Painting a Concrete Floor for Workshop

[Bill Erskine]

I'm about to move to Charlottesville, VA. My workshop will be relocated to the two-car detached garage (well, breezeway attached). We'll have the house about 3 days before the movers arrive and beside the usual locksmith and carpet cleaning, I'm wondering about painting the garage floor. What do the expert people here suggest? TIA

[David LaRue]

I used Rust-Olemum's 2 part epoxy on mine. See Terry Hatfield's posts on his shop floor. They turned out great.

DAve

[Jim Baker]

I'm about to move to Charlottesville, VA. My workshop will be relocated to the two-car detached garage (well, breezeway attached). We'll have the house about 3 days before the movers arrive and beside the usual locksmith and carpet cleaning, I'm wondering about painting the garage floor. What do the expert people here suggest? TIA

I would never consider myself a painting expert, but the product we used on our concrete shop floor turned out beautiful. I don't recall the name of it, but it came from Sherwin Williams. It was a two part industrial coatings product. It has held up extremely well. Much better than standard porch and floor enamels. I don't think I have any scratches or chips yet after around two years. It was a little pricey, but well worth it. I think it can be tinted nearly any color. I'll try to get the name of it for you later.

[Jeff Cybulski]

I also had good luck with the Sherwin Williams 2 part Epoxy. Put it down 7 years ago and it's held up well. Parked the car on it for 3 years then it became the shop. The only wear is the places the car was, and that was minor.
The key is in the prep. I sandblasted the entire floor (what a mess!) before applying. I've seen so called "Garage Paint" that would peel after a few weeks. Again that might be improper prep work.

Jeff

[Jim Baker]

I also had good luck with the Sherwin Williams 2 part Epoxy. Put it down 7 years ago and it's held up well. Parked the car on it for 3 years then it became the shop. The only wear is the places the car was, and that was minor.
The key is in the prep. I sandblasted the entire floor (what a mess!) before applying. I've seen so called "Garage Paint" that would peel after a few weeks. Again that might be improper prep work.

Jeff

We cleaned ours thoroughly, then treated it with muriatic acid. If you have access to a good paint store, they should be able to give you accurate and complete advice. The guys at Effingham, IL did a wonderful job for us.

[Terry Hatfield]

Bill,

Here are the links to my recent floor porject. Prep is the most important thing.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthre...?threadid=2227

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthre...?threadid=2215

I used the Rust-oleum Epoxy shield. It comes with it's own cleaner in the kit but I decided to use miratic acid in addition to the citrus cleaner. I washed ans scrubbed for most of a day. Put down the epoxy the next day and it turned out pretty well.

Since completion the floor has had floor jacks, cherry pickers etc... rolled around with not even a scratch. Gas has been spilled on it also with no problem. Last weekend I dropped a quart of oil base stain and it literally exploded. I just wiped up as much as I can and wiped the floor down with some automotive wax and grease remover...good as new.

I think as long as you prep well and use a 2 part epoxy, you can't go wrong with any of the different brands.

Terry

[Bob Powers]

I'm about to move to Charlottesville, VA. My workshop will be relocated to the two-car detached garage (well, breezeway attached). We'll have the house about 3 days before the movers arrive and beside the usual locksmith and carpet cleaning, I'm wondering about painting the garage floor. What do the expert people here suggest? TIA

I'm sure those who used the two-part epoxy finishes are pleased with the results, but I used another method and three years later am quite pleased with the results.
1. Clean the floor thoroughly with muriatic acid.
2. Apply two coats of latex concrete sealer with a mop.
3. Apply two coats of industrial type liquid wax with a mop.

That's it! It wears well, costs little, and when you need to repair worn spots, just get the mop out.

[Don Farr]

I would like to do my shop floor also. Tell me how you did the acid cleaning. How safe is that?

[Terry Hatfield]

Don,

I bought the muratic acid at Lowes. They have a few different coices in the paint dept. for concrete cleaners.

I basically just poured it out on the floor and let it set for a few minutes, scrubbed with a stiff broom and pressure washed the floor. It was amazing how much gunk it took off.

I used the citric based cleaner included with the kits after the acid.

Saftey...hmmmm. I didn't notice and bad fumes or anything, didn't seem to hurt anything else but I did have the shop cleared out when I did it. Perhaps someone else will know more about this issue, but I didn't see any problem. I did wear my safety goggles and was careful not to get any of the acid on me just in case.

Terry

[Ken Garlock]

epoxy is the only brand my painter would use on concrete floors. He power washes, acid washes, and let dry for a couple days. The then followed up with 2 coats of the Tile-Clad, and boy, does it stink

We have the Tile-Clad in a 3 car garage, a 2 car garage, and the shop. It all looks good. AND, it comes in a multitude of colors, maybe 30 or 40, I have forgotten.....

[Bob Powers]

I would like to do my shop floor also. Tell me how you did the acid cleaning. How safe is that?

I have used muriatic acid many times without any problems. It is used in a very dilute solution. If your floor is very smooth, just use a mop. If it's somewhat rough, use a scrub brush on a long handle. It's available in most hardware and paint stores.

[Scott Greaves]

When they poured the slab for my shop last year, the concrete guy put a sealer on it (without asking). Is the presence of this sealer going to eliminate the possibility I can paint my shop floor? If I acid wash it? What do you think? I am moving everything out of my shop this next week so the insulation and drywall can go in unhampered. That would be a perfect time to have a go at painting the floor, while everything is out (probably for the last time ever!).

Thanks!

Scott.

[Ken Garlock]

When they poured the slab for my shop last year, the concrete guy put a sealer on it (without asking). Is the presence of this sealer going to eliminate the possibility I can paint my shop floor? If I acid wash it? What do you think? I am moving everything out of my shop this next week so the insulation and drywall can go in unhampered. That would be a perfect time to have a go at painting the floor, while everything is out (probably for the last time ever!).

Thanks!

Scott.

Scott, contact the concrete guy and find out what he used. That could definitely influence how you go about painting the floor now. With that information, go to a professional paint store, not a "borg," and get them to make a recommendation. Without knowing what sealer is on the floor, you are making a guess which will be expensive and could be wrong.

Good Luck....