seen any of it delaminate.

On the other hand, we had some epoxy based finish put in the Turbine Building floors that's the same as what they use in warehouses. The stuff looks like glass until you drop something on it. We have quite a few pieces that have come up from impact damage. but it only cost $2.50 a sq ft.

Maybe a quality paint would be just as good.

We put U Coat It product in my garage and the Rust O Leum in my wifes garage. The rust O Leum was much cheaper and still looks like new after some hard use. There is no marks and it cleans up awesome. There are no tire marks and the salt from over the winter cleaned right up. We muratic acid washed the floor before we put it on.
The U Coat It totally sucks. It came up in a couple of places and every thing that has a tire on it, marked it. If anyone needs pictures I can get them on.
Doug

I did mine 2 years ago, and it is still perfect. No chips, peels, or problems... guess I'm lucky.

Dad used the Rustoleum on his floor. Sprinkled the colored speckles on it.

It peeled just slightly where the truck tires sit. I attribute it to HOT tires (summer heat/long trips) having the peeling effect.

If you always park in one spot, you could put down aluminum plates where your tires are.

Overall, an EXCELLENT cosmetic addition to the garage.

vfr rider what did you use?

I just wanted to add - my wife has had her floor done for a little over a year. I would totally recommend the Rust O Leum. I do know that the weather should be pretty good for a couple of days, for the epoxy to cure. We put the Rust O Leum on the entrance of a restraurant we just built and it still looks like new. They opened the restaurant February 1 of this year. We also just installed it in a golf pro shop we just built.
Doug

I put the epoxysheild on my floor and it sucks it's peeling i even acid washed the floor before i put it down. dave

ditto

Check this out. http://www.durabakcompany.com/concrete.htm

Check this out. http://www.durabakcompany.com/concrete.htm

jrk55: I don't know how their product stacks up against the competition, but DURABAK gets high marks with me! The pickup on their webpage has a WDVX license plate! (http://www.wdvx.com)

(Yes, I _AM_ a hillbilly.)