dbf73

another option is the VCT per this thread

Chuck W.

Skip the epozy and go with the VCT.....

dbf73

Chuck - what do you have along the edge of the VCT under the bottom of the garage door?

Ron

My plan is to epoxy the floor of my new detached garage.

If you are interested there is a lot of information on the forum in the link below. Just search and you will most likely find more information than you want.

My plan is to have my floor shotblasted first to properly prepare concrete with the ideal profile for the epoxy to adhere to.

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/f...splay.php?f=20

Chuck W.

It’s an aluminum strip that is 1/8 inch thick, 1 ½ inch wide and 5 feet long. It is the exact thickness of the VCT so it protects the tiles as you drive in. Sold at Home Depot. I glue it on with concrete contact glue also sold at Home Depot.

Steve 96C4S

Chuck,

I didn't know what VCT stood for till today (vinyl composition tiles). I figured it wasn't the Virtual College Of Texas, the #1 google site for VCT but #2 is the tiles.

Learn something new every day. They look awesome. How long do they last compared to epoxy and how hard are they to lift up and remove once they get all messed up and cracked? If you're using that glue, it looks like it might be a mess years down the road when redoing it.

Is just rolling it out with a good quality garage floor paint a dumb idea? My buddy tonight said to just do that - it lasts about 5 years, is ALOT cheaper and looks fine says he.

Thx,
Steve

dcdude

Yes. I tried the regular Behr(?) Home Depot garage floor paint at a place I rented. I did the etching, and it still came up in places where the tires rested. Also recall some black marks. Wouldn't do it again...

I'm liking the old-school vinyl tile idea- cheap, durable and professional looking, and you don't have to do a checkerboard. Why re-invent the wheel?

Obie1

Steve.....my 2 cents says that you shouldn't be too afraid of a painter that is only charging $250 + materials. As stated by so many, you need to make sure that you acid etch everything correctly. Besides that, most/all epoxy coating will look great. I have attached a picture of my floor. Sorry it's not a better pic but just wanted to show you my floor which is your standard Home Depot 'Epoxy Coat" paint. Took me very little time to put down. Your painter can acid etch one day then come back the next day and apply the epoxy. The reason it is so cheap is because it will probably be the easiest paint job he has had in months.

Good Luck.

Steve 96C4S

Obie1 - This is good news then. I'll try to find a painter that can acid etch the floor and just have him do it. Tiles look really great too, but after thinking about the look I wanted to begin with, the epoxy does it for me.

Steve

Marc Shaw

Jeff,

Looks stunning and I am hoping to do the same thing in my new build.

Can you provide any details?

Name and type of stain? Colour? Application?
Type of sealer? Type of grout?

Thanks.

Marc
p.s. I have the same lift and I notice you don't need to protect the floor under it where the lift rollers are. No scratching there?

H.H.Chinn

I've designed a couple of commercial jet hangers and have had the contractors use products similar to that of the website below.
http://www.concrete-inc.com/epoxy_colors_chart.htm

First of all the substrate (concrete floor) needs to be abraided and if newly poured, a medium to heavy broom finish.
Secondly, it needs to be clean preferably with a weak acid solution and completely dried before the epoxy paint product is applied, otherwise the moisture in the either new concrete or freshly washed concrete will cause the epoxy to "pop" as the moisture tries to find its way out. Find a competent special coatings applicator, not all painters can properly apply these products as the real good stuff is
industrial or at a minimum commercial grade. Most of these products will come with warranty back up against material failures. Good Luck.

Steve 96C4S

HH Chin - Good point then about not just using a regular paint guy to do this if he's not real familiar with the potential problems and the exact process.

Big question, with that link you provided to the color chart, which color do you recommend for my garage floor? I initially was thinking light grey but now I'm wondering if medium grey would hide the dirt better?


Beige is nice too The walls will be shell white.

Steve

H.H.Chinn

I've specified the white, off white, light gray, light blue, and medium gray in my projects. One of the faciltiies I did refurbishes aircraft from B717-B777's Usually these facilites are kept spotless as the last thing you want is for one of the engines to ingest something left on the floor. Fluids are picked up immediately because of slipping hazard. Light colors reflect light of course helps when working under the shadowing wings. If you select the medium gray you might lose your car as it blends in, I like the light blue myself.

Steve 96C4S

Thanks Harlan. The light blue is pretty nice. My painters are here now to paint the rest of my house but they're now telling me they've never epoxied a garage so they're not doing it.

I'll find someone one of these days and post pics.

Cheers,
Steve R

Brute

Another product you may want to check into - http://seal-it.ca/concrete_sealant.php
I laughed when the salesman said their wood sealer would last indefinitely, but I went ahead and applied their wood sealant to my cedar log home ten years ago and it still looks great. This house is on the shore of Lake Michigan and is exposed to heavy wind blown rain and snow. Something else to mull over!