Garage floor coatings - Epoxy vs. Polyaspartic

I can't comment on either of those, but FWIW, we used xylene acrylic on new concrete and it still looks brand new after 7 years. No chipping, no cracking, no discoloration. It does show tire tracks where the cars come in and out, but it is very minor and can be cleaned with soap and a brush.

Downside? Although it is oil proof, waterproof and tough, you cannot spill xylene, toluene, or MEK on it.

We love it! (and it was only like $65 a gallon and you get great coverage.)

 

http://www.finepaintsofeurope.com/collection_ral.aspx?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=RAL

So we can have the right colors.

This polyaspartic floor system sounds great - does it have a "brand" name?

 

OK, I'm a dumas - Advacoat

 

I've been researching between the two and still can't decide. I'm planning on getting this professionally done. I do plan on working on my car from time to time, but not just the typical fluid changes. Up to the extent of a full motor swap where the car can be on jacks for weeks. Quotes for both coatings or combination of coatings seem to fall between 1750-1850 for a 2 car garage. Which system would be more durable for my usage?

 

I have experience with the two systems mentioned in the original post. When I built a house in AZ in 2006 I used the UCoat-It on my virgin concrete with acid etch and given the hot tire issue it lasted with out any issues for the 9 years I lived there. At the time it was the best stuff available. Four years ago when I did the new concrete floor in my garage here in NC I used the Poly combo mentioned and it is really good but it is tricky to apply. I began by renting a concrete grinder to scarf the surface and then flushed with water to clean. My son and I applied the material with a base coat and then applied the 1/8th sized flakes and let it set for a day followed the next day with the clear. It is very durable and with the flakes it has traction so no problem with slick surface. Please keep in mind the Poly is a chemical name and not a product name. I got my materials from Versatile Building Products and they are a commercial supplier. The materials are good but I will warn their service was terrible so beware of that. They have good instructional articles on their web site. I also had a condo garage while in AZ and it came with a professional installed epoxy with flakes that looked good but came up with brake fluid so that is why I moved to Poly when I did it here in NC. Key is to have another person to help apply given the flash time with the poly if you decide to do it yourself and make sure you buy the shoe spikes for application.

 

After visiting Italy I came home and decided to use Italian porcelain tile. I saw many industrial applications as well as some service shops.

I visited the local Ferrari dealership last week and saw that their entire shop is porcelain tile as well.

 

Good day,

I used an Industrial epoxy paint on my shop floors and I would never use it again given how I used my floors. The epoxy surface looks great and holds up well for general use (about 12 years now). However, when wheeling around heavy items (e.g. steel wheel based casters), the overall pressure on the Epoxy was too much and so in some cases cracking and chipping occurred. Over time it starts to look somewhat battered. However, these areas could be repaired, etc but it is a pain. Another issue is if you do any welding and at times one may need to use to the floor as a welding platform. Welding creates a lot of localized heat, sparks, etc, which affects the surface coating. If I were to do it again, I would only coat those areas that really needed protection from oil, solvents, etc. but keep the main areas as bare concrete and simply ensure that any spills are promptly addressed.

As I said, it all depends upon your usage and how you plan on using your garage floor and so plan accordingly.

Cheers,

Sam

 

Yup, depends on usage. You can very easily get in big trouble with a floor that is the least bit slick when wet. Big trouble. Then there is durability as mentioned above from shear and hot things as drips from welding. After appropriate prepping my concrete floor was painted with G&C xylene based paint/stain. Nothing fancy but fully intact after 25 years. Everything dripped on it, may leave stains - so to speak - but intact and in perfect shape. It has no thickness to it, just a paint so the concrete is as good as bare when wet and that is so very important.

Ali

 

thank you so much for your suggestion