Concrete Floor paint

RichNJKubota · Oct 20, 2003

FYI,
Just walked into the local Sherwin Williams store and they have a 2 part epoxy paint that is used for concrete floors for $30/gallon. 2 gallons minimum as part A and B come in separate gallon cans. So for my 1200 sq ft the guy claims I'll need 3 kits or 6 gallons of epoxy paint. With no-slip additive, throw away brushes, roller, and the paint it's about $200. Of course there is not glitter to throw on top but for that price I don't need glitter.
Rich

Will · Oct 20, 2003

That sounds like a good deal, let us know how it holds up. I had been thinking about doing my floor for several years before I actually did it. I buy all of my paints from a local paint shop that has been in business forever and was always very helpful. At the time (and this is old news now) he said he'd tried selling lots of concrete paints, but they always pulled up under hot car tires sooner or later. It looks like they are starting to make commercial grade epoxy paints available to everyone at a reasonable price.

coonbone · Oct 20, 2003

Does anyone know how U coat it works on a fresh poured slab? Should I do anything special when I pour it to prepare it for the coating?

have_blue · Oct 20, 2003

( Does anyone know how U coat it works on a fresh poured slab? Should I do anything special when I pour it to prepare it for the coating? )

If it's polyurethane, I can tell you a lot of care needs to be taken. The floor needs to be super clean, then etched if instructed. Pay very close attention to the temperature and humidity. This is the most crucial thing of all. If the humidity is too high or the slab is too cold, the paint will peel in no time.

Will · Oct 21, 2003

( Does anyone know how U coat it works on a fresh poured slab? Should I do anything special when I pour it to prepare it for the coating? )

You just have to wait 30 days. There are some tests you can perform to check that the slab is dry enough (like tape plastic to the floor and see if any condensation forms). The U Coat It people are really helpful about whatever questions you have or problems you run into.

I spent a lot of time getting the oil out of my floor, my previous tractor was a 50 year old Farmall Cub, it oozed oil non-stop for the 10 years I owned it. A fresh clean slab will really make the job a lot easier.

mbrule · Oct 21, 2003

While we are on the topic af concrete floors and paint, I would like to throw a question at you guys. A couple of years ago I had a concrete floor poured in my garage, I have a friend that drives a concrete truck, so I got a "special" deal on the material. I had never poured a floor before, but he assured me that it would be no problem he knew what to do. I was unable to be there when he was able to get there with material, so my brother helped (who also didin't know how to do it at the time.

On to the problem, my concrete delivering buddy, "broomed" the floor as he thought it should have some texture.... to make matters worse he did it way too soon with too stiff a broom (not that it should have been done anyway!!) so now my floor has deep grooves (probably as deep as 1/4" believe it or not) It sucks! Forget about a creeper or kneeling on it! It is better than the dirt that I had, and was free, so I can't complain....but,
Do any of you guys know of a product I could use to coat the floor that will fill in the broom lines and make for a smooth floor. It must also be durable and stand up to garage use, oil, solvents etc.

Thanks and sorry for the long post.

Matt

Junkman · Oct 21, 2003

bonding to the old floor will be the problem.... if you have the room, consider having a 2" cap poured over it. If that isn't an option, then there are some high strength cements for holding bolts in concrete. Possibly one of those could be troweled over the broomed area to fill in the voids. Don't know for sure if it will work, but give it a try in a small area. Last thing that might be considered is to have the floor sanded flat. I have seen terrazzo floors sanded and they start out quite ruff. Noisy & dirty work, and probably expensive also, but in this case what you got it for free !!...

coonbone · Oct 23, 2003

Has anyone used or had any experience with both U coatit and Rustoleum Epoxyshield? I priced them both, and a 1200 sf area will cost about $600 with U coatit and only about $250 with Epoxysheild. I figured for that kind of money difference the Epoxyshield may be worth a look. I know U coatit must spend big bucks with all the advertising they do, maybe we're just paying for mostly that!

Will · Oct 23, 2003

( Has anyone used or had any experience with both U coatit and Rustoleum Epoxyshield? )

I did a lot of searching on the web, and I never found a useful Consumer Reports type comparison between these or other epoxy products. The closest I found was a web page run by a company that sells lots of different epoxy products. You'll probably find more information on that page than you want to know, but it might be helpful.

I'm sure that if you call UCoatIt they'll tell you their product is the best stuff around, but maybe there are some quantifiable differences (like percent of solids in epoxy, various hardness tests, resistance to heat) that they could tell you about.

Junkman · Oct 23, 2003

U Coat It did all the floors in all the buildings at the Carlisle (PA) flea market just for the advertising benefits. It seems to hold up well and does keep a shine, but I don't know if it is worth the cost vs. benefit issue. A Rolls Royce and a Chevrolet will get you to the same place in the same time, just one will cost more to purchase..... I would go for the less expensive product if you like the look of it. Just because it is more expensive, doesn't mean that it is better.......