Epoxy Garage Floor

[Gibbcutter]

Professional company wants $2000 to put down epoxy covering on garage floor. If I do this myself, will the result be as good?

[KC]

How much will it cost to DIY?  I've never done it, but I'd expect the devil is in the details of the prep.  If I was going to park cars in there afterward,  my question would be how good is 'good enough'?

[vernonator]

Professional company wants $2000 to put down epoxy covering on garage floor.  If I do this myself, will the result be as good?

Nope but it may be good enough. How badly stained is the floor (if at all) this is where the money would probably be worth it - if there is a lot of staining that needs to be removed. They will also most likely do a better job of acid etching the floor (which kits do not contain). I did my basement shop floor and it was fine, buddy did his garage (I helped) and it peeled off fairly quickly where he drove over it. YMMV.

[Mr_Mike]

You need to use a two part non-water-based epoxy and do the prep work very well. Etch and powerwash and then again.

I did the garage at my current house and it turned out well for the most part. However, over time, some flaws have showed up. Not defects in the coating, defects in the concrete. Mostly some flaking/spalling out of the concrete and in one small area, poor ahdesion over a bad oil stain.

For the next house, I'm going back to bare concrete.

[carwashguy]

I did my garage with concrete stain.  All I did was sweep and quickly vacuum before I carelessly slopped to on.  Stayed off of it for a couple of days before I allowed the wife to park the car in there again.  Still looks good after 7-8 years but there are some spots that have worn off.  I am going to redo it this summer.  For the cost and ease of application I think this is the way to go. 

One of my neighbors did the 2 part kit from HD and it is nearly worn off where he parks the cars.  His did have fancy speckles that you throw down while the epoxy is still wet which my floor doesn't have

[Mr_Mike]

HD has a two part water based kit. Not near as durable. You need the two part solvent based epoxy system.

[AUswimKC]

I've done 5 floors in the last 10 years.  All still look amazing.  The key is prep prep prep and more prep.  The first four were brand new, easy to etch.  The last one was 2 years ago but it was 10 years old.  I must've de-greased and power washed it with a surface cleaner 5 times.  And etched it twice in full and small areas a couple extra times.  

Then always check that you dont have a moisture issue.  Tape some plastic to the floor at several locations for a few days to make sure there is no water permeating thru the slab.

And I have also been very anal about traffic. Once clean and ready, no traffic for a week to ensure that it is dry. Then after being finished, no traffic for another week to make sure it was cured.


Every floor I have done has been the two part Rustoleum professional. It is the solvent based stuff.  The water-based is terrible.  Read the label for clean-up instructions. I believe I paid $100 per kit.  One kit, thinned 10% with acetone did the first coat of my 20x20 garage.  I then, 24 hours later, did the another coat, and didnt thin it.  

The key to applying it, after the prep of course, is to work in small areas.  I split my garage in half with 3 zones each.  To ensure you don't run out of material I would pour 1/6 of the combined mixture (measured with a line on an old milk jug) into the paint rolling tray and use it all, then move to the next zone. 

I've done all of the garages 100% by myself.

If I recall, Ace Hardware still sells the solvent-based.

[Cdshakes]

I've done two-- both the Rustoleum non water based.  I don't put cars on either of them, but they're both holding up very well still.  First one was in 2004, second was in my garage in 2010.
Here's some pics from the first one-- it was a small outbuilding that my grandfather used to sell live bait out of.  I cleaned up and eventually rebuilt most of it for storage.(floor is still there, intact)  As you can see, having the tanks of minnows and such left quite a few rust spots on the floor--the etching cleaned, but couldn't take care of the rust entirely-- the epoxy covered right over it.

Here's after I emptied everything out, still a dirty floor!

   

After I etched the floor.

   

Rolling out the epoxy:

   

Floor finished:

   

[Robert Adams]

Have done done a few and learned one very important thing on on the first. It was a new house with cured concrete. Did everything the same way I had when doing it with a friend that has done several... Had some spots come up after after a year or so. 

             The next time I did more prep. I ground the floor this time. Then I did the regular prep. 4 years later it's still like new with daily car traffic. The hook is much better when you grind the floor than just the acid. 

             If you have never used a concrete grinder it is is a big learning curve. It's a floor buffer with a Diamond pad. Just like the cartoons if you get it wrong it will spin. It will rip the handle out of your hands it will hurt you it will slam that handle through the wall. If that handle hits you it could easily break a rib. It's only a 1hp motor but it has the torque of a bull. 
           My first use of one was grinding thinset out of a whole house and getting started is the hardest part. Quite intimidating at first and I'm no stranger to big machines.   And a request for those remodeling please don't put tile throughout a house as its a nightmare for the next guy to remove all that crap. The only benefit is that it was a slab house. If it had been pier and beam my friend would have had to find someone else to do it...

[MarkSingleton]

https://www.epoxy-coat.com/



I have used this product three times. First time was for my newly poured
Wood Shop floor. Came out great.

Second time was for one third of our three car garage. Not as good, as the
concrete was in not so great shape. I did grind it, but had never done it
before, and you can tell.

Third was the rest of the garage, the other two thirds. Came out great, as
I rented a powered floor ginder, rather than an angle grinder on my hands
and knees (!).

Prep work is key. Follow ALL the instructions. Watch the videos on youtube,
etc.

Good Luck.