Prepping garage floor

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Tom Picciani

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 31, 2018
Messages
663
Location
Lancaster, Pa
I’m working towards painting the garage floor in a few weeks. The garage had spalling on the right side. I spent last week washing it with tsp at 2 cups for 6 quarts of water and a lot of elbow grease, power washing, etc. did this 2x. Lots of rinsing. Laid down 40 lbs of Re-cap. Looks pretty good. Will let it cure for 4 weeks as recommended.

left side had old oil stains. Totally black. Did same treatment but no concrete is needed.
Pictures attached. I spent 6 hours getting it to that point. I now want to etch with Rustoleum clean and etch. Then I’ll use Behr bonding primer. I’ll use Behr 1 part epoxy floor paint.
Should I go over floor again or do you think the paint will stick?
 

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My floor looked like yours. I did not seal the epoxy (got busy) and the floor started peeling after 3 years. I pulled the pin this week and had it done professionally. The guys spent 1/2 hour to grind off the old epoxy and down to raw, clean concrete. Here is my floor yesterday and today.
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Average price in the Los Angeles area is about $1500. I asked for a second coat of UV protective clear to stop any yellowing, and am paying $1600. Considering paying nearly $250, plus $50 for silica sand and extra chips to stop slipping, I think the price is fair. As they say, you get what you pay for, plus in Cal, the EPA insists on ALL paint being water based, so expect to redo it within 5 years.
 
There’s a guy in my town that’s pro, (2500$ )night and day difference from the diy and pro. Tire peel is most common, moisture issues, mechanical bond, I’m getting a lot of requests to grind garages, not a cheap task compared to cost of painting it. I quoted 700$ for a 2 car garage, 400 was my low on couple others, 200$ for a 1 car garage just to “scuff” it up as a handyman requested, I couldn’t get down into undulations in slab without grinding into it deeper. Therefor I need equipment to follow contour which I dislike but it’s seen everywhere no matter the product. Terrazzo,etc.

Another thing is the control joints not filled is an eyesore for Me.
 

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Not belaboring my point of paying more to have it done correctly, but these guys also used a resin/sand mix to contour my concrete footings. They ground the edge to slope down, then rolled the upper and lower edges to prevent water from wicking up the drywall. They also cut my control joints deeper, then filled the crack with an elastic membrane, making the joint disappear.
 
The concrete footings were flat and some areas actually tapered inward towards the drywall on top. When I hosed out the garage and hit the drywall, that water would sit on top of the footings and I was concerned that the water would eventually penetrate the drywall. The same with the joint at the base of the footing, where the concrete floor began. After washing down, the water would pool up at the edge, but now with a tapered edge, water will be pushed away for faster drying.

Look at my first and second pictures on this thread to compare what it looked like before the build up, and after they corrected the build up.

These guys rarely work on residential properties, and usually do commercial jobs. they just completed 27 operating rooms at Loma Linda University Hospital, where they use a rubberized flooring for sound-proofing and the rubber has an anti-bacteria pigment. They can easily hose down and sterilize the operating rooms after major surgeries.
 
Nice, I see it now prior. I use to do that at industrial plants(coved base)

to me it’s a no brainer for hygienic purposes, seamless floor. I demo’d commercial bathrooms in a school couple weeks back, “what’s going back down?” Larger tile, why give things a place to live(grout joints)

so, dollars? 10k for my ac, 10k for tree removal on my house, let the dollars get the bang, you got a bang, smart money!
 
I had recommended to a handyman to “stain” a slab versus the epoxy paint, it tire peeled on him and he warranted it, I grinded the coating off and he painted again. The stain doesn’t peel.

professionally done, issues are rare. Here’s epoxy resin terrazzo in the drive/taxi/drop off of the cosmopolitan in Vegas, I’d say 40,000 sq ft? And convention center epoxy. It’s all about prep, concrete surface profile #’s and product.
 

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I’m beginning to think I need to hold off and let professional people do the job. At least it’s clear enough to not look at it in disgust.
My biggest concern would be the proper prep and bonding agents.
Prep might include a light grinding to get rid of the hard troweled surface of the concrete. Many sealers require bare concrete which means getting rid of the smooth surface layer. By doing this step it creates a fresh, open, and porous surface for the epoxy to migrate into. Regular paints can peel from moisture coming up to the concrete. It can take years for this to happen.
By opening up the pores in the concrete with a grinder, it allows the epoxy to bond with the concrete more than simply laying on top of it.
We for assisted in putting some self-leveling concrete in a local history museum. The main point of the job was applying self leveling concrete to a depth of about 3/4 of an inch.
To get the self leveler to bond, and stop moisture from coming up into the concrete, a special epoxy was applied.
I to borrowed a cup grinder to Scuff the surface of the concrete and then we vacuum the floor and applied the first coat of epoxy. I think this epoxy was a moisture cure epoxy. I was told that this epoxy could be put over concrete that was 3 days old and it would stop moisture from coming up through it. That's why I'm thinking that the moisture helped cure the epoxy.....
After applying the epoxy to the bear concrete with a roller, I wrapped three or four layers of paper towels around the roller, yhen took it outside and set it down in the gravel.
As we were cleaning up, I went to grab the roller and I had to pull very hard and I literally pulled out a 12-in wide by 4 in deep wedge of gravel. The roller full of epoxy had seeped through the layers of paper towel and deep into the gravel. Impressive epoxy.
I don't know about where you live and how concerned you are with moisture coming up out of the concrete. In some places moisture vapor emissions are minimal and some places moisture emissions are extreme.
That said, I recall that you painted the floor in your basement. How is that working out?
I don't know how well anything bonds to oil drops or residue that's embedded in the concrete. It might be worth looking into epoxies to see if some bond better to oily floors.
The painting industry has created a lot of miracles over the years. If you're not in a hurry, it certainly worth a lot of detective work to figure out what is best for your floor.
 
At one training we were told “nothing sticks to oil”

It dissuade me to getting into garage coatings as a supplemental business.

of course I think for myself and obviously the trainer had no answer, logically, someone (company/corporation) is making a killing on said issue. I haven’t researched further.
 
I hear you. My basement came out great but I don't drive on it. It was etched with Eco-Etch. Then I laid down 2 coats of Behr Concrete Bonding Primer followed by 2 coats of Behr 1 part epoxy paint. A year later it still looks great. But it doesn't get a ton of traffic.

I was getting a bit ambitious and decided skip the DIY floor project to pay down bills for a while. Once I get things cleaned up with bills, I can get more done and get it done right. In the meantime I want to touch up the landscaping more. I want to put 2 trees in and add 2 more scoops of red mulch. None of which I can do for another week because after cataract surgery, heavy lifting is out for at least a week if not 2.

But back to the point, I do worry about the oil stains showing. I'll have to get a professional opinion. I'm expecting $1500 tops by the time everything is done, if it can be done... And that probably means it will cost $2000.
 
I believe it was Ardex training in Aliquippa headquarters that said nothing sticks to oil. They make toppings but I’d say they’re not the “authority” on application.

for projects, paying 3500 check to tree company, my roof Discover Card sent me checks and 12 months no interest so I wrote 10k$ check for a 25k$ roof. Plus I have a ton of other projects which I’m tapped out for.

If I keep posting pics, maybe one day someone here will want to buy me out Flooring Removsl Company and House and feel right at home!
 

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I remember I was looking at leveling the floor upstairs with Ardex / Henry feather finish. Gave up on the idea because the floor was too flexible. I just laid Coretec 9x72 planks. And where the floor was springy, I put the 300 pound couch. Ardex and Henry are the same company now.
 
Yes, amazing how other companies have boatloads to reinvest and yet the installers are “scraping” pun intended by.

That’s because most installers don’t run their business like it’s actually a business. They don’t know their numbers. Most guys just go around saying yes to whatever then bitch about how their not making any money. Might as well go volunteer at a soup kitchen with that kind of mentality. Prolly wouldn’t go broke as quick.
 

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