Garage Floor Coating

What is Garage floor coating exactly? Before we can give due consideration to garage floor coating benefits, its essential to first define exactly what garage floor coating is. Garage floor coatings normally consists of epoxy, which bonds to concrete flooring, ultimately drying to a finish with a ceramic like appearance. Garage floor epoxy is comprised of a two liquid mixtures, providing a sealing and protective finish. Epoxy is a solution often used for both garage floor and concrete swimming pool coatings.

Garage floor coatings are chosen for a number of reasons. Most notably they add a durable protective barrier to the surface of concrete floors. And they do so with a beautiful coat that can make your dingy garage look like a showroom. Here's a look at the many benefits and factors that are involved with garage floor coating.

Garage floor coating has become increasingly popular, not to mention trendier as homeowners become more focused on ways to enhance residential value and appearance. Garages are frequently converted into workshops, play areas, exercise rooms and home offices, as well as generally beautified. What other multi-purpose coating will achieve homeowners goals quicker, more effectively and inexpensively than epoxy coating? Although it's often referred to as garage paint, epoxy provides a bonded protective shell. The coating is oil, dirt, water and grease tolerant, making it ideal for use in laundry rooms, basements and work shops.

The greatest benefit to garage floor coating is of course the ease of cleaning-up after vehicle fluids and the like. Men love to work on cars, bikes and boats, usually resulting in a mess. It is thus recommended that that you apply coating to your garage floor to make clean up of oil and grease a breeze. Over and above being a dream to clean and adding value to your home's value, garage floor coating will also break the boring cycle, especially if you decide on design, pattern or color personalization.

Floor coating is much more than just a realistic way to add a touch of class to your garage, it also protects concrete sealed floors against moisture retention, weathering, cracking, chipping and oil, as well as chemical absorption. Just one of the few products on the market that can claim that it's significantly stronger than standard concrete floor coating, thereby extending your garage floor's life span.

DIY Personalization - The majority of garage coatings, specifically industrial floor coverage, is do-it-yourself and easily finished within a weekend. It would, however, be best to call in the help of a professional to apply garage floor coatings and to guide you a little on color and add-on options. If plain, boring gray is not really your cup of garage decoration tea, a range of basic floor painting plans, paints and add-ons are available to pick and choose from. Want a marble or granite effect? Color chips or quartz collectives will then be on your must-buy list. Finishes range from black marble for the sophisticated garage, glittery gold or silver sparkles to add a touch of Broadway or earth tones for the natural homeowner.

Garage Floor Coating Kits - Garage coating kits can be bought online, at local hardware or specialist stores, with varying prices depending on quality and quality. Garage coating kits typically come with all the essentials you will need for the successful completion of your coating project. First things first, your garage floor should be thoroughly cleaned, which includes a degreasing, etching or roughing-up. Epoxy coating will bond better with the concrete sealer when it's squeaky clean and properly roughened-up. Step two, fill-up any holes or cracks on the surface. Step three, depending on desired finish, base coat should be applied at start and end. Does your garage's foundation rise above grade at the bottom of the walls? You may want to consider coating a few additional inches up the vertical surface to make cleaning less of a hassle. A slip-proof additive in the form of granules can also be added to give the finished floor a sandpaper texture and appearance. An excellent option for rainy and snowy areas. Step four, if you decided on something more attractive such as color chips, follow with either one or two topcoats. If you opted for something simpler, step four can be skipped. The result? A durable, not to mention, exquisite finish to your old and boring garage floor.

Concrete Requirements - As mentioned in step one, for epoxy to bond well, the concrete surface should be even, slightly rough and super clean. Concrete should be at least sixty days old and unsealed for the epoxy to stick properly. Unsure if the floor is sealed? Water will bead and etching solution will fail to foam on a sealed floor. If sealed, sealer should be removed with chemical stripper or a stripper machine. Its important to note that stripping the floor, will not clean it. Any residue in the form of oil, grease or dirt will affect epoxy adhesion, its thus advised that the cleaning and etching process not be skipped or rushed. A wide variety of cleaners are available to pick and choose from, ranging from mild to extremely harsh. Before deciding on a specific cleaner type, ingredients should be checked on labels. Prefer to cut-out all the manual labor? Hire a floor maintainer machine for a day.

How difficult is application really? Actual application of epoxy coating is as easy as painting a normal wall, the only difference between floor and wall painting is the prep work required for garage floor coating. After quantity calculation, color selection, thorough cleaning and etching, actual coating application will seem like a breeze.

Timing is everything! After prepping the floor the rest of the coating process will depend entirely upon timing. Choose a day to do the coating when the concrete won't be damp from rainy or snowy weather conditions. Temperature should ideally be between 50 and 80 Degrees Celsius. Lower temperature application will result in the garage floor coat bubbling and peeling. Once you've mixed the epoxy solutions, you will have a mere two hours to complete your project, so you'll need to plan well in advance. Remember not to paint yourself into a corner. The hardest part will come in the form of patiently waiting for coating to dry, which is typical twelve to twenty-four hours between every step. Even after entirely completing all the processes and steps, you still have to wait at least another 72 hours before parking your car on the floor.

Professional Garage Floor Coating - There are a number of reasons to choose a professional garage floor coating company. You may not be that handy, or just don't have the time. But, the biggest reason to hire an expert is looks. While the DIY store bought garage paint kits are convenient they are no match for a professional application when it comes to cosmetics. In addition to looks the profesional garage floor aplications typically offer a guarantee. If you are looking for that professional look you should probably have a professional do the job. This will cost more than doing it yourself, but will look better, last longer, and save you time.