Good discussion on the different floor coverings. What prep did you guys do to the concrete before putting down the epoxy? I can live with stains, but I am really worried about peeling.

Also to keep this on topic with what Steve is doing what's the prep for old concrete vs. new? 

The best bet would be to go with the epoxy makers recommendations on floor prep, that’s what I did IIRC.
I got the epoxy from a local bulk manufacturer/supplier, it was available in gallon cans, 5 gallon pails, 45 gallon drums and tanker cars if you are building a shop like MS.

Why do you need to grind it .......if its new?
Jus Say'in
6sal6

Dammit Jim, er Steve. You are building a new shop and my next door neighbor is building a new shop. Down the street another new shop is in the works. I'm thinking I need a new shop also! 
 

Last edited by RV6 (12/16/2019 6:55 PM)

6sally6 wrote:

Why do you need to grind it .......if its new?
Jus Say'in
6sal6

When they trowel concrete to smooth it out, the troweling action works fine cement particles to the surface to make the “cream” that dries into the smooth slick surface everyone wants on their finished concrete. Smooth and slick are enemies of good coating adhesion. The light grinding action of the diamabrush roughs up the surface of the concrete just the right amount for coating adhesion. As always, follow the coating manufactures’ instructions.

I would not ask for rough finished concrete.  The problem is that to get an area that big flat you have to run a trowel machine.  If you trowel it too wet you get ridges, skip marks, etc. and the floor is not smooth or flat.  Troweling to get it smooth and flat requires the concrete to be nearly hard.  If you then try to introduce a rough finish it will ruin it because there isn't enough moisture left in the concrete to keep the texturing operation from pulling chunks out of the surface.  Something like a sidewalk or patio are easier to get a broom finish on, which has texture, but I wouldn't want to lie on.  So you can either get a smooth finish and grind it a bit for coating adhesion, or you can get a rough finish and try to grind it flat.  The former is far easier than the later.  The concrete finish is like body work.  Best paint in the world isn't going to hide shoddy body work that isn't smooth. 

Hornman wrote:

Bearing Bob wrote:

It's common practice to ask for rough finished concrete.

Another strange thing Californians do for us to put on our list.

Really? You serious or just messing with me? You've never heard of a salt rock finish, a broom finish, cove finish or wood trowel finish. Take a look, they're out there.

Hornman wrote:

Concrete floor coating prep:  Pressure wash to get the glop off. Grind with a diamabrush you rent at Home depot. Acid etch according to the coating manufacturers instructions. Apply coating strictly according to manufacturers instructions.

The floor coatings sold at the big box stores are often thought to be inferior to the industrial quality coatings supplied by the vendors that frequent the “Flooring” section on Garage Journal. The industrial coatings are more expensive than the big box store coatings. 

That's basically what I did sans the grinding.  I let the concrete dry for a week.  Then the same steps with 24 hours between each.  Gray 2-part epoxy -  2 coats because I had extra, again, 24 hours drying time.  It has fade, but no peeling.  It now is dirty from 25 years of use, but is still better than my other garage with shiny concrete and no coating.  I bought the house with oil stains all over the beautiful shiny concrete.  I also had a time constraint for the epoxy as I could not wait a month before using the garage.

And to answer Hornman (6:34).  My Michigan family has done the same thing.   It's not a California thing.

Some type of progress has had to have occurred since the 12th. I gots to know.

Bueller?

You can do a lot with 100 Amps in the shop. Stay away from electric heat.
 
With our new house, I got a fancy floor coating installed in the garage. They did the grinding on the concrete with the diamond stones. Painted it with a gray urethane base coat, sprinkled on the flakes and let it dry overnight. A polyaspartic topcoat went on the next day with something to make it slip resistant. Couldn't set anything on it for 4 days. The installer said:
It should never peel from hot tires.
The edges of the jack stand feet would damage it if they are not set on something like plywood.
And my floor jack should be on heavy cardboard or thin plywood before lifting the weight of the car.
 
The cost around here is $3.75 to $4.50 a square foot installed.   
 

Coupedaddy wrote:

.   It’s no shop The coupe may not look nice but the new floors she sits on are nice 😂 pray all is well Merry Christmas!!

WOW...that really looks great !
 

I have overseen the installation of over 100,000 square feet of Stonehard flooring in airplane assembly plants.  Not exactly affordable for a home shop!  But I like the concept.

DC wrote:

I admire all the great looking garages, but don't want the extra care required. I am more of a utility/convenience guy. My floor tells lots of stories, none have to do with scrubbing it. A little floor dry and a broom along with a yearly hose down is what it gets.

I'm with you DC on this one. I prepped and painted my garage floor years ago. The only damage to it was blisters caused by the high acidic soil in my area, so I'm leaving the shop floor a natural finish.

After looking at their website, that Stonhard product looks crazy good.