Looking for Advice - Epoxy Garage Floor Coatings

[Tidybuoy]

I'm going to paint my garage floor with an epoxy coating.

I've watched several youtube videos and I see that there are many different products on the market and I was hoping to get some advice from the Pelican group.

My questions:

Are there better products than the ones at Home Depot/Lowes or are they all similar. It looks like HD/Lowes sell Rustoleum Kits.

My situation is a 2 car garage but 2 slabs with a slight 1/8 inch rise from one slab to the other. I'm wondering if the self leveling products that I've seen on Youtube will eliminate this small lip or does it really matter.

My garage has a wood foundation around the perimiter (not a raised cement ledge). Is it ok to paint this wood 2x6 base with the same epoxy or should I leave it wood and paint the same as the walls

I recently added a wall in the garage which created a closet 17x6. This is seperated from the remaining garage with a 2x6 footer. I was not planning on doing the closet since I was going to be putting a wood floor in there. I'm wondering if I should epoxy in there anyway for moisture control. I was planning on laying lenoleum on the cement floor (as a vapor barier) which would be under the wood floor and joists. My only worry is that any moisture (if any got in there) could creep under the wall and then under the epoxy garage floor - if that makes any sense. Generally, the floors are nice & dry.

About how much materials do you need for a 2 car garage 21x17 (357 sqft).

My friend says not to use the flecks as they make it hard to sweep. But, I like the look. Do any of you have any problems with this fleck material that gets sprinkled on after painting. Currently, the cement is smooth and gets very slick when wet.

Any advice would be great (even pictures if you have them)

[9dreizig]

I did the Quickcrete kit, about $60 per 1 car garage.. so you'd need two.. Works great!!! Looks really good and comes with everything you need...

[stomachmonkey]

I did the Rustoleum 1 part in 1 Gallon containers.

Half the price of the epoxy kit and covers twice as much.

2 years in an active garage. Not tire pickup. No issues from gas, brake fluid or other caustics.

Have dragged stuff across it with no ill effects.

I did not use the chips, figured it would only make finding small dropped items more difficult.

[Scott R]

Garage Floor Options

That's a thread that shows my now 2 year old floor. My neighbors have chunks missing, scratches, peeling, but not me. It took two days of prep and two weeks before I could put anything on it, but damn its indestructible. It even survived my recent 911 fire.

Floor still looks just as good today, just some scratches in the clear coat. If I had to guess the key to the professional quality was the clear coats that my guy did.

[Danny_Ocean]

Go to The Garage Journal. They have an entire forum devoted to flooring. You'll have enough reading for several years.

[Eric Coffey]

UCoat It&reg Do-it Yourself Commercial Grade Epoxy Floor Coating Systems for Garages, Basements, Industrial, Commercial, Automotive and more.

[1990C4S]

Anyone tried boiled linseed and varsol? That's what garages used to use.

[red-beard]

I used the Rustoleum kit (Home Depot) 6 years ago. I have a 2 car garage and 2 car carport. I put the flakes down in the real garage and left the carport just the coating. This was on a brand new house, so no oil in the concrete issues.

6 years later, the coating is still in great shape. The flakes did not create a sweeping problem. If you floor is slick now, it will be even slicker with the coating. So I think the flakes will be better.

[jjone20]

I used the Quikcrete 1.5 yrs. ago. Three kits for a 3 car garage. I used the flakes, but I also used the clear coat to seal it. It was a lot of work, but worth it. Be prepared for a lot of time waiting for it to dry for the next step. Washed, dried overnight. Base coat and flakes, dried overnight. Clear coat, dried two days before putting weight on it. The whole time my stuff (bench, tools, etc.) is outside waiting on rain or thieves. Wouldn't hesitate to recommend it, though it does scratch with sharp objects. No pickup or peeling yet. Good luck.

[Tidybuoy]

Thanks for all the advice....I have a lot to think about.

One concern; one corner of my garage gets a small amount of water when it rains. This is due to old age and the cement has sagged/settled over the years and the original owners put a down spout directed to this corner.

Anyway, I'm wondering if the water will affect the epoxy (cause it to flake), or will the epoxy be ok as long as the baxe surface is clean & dry before application.

Thanks.

[billybek]

Could you put down a self leveling concrete before applying the finish in the low spot?

[Tidybuoy]

Originally Posted by billybek

Could you put down a self leveling concrete before applying the finish in the low spot?

It's not really a low spot. Actually, the whole slab has settled over the years. The the driveway, which is blacktop, seems to have risen in spots that it channels water to the garage. This is not a huge problem but when it rains hard, there could be a 3' diameter puddle in the corner of the garage. It's 60 years old.

[Paul K]

+1 for Rustoleum with no sprinkles.

Make sure the concrete is completely dry before painting.

[RWebb]

I still use grease & oil to coat my garage floor...

[JonT]

I used Rustoleum on my 20'some year old garage floor. I spent at least two days prepping by powerwashing and scrubbing with a brush and rinsing. I probably did this 5 times to clean up oil spots. After a few years it still cleans up pretty good but its not perfect with a little flaking and lifting but not bad. I added silica sand to mine because I didnt want it slick when it gets wet and also have the flakes. If I did it again I would have cleaned up the cracks in the floor a little better and clear coated. The way around not being able to drive on it for a day or two is to do one side and then the other with everything moved over for a couple days. Well worth the effort good luck.