Garage floor questions | Page 2 | FerrariChat

Garage floor questions

Discussion in 'Detailing & Showroom' started by Husker, Jun 12, 2020.

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  1. SCantera

    SCantera F1 Veteran
    Silver Subscribed

    Aug 4, 2004
    5,112
    Living Falls NC
    This porcelain cost $1.99/sf at Floors and Decor. They are 24" x 24" and fairly rectified [consistent dimensions]. Install cost depends on who and where. I paid $3/sf for the install of 2000 sf.
     
  2. Shaun Oriold1

    Shaun Oriold1 Karting

    Mar 21, 2008
    206
    Burlington, Ontario. Canada
    Full Name:
    shaun
    I'm in the GTA too -Burlington to be exact. Again, concrete floor coating are half my business. I'm obviously biased, but everyone should have it done. Hot climate or cold climate. in our neck of the woods, it protects the concrete from salt damage. The water issue is always a tricky one. When we prepare a floor we cant level it out perfectly. Were at the mercy of the concrete finishers who trowelled it initially. The grinders are good at modestly shaving off high spots, but its really minimal. We try to put more chemical and flake into low areas, but its still a bit of a guessing game. As you note water will flow to the lowest point. The only real way to solve a drainage issue is, noting the low spots with water, patching those. and repeat until its solved. its slow, and expensive. When its not easily repairable with extra chemical, grinding extra, and extra flake, we suggest Swisstrax's ribtrax tiles. They're great at allowing water to drain off, keeping the floor dry, and easily cleaned out yearly to get the salt and sand out of your garage floor.

    Price wise, I'm not sure how big your garage is, but here in the GTA we charge $7/ square foot. $2000 is a steal, especially for a week of work.


    Here's one we just finished and are handing off tomorrow. Floor is to resemble a hockey rink, as the owner is a huge sports fan. It was a pain in the butt to do, but it looks awesome.
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    Shaun.
     
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  3. MANDALAY

    MANDALAY F1 World Champ
    Owner Rossa Subscribed Silver Subscribed

    May 23, 2013
    11,048
    AUSTRALIA
    Full Name:
    ANGELO
    1. Concrete as-is.( will stain, looks dirty )
    2. Polish the concrete ($1000) ( better than concrete as is . Can be redone again and again )
    3. Epoxy ($1500-1700) ( 35 years in resins DO NOT DO IT )
    4. Tiles designed for garage ($800-ish) ( Rubber ok )
    5. Peel and stick vinyl tile from Lowe's or HD ($300-ish) ( horrible will move , looks so cheap )
    6. Porcelain or ceramic tile ($500-700) ( Ceramic NO Porcelain yes best so far. Look at Ferrari dealerships )
    7. A cut-to-fit rubber mat with the coin pattern. ( ok )

    As per mine I love granite. 20 mm polished with epoxy grout. If any tile gets market it can be polished out. Polished and it cleans so so easily. Classy :)
    Against BLOODY DEAR , But do it once and that's it

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  4. Jack-the-lad

    Jack-the-lad Six Time F1 World Champ
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    Jun 22, 2004
    69,058
    Moot Pointe

    Do I understand...yours is granite tile? Can we see some close-ups?:)

    Looks fantastic and thanks for the tutorial.
     
  5. MANDALAY

    MANDALAY F1 World Champ
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    May 23, 2013
    11,048
    AUSTRALIA
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    ANGELO
    Granite tile but 20 mm thick. Same as a slab for a kitchen bench.

    Black is the most dense and strongest. This one I used is from India , Not Chinese . It is more dense with no pits. 450 mm x 450 mm

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  6. Jack-the-lad

    Jack-the-lad Six Time F1 World Champ
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    Jun 22, 2004
    69,058
    Moot Pointe
    Can it be finished with a lower gloss?

    I’m thinking of using porcelain tiles. What thickness do you recommend?
     
  7. Mikestradale

    Mikestradale F1 Rookie

    Jan 25, 2006
    2,596
    Netherlands
    Full Name:
    Mike
    I put 1 inch thick rubber outdoor tiles on my garage floor. Looks great imo, and it helps avoiding flat spots on your tires if the car is sitting for a while. 25 euros per square meter, not too bad. This floor also feels much softer on your feet when you’re walking on it without shoes. I really like it.

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  8. MANDALAY

    MANDALAY F1 World Champ
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    May 23, 2013
    11,048
    AUSTRALIA
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    ANGELO
    The finish is only as good as the preparation. I assume you have a concrete floor. The preferred way is NOT to glue down the tiles on it directly because if the concrete moves the tiles will crack.
    It is better to put down a screed with wire at least 25 mm thick minimum. Then the tiles on the screed. Porcelain tiles are very strong. At least 10 mm. I just prefer 20 mm outside. These are the same granite tiles I used outside. They are exfoliated and have no gloss but still 20 mm

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  9. Dean Palmer

    Dean Palmer Formula Junior

    May 21, 2010
    406
    St. Petersburg, FL
    Full Name:
    Dean Palmer
    I have coated garage floors in three houses at the moment. All "epoxy" types are not the same, at all. Folks who have used simple and cheap garage floor epoxies will eventually have failure and damage. One of the commercial types is a polyurea, and with the proper prep it's pretty damn indestructible even with forklifts and aircraft and such. Any floor job needs to start with grinding, and then possibly a sealer or bonding agent as well. The house I'm at sits about at sea level here in an island neighborhood so the coating we had installed also solved a slight moisture issue as the floor was never really poured originally to be an enclosed room. It's originally a stilt house. After a few years and a lot of cars, welding, and other work, it's still like new. The company was Gorilla Garage, but there are many companies doing the same. Very happy with it. Image Unavailable, Please Login
     
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  10. Scudmsl

    Scudmsl Formula Junior
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    Aug 12, 2014
    837
    USA
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  11. 020147

    020147 F1 Rookie
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    Jun 12, 2006
    3,649
    Midwest
    Just for posterity I have to ask; you can weld over your epoxy with zero damage to the coating? Are you putting a fire blanket down to protect the floor before welding? Too bad there are no installers near me, it sounds like a nice product.


     
  12. Dean Palmer

    Dean Palmer Formula Junior

    May 21, 2010
    406
    St. Petersburg, FL
    Full Name:
    Dean Palmer
    I'm working mostly with TIG at a waist-level table, and the little hot bits that rarely drop have had no effect. If I were blasting out MIG with a lot of splatter (rare issue) or a messy stick process on a regular basis right down at floor level, I might be more careful, but not needed. I would not weld right on the epoxy floor itself.
     
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  13. J-P

    J-P Formula Junior
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    Nov 15, 2007
    331
    Went with a poly urea/poly aspartic something-or-other epoxy system. Looks great, but if I had to do it all over again it would be ceramic tile, all day and all the way. So much more durable, so much better looking, and no more expensive than what they gouge out of you for basically grinding and painting your concrete, and is ultimately doomed to failure no matter how good the prep and material. If you look at photos of European garages and shops, they almost all use tile. Looks great, is very classy, and will probably still be there in 20 years.
     
  14. SoCal to az

    SoCal to az F1 World Champ
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    Nov 25, 2012
    14,209
    Arizona
    Debating on the flooring for my new garage build. Ive looked at all the options and will most likely go with porcelain tile. Not sure on the color but might do a gray or white. I want a professional finished showroom look. Mandalays garage looks great. Its the high end look we are going for
     
  15. colombo2cam

    colombo2cam Formula Junior

    Jan 31, 2019
    827
    Full Name:
    Ted

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