Concrete shop floor coatings what's good (bad)??

gggGary

gggGary

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My main shop is a single car garage with a 7 year old concrete floor. It was a hot day and I was working alone when I poured the slab, the concrete got ahead of me so she dried a bit rough. Today I rented a low speed rotary grinder and ground the concrete. The grinder uses 6 abrasive stones like a very course grinding wheel so the floor is smooth but NOT polished. It came out pretty good with a few low spots porous areas and trowel marks still visible. Now I want to seal it. I am thinking a two part epoxy kit but want to hear what others have done and how it worked for them?
 
If the floor is smooth enough you can use any clear concrete sealer. I'd say that's the cheapest of the options and it'll shine it up nice.

EDIT: The epoxies sometime don't work well because of humidity, bad mixing etc. I've used a few in my time but at work where they were commercial products and I have no idea of the product names though. I'll make a call or two and ask those who would know.
 
Hey gggGary, I did my shop with a two part epoxy kit from home depot about 3 years ago or so. I believe I put down an "etcher", then one "primer" coat (I think that's what it was called) then the final product. It came out pretty nice and has held up really well, I wish I would of gone with a lighter color though. It's like a light grey, but just doesn't seem to reflect light very well. The only other thing I'd do differently next time would be skip the "anti slip additive" (which was something like a few packets of pretty fine sand, provided with the kit). It works really well, I don't think I'd slip even if there were oil on the floor....However...it also holds DIRT! really well...so sweeping the shop doesn't always get the floor very clean, and when I mop you can see little fuzzies here and there, where it was eatin at the mop head. I still have a can of it, I'll get the name of it and snap a few pics if you're interested when I get home...
 
Yeah pictures would be great. I wonder about wear gouging from center stands lifts, casters etc. and what about brake fluid?
 
Gary, I did my shop floor 5 years ago with two part epoxy from Griot's Garage. Prep is quite a bit of work if done per instructions but the result has been great. The product hasn't lifted at all and has kept its shine pretty well. I didn't put any traction grit in the product and haven't had any problems with slipperyness even when the floor is wet (part of the shop is a wash bay). It is slick if I come into the shop with snow on my shoes. All in all I'm totally happy with the outcome and would do it again in a heartbeat.

roy
 

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Royboy said:
Gary, I did my shop floor 5 years ago with two part epoxy from Griot's Garage. Prep is quite a bit of work if done per instructions but the result has been great. The product hasn't lifted at all and has kept its shine pretty well. I didn't put any traction grit in the product and haven't had any problems with slipperyness even when the floor is wet (part of the shop is a wash bay). It is slick if I come into the shop with snow on my shoes. All in all I'm totally happy with the outcome and would do it again in a heartbeat.

roy
Click to expand...

Wow, that looks really nice! Now I really wish I had gone with a lighter color. I've actually been thinking about doing like cheap vinyl tiles in a white ish color...one project at a time for now though...

How much did that cost you if you don't mind me asking? And how many sq feet did you cover?
 
gggGary said:
Yeah pictures would be great. I wonder about wear gouging from center stands lifts, casters etc. and what about brake fluid?
Click to expand...

No prob, I'll take a few when I get home...as far as a center stand, I see what your getting at, I can't say I've drug to many sharp metal-ish things over it, but I have a few benches and such, I just put some like 1/8"thick rubber under the legs/feet. As far as fluids I've spilt all sorts of things on it from oil to gas, I'm sure I've dribbled some brake fluid on it here and there, but I usually clean up fairly promptly as I make a mess. Either way I haven't had anything immediately start removing it... yet....
I wanna say it cost somewhere around 50 -70 bucks...for like 600 sq ft...I'm not sure on the price though, it was a long time ago..
 
I had to do the rotary grinder trick on trhe first half of my shop floor........I used the rustoleum 2 part on my whole floor but the half I used the rotary grinder on really sucked up the paint and does not shine like the half that I used a power trowel and properly finished. The paint is super tough and does not come off period....it is there to stay!
 
Hi gggGary,
I used to sell this type of product/ service for a living. The more ya can polish the floor, the slicker it will come out due to non-absorpsion of product. Since ya have ground it, Use a floor buffer (maintainer) with abrasive screen starting with around 60 grit, and keep using finer grits of screen till ya see the shine...somewhere around really worn out 100 grit is more like 600-800 grit. Dusty work, but worth the end result.
Do not use the non skid stuff. It is nothing but colored sand. It makes it really hard to clean. Ok for a sidewalk or driveway you can hose down. Light colors work great for indoor use.. as far as chemical resistance, contact the manufacturer. most dont resist brake fluid. The products with paint chip look do nothing but hide uneven coating.The quicker ya can get most products down, the better it flows out and shines. Before Coating: Get it spotless clean with a shop vac. Do not mop it. Chemicals in tap water can affect some epoxies, even tho ya dont see any streaks. After cleaning: Make sure your shoes arent dusty when ya coat it. Dont be tempted to walk on it too quickly. Some products look the same wet or dry. Nothin worse than shoeprints!
 
Another great option is a clear acrylic concrete sealer from the paint store they come indifferent solids Like 10% or 20%.
No paint to scuff or peel but they do tend to darken the floor.
 
Here are a few pictures of mine...Now I'm 100% for sure I wish I hadn't of used the anti slip / hold dirt stuff. It's funny a long time ago after I realized how much harder it was to keep it clean, I though maybe it would just wear down over time and get smooth, well almost 4 years later and NOPE, just as gritty now as it was new.
 

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More polishing? You guys are killing me here! What about temps? The garage is under my house but the outside temps won't break freezing this week and the slab goes under the garage door...

Thanks for all the help so far, and the pictures are giving me shop envy!
 
Mr Bill; don't mop before application or after? Some of these product have an acid etch and a bunch of rinsing before application...
 
Gary, You gotta know how cold it gets here in winter. Winter was the only time of year we had time to do the floor so we used several box fans to push warm air to the edges and corners for a couple days before we coated. Preparation is everything. No different than painting a car. Any flaws on the surface of the concrete will telegraph to the final finish. I used Bondo to cover/fill surface imperfections after the etching process. It worked great.

As far as mopping etc. is concerned just follow the directions that come with the product you choose. Methods vary depending on the product.

As MrBill says, once you're done stay off the floor! The temptation to get out there is huge, don't do it. We waited a week before moving equipment back in.

roy
 
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Thanks for all the help guys, she's done. I ground it and finished the edges with a drop center masonry wheel in my angle grinder, Man does THAT make a dust mess. I etched with muriatic acid. rinsed three times, let it dry and used the Rustoleum two part industrial solvent based epoxy with chips. I figured my concrete isn't perfect so the chips will help hide that a bit. I was able to lay it on quite heavy and let it flow into any small imperfections, holes, etc. Kit is sold as covering 300-400 feet and I covered 260' with epoxy left over, the chips worked out perfect I bought an extra bag of chips so I didn't have to skimp and and didn't need it. Anyways here's the pics. How long do I have to wait? I want in there NOW!

floor 001.jpg

floor 005.jpg

garage floor 001.jpg

garage floor 005.jpg

p.s. the solvent odor is STRONG, it stinks down there. I kind of isolated that area from the rest of the house but pee-yoo!
 

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