Shop floor covering systems

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mullinax95

mullinax95

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These are the systems that are rolled on, chips scattered, and then a clear is applied over it. I really like the Rock Solid since its a polyurea floor coating instead of epoxy. Its supposed to be 20 times stronger. However like most things that are nice it is expensive. Talking with the sales rep at Lowes I can get the full chip (instead of partial) for $1680... far cheaper than getting it online. This does not cover the crack filler (to fill expansion joints so the floor will look smooth).

https://www.rocksolidfloors.com/



[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qq-mCNRkbZo&feature=player_embedded"]Sam Memmolo's Garage Build Out featuring RockSolid Floors - YouTube[/ame]



The second is called Legacy. This is a epoxy system instead of polyurea. From them I can get a 5% discount. With enough kits to do my shop, including crack filler, with the full chip look, and a clear coat... I can get it for $967


http://www.legacyindustrial.net/cart/

The third is Quikrete type in which Im not really fond of it. The price is much cheaper but I assume so is the product.

http://www.quikretecoatings.com/index.jsp

Third is Rustoleum Epoxy Shield. My moms neighbor put this on his floor and it has started chipping up where the tires sit most of the time. He might had not prepped it correctly so that could be the cause.

http://www.rustoleum.com/cbgbrand.asp?bid=8


Im looking for a coating that is more like industrial grade instead of the cheap stuff. I don't want to ever have to do it over again if I can help it.

Anyone know of any other coatings fill free to chime in. I listed the above in the preference order... the cheap stuff is at the bottom. lol
 
(This is an answer to a similar tread I wrote about 6 months ago. The coating is now over a year old and I'm giving one bay of my shop, where I do all my fab and welding, a real beating. Still holding up really well.)
Having just coated the floor of my new 26' x 44' shop I can give you some pointers on this. I spent literally months researching the pros and cons of paints and all the various epoxy coating systems on the market. Here's the short course on what I found:
Enamel paint: Goes on easy but no where near the durability of a true epoxy, can be re-top coated when needed, messy clean up = thinner mineral spirits, ect. It bonds ok to new cement. Probably need to add sand or chips for traction as it may be slick depending on how thickly applied.
Epoxy coating: Garage floor kits promoted by the home stores use an inferior epoxy resin (profit margin on those inexpensive kits). Industrial quality epoxy is much more expensive. Epoxies are a multi coat system: base coat, color chips if wanted, top coat, so are a lot more labor intensive. Epoxy goes on thick (around 4 mils) and doesn't spread far = need more product = $$. When exposed to sunlight epoxy can/will yellow over time unless you top coat with a clear mixed with UV blocker. Epoxy will be slick unless you do the chip thing or add sand in a top coat for traction. Ever try to find that little one of a kind screw or spring clip you just dropped among all the color chips on the floor (although they do look sweet). The biggest draw back of epoxy for me was that it really does not bond that well with cement. It kind of lays on top and hardens into a huge plastic sheet. That is why you will hear alot of stories about hot tire lifting of the coating and why your always told to acid etch the floor to provide the best bonding surface you can.

I settled on a new coating offered by a company called Progressive Epoxy Polymers (epoxyproducts.com). They have an industrial quality, water based, epoxy paint system (WaterBond) which has all the pros of epoxy but goes down like paint (1 or 2 coats) and cleans up with soap and water just like latex paint. I bought the recommended amount for one coat and actually had some left over after the second coat so a little goes a long way. What sold me was that it has a superior bond to cement than a thicker epoxy as it is thin enough that it works down into the pores and once dry is physically locked in place. Even with two coats it was still thin enough that it kept the texture of new cement and isn't slick. I've had mine down for over six months and it's holding up very well to the abuse of steel wheeled floor jacks/loaded engine stands. It isn't cheap because it uses industrial quality resins but for ease of application and clean up I highly recommend it to anyone who wants a quality epoxy floor coating with half the effort of a standard epoxy system. I have no affiliation with this company or product, just a happy and satisfied customer. Their web site is loaded with info if you want to do your own research. Hope this helps, Rapom.

PS: For six gallons I paid $541 which included shipping to Washington state. When the floor gets beat up enough you can recoat it with the same stuff. I don't think you can do that with standard epoxy systems.
 
We have done concrete counter tops for kitchens. Some very durable stuff. The clear coat on the top finish is of 100% solids epoxy. You might look into this stuff if your budget allows. It's a two part mix 50/50. A cave man can do it if the cave man that poured the floor did it level to start with. This stuff lays flat and you can make it as thick as your pocket book allows.
Small Block
 
How many votes for the good old 18" black and white linoleum peel and stick checkerboard tiles? Any drawbacks besides it being .69 a square foot?
 
My experience in the Home Depots and Lowes type epoxy are inferior and I know from experience from previous shops I have run...I am not a big fan of water based epoxy...
My present shop I did with Sherwin Williams Tile Clad and it is an industrial strength epoxy.Comes in a part a and part b that is mixed and then painted two coats and about 4 mil thick.You can have them tinted any color.I picked Slate Grey.
Cost about $55.00 a gallon,purchasing in 5 gallon bucket gets you a discount but you need a part a and a part b.
For example my shop 3000 sq ft took 10 gallons of each,20 gallons total.
Cost me about 1200.00 total with tax because I got a discount.
PM me and I will explain how to get a discount....
Here is some more info on my shop build:
http://www.forabodiesonly.com/mopar/showthread.php?t=139220&highlight=shop+build
What ever you do ,do not acid etch your concrete.
On your new slab you will have to wait at least 30 days to paint depend on the strength of your concrete 3000psi or 5000psi...
Martin
 
TX,
go to your Glidden professional paint supplier and ask about their WB Epoxy system. I was picking up some catalyzed lacquer and saw the literature.
might be worth an enquirery
Andrew
 
rapom65 said:
PS: For six gallons I paid $541 which included shipping to Washington state. When the floor gets beat up enough you can recoat it with the same stuff. I don't think you can do that with standard epoxy systems.
Click to expand...

What colors are available?

In my thinking with the standard epoxy systems the top coat is really what sees the abuse instead the color coating and the chips. What I have been wondering is can there be another top coat rolled over the old top coat?

Small Block said:
We have done concrete counter tops for kitchens. Some very durable stuff. The clear coat on the top finish is of 100% solids epoxy. You might look into this stuff if your budget allows. It's a two part mix 50/50. A cave man can do it if the cave man that poured the floor did it level to start with. This stuff lays flat and you can make it as thick as your pocket book allows.
Small Block
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Which system are you speaking about? The one rapom65 is talking about?

pishta said:
How many votes for the good old 18" black and white linoleum peel and stick checkerboard tiles? Any drawbacks besides it being .69 a square foot?
Click to expand...

I work for a auto glass center and we have a customer who owns a food service company. At their place they have a nice shop with the black and white linoleum on the floors in their fleet service area. I was looking at their floors not long ago because I have been on the watch out for covering in shops. The linoleum is not holding up to the abuse in which it receives. The area where most activity (jack stands, floor jack) has been replaced with solid black tile. It no longer has a checker board appearance. They just replaced the damaged tile with black tile most likely what they had left over. Also where the expansion joints are located under the tile it has caused the tile to crack. In short I wouldn't use it unless it is foot travel only with no expansion joints.
 
I'm really liking that "Rock Solid" idea, especially since they are local to Colorado.
 
A while back (6 months or so) I bought a couple of the "kits" from Home Depot, and if I remember right it was by Rust-Oleum (?).........

Prepped and painted, and sprinkled the colored chips as I went. Came out great.

The dilemma was that I really wanted the high gloss clear.....BUT, no one carried it anywhere around my location. NOW, after 6 months have passed, they have a boatload of the stuff.

My question is this.......... Can I successfully cover my existing floor, 6 months dry, with the clearcoat epoxy and get a decent adhesion? I can't very well sand the floor, or I'd have to repaint the whole thing.........

I'm wondering if a little "steel wool" to just lightly dull it, then a thorough prep-solvent wipe would do the trick..........??
 
My experience is only in a professional shop. We used a commercial grade epoxy and had it professionally done. Etching, coating, etc... We went with light grey and a gritty, sand like texture. You did not slip and it held up for years and years. The one drawback? And it is a major drawback if you have a professional shop where customers might come into - a clean shop make them believe you are careful and conscientious in all things - the grit made it very hard to clean and impossible to squeegee properly. I don't know how we could have done it differently, though. You can't be slipping around, and it held up incredibly well.
 
TXDART, would you expound on your statement about your experience with water based epoxies? What problems did you have?

MULLINAX95, I know they have a light grey and a dark grey + others. I went with the light grey and really like it. For a hobby shop I don't think you would go wrong with a water based system. In a commercial shop it may not hold up over time. You will have to balance cost, ease of application (# of coats, clean up), expected use (abuse), ability to re-coat, ect. to find what works best for you. I don't think anything will hold up to severe usage over time (like my axle falling off my jack as I was rolling it out from under the car, left a nice mark on my freshly done floor). The nice thing about any coating system is clean up of any spills. Easy wipe up and no more oil stains. For me the cost and ease of application of the water based system met my needs. Your on the right track, stick with an industrial epoxy and make sure you coat the cement before you start using it. There is a wealth of info on that web sight about all types of epoxy coatings along with the pros/cons of each system, prep recommendations, ect. They have many available not just the Waterbond.
 
Mulli, tomorrow i'll look and get the names off the two bottles i have left over from the last job and post em up for ya.
Small Block
 
RAPOM65 That link you posted just keeps going and going.... very confusing......... lol...............epoxyproducts.com

Here is another I found ....Epoxy Coat


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

Another... MuscleGloss

http://www.musclegloss.com/index.php

It still comes down to basically this. Rock Solid uses polyuera (epoxy free! 20x stronger that epoxy) and every other company uses epoxy.
 
Hey Mulli, i looked on the bottle this eveing and the name is Acurastone Ltd. No address or website or squat. It is 100% solids. It is a two part with clear and hardner. I'll try and catch the guy that is the distrubutor for it and see if i can get some more details. It is some killer stuff with a killer price. Good luck.
Small Block
 
Mulli, CORRECTION !!. The product name is AURASTONE. I'm setting here beside one of the jugs and typed the correct name in google. It comes up and i do see they have a floor product also. Check it out and hope it's of some use to ya. Good stuff.
Small Block
 
Small Block said:
Hey Mulli, i looked on the bottle this eveing and the name is Acurastone Ltd. No address or website or squat. It is 100% solids. It is a two part with clear and hardner. I'll try and catch the guy that is the distrubutor for it and see if i can get some more details. It is some killer stuff with a killer price. Good luck.
Small Block
Click to expand...

Ok that sounds good.

rapom65 said:
mullinax95 said:
RAPOM65 That link you posted just keeps going and going.... very confusing......... lol...............epoxyproducts.com

Yea there is ALOT of info there.
Click to expand...

I haven't waved through all that information to find out anything yet.

It's hard me to drop over $1600 on a floor system (Rock Solid) that doesn't look any different than the epoxy systems...... but yet it supposed to be stronger. Which might make since but then it doesn't!!! :-|


This can be quit a confusing ordeal .... almost frustrating to choose something that you walk on!

Geezz I feel like I'm buying a dang car or something. lol
Click to expand...
 
Mulli. Granicrete Int. is the manufacturer. It looks like they are located in Arizona. Look at their site. Some nice videos for ya.
Small Block
 
pastortom1 said:
A while back (6 months or so) I bought a couple of the "kits" from Home Depot, and if I remember right it was by Rust-Oleum (?).........

Prepped and painted, and sprinkled the colored chips as I went. Came out great.

The dilemma was that I really wanted the high gloss clear.....BUT, no one carried it anywhere around my location. NOW, after 6 months have passed, they have a boatload of the stuff.

My question is this.......... Can I successfully cover my existing floor, 6 months dry, with the clearcoat epoxy and get a decent adhesion? I can't very well sand the floor, or I'd have to repaint the whole thing.........

I'm wondering if a little "steel wool" to just lightly dull it, then a thorough prep-solvent wipe would do the trick..........??
Click to expand...

Yes, if you use a good epoxy it will "bite" the coating you have just fine.

Use the aeromarine 300/21 system:

http://www.aeromarineproducts.com/concrete-coating-epoxy.htm

And you can have a high gloss finish.

A quick word about epoxies for the rest of the posters. Real two part epoxies have no solvents. In 40 years of dealing with epoxies, I have never seen a 1:1 mix that has no fillers. The chemistry of the epoxy systems dictates that the hardener will be a smaller volume.

Consumer grade epoxies use fillers in the hardener to make it easy to mix. Sometimes this is ok for things like paint - you have to put the pigment someplace anyway. Adding fillers extends the base chemical, which can add to the profit margin as well.

For high bond strengths you want to avoid fillers. For clear coats, fillers can cause cloudy finishes. Bonding to all of the fillers weakens the epoxy.

I have been using Aeromarine products for decades. John is a good guy, and always has fair prices.

B.
 
Small Block said:
Mulli. Granicrete Int. is the manufacturer. It looks like they are located in Arizona. Look at their site. Some nice videos for ya.
Small Block
Click to expand...

That is some beautiful floor covering. However I don't see where they sell to the public except have someone come out and put it down for you... unless I over looked it. If that is the case it would more than likely be out of my price range.

brokengarage said:
I used this product several years ago. Holding up great and cost about $400 dollars to doroughly 600 square feet.

http://www.concrete-floor-coatings.com/duraseal400.asp
Click to expand...

I have 720 sq ft not adding in the concrete block wall that is a 18'' high that I would like covered. Sounds like a good deal price wise. I will look into it some more when I get more time.
 
Well I've narrowed down to Epoxy Coat I really do believe.

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

It's not water based, it's 100% solid, I get free shipping since I am member of garagejournal, the fellow I've been talking to is very helpful and patient than the other companies, lifetime warranty, they have the colors (base coat and chips) I'm looking for.

RockSolid has some bad reviews about it drying before it gets put down and they offer no touch up kits just in case something happens.

Acid stain was sounding nice until I was told my concrete block wouldn't work very well with the stain and I really couldn't get a exact color since different concrete will have different looks. Little bit over my head.

Water based epoxies are out of the question from ALL the bad reviews I have read.

I will have to grind the floor down so it will be rougher than it is now for better adhesion. I didn't know I had to do this but the concrete people hard trialed my concrete and its pretty smooth. This sucks but the prep work is the a MAJOR factor in the epoxy appearance and long lasting floor.

The aeromarine company don't have enough colors to choose from. I asked could they tint the white to the tan color they said no .... but I could purchase something (dye) at WalMart.. ha ha .... that's very professional of them.

I will have more work to do before I even think about putting the covering down. It wont be done this year probably.
 
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