Howdy. So I recently added a garage to my property which is mostly be for storing cars. Right now it is not insulated and it has a bare concrete floor. I have a lot of condensation over the winter. At times the cars were dripping wet. I’m in the process of insulating it now and will add a small heater before next winter. I’d also like to seal the concrete floor as I think that may help as well. I’ve been looking at epoxy sealers as well as Siloxa-Tek 8505. I’m more concerned with moisture control than cosmetic appearance. What suggestions do you have for the floor? Any other suggestions to reduce condensation? Not sure if it matters, but the garage is roughly 25x25.
Richard, what problem(s) did you have? I did exactly the same thing and have had a problem with wear/tear/discoloration where the tires are. That started within a couple of years so I was really disappointed with that aspect but otherwise pleased. What advantages do you see with the polished concrete? Any concern about slipperiness?
Brake fluid is an issue with the epoxy, it will eat it away, so I’ve made sure that doesn’t happen. And I have some discoloration, for no apparent reason.
The polished concrete, no wear & tear, nothing to damage it. And in the grocery stores I’ve never slipped on their floors.
I’ve not had any issues with brake fluid spilling on my epoxy…and I’ve spilled a TON on it. I HAVE had staining issues, though, with PVC pipe primer…yeah, the purple stuff.
I’d do epoxy again in a heartbeat…but, I think I’d forego the chips next time. Makes finding dropped hardware a bit difficult.
Epoxy is the best and I highly recommend it. I had a brake fluid leak that sat on the floor for about 1 week, and the floor was fine. The only staining I saw was when I initially parked a car on the floor about 48 hours after it was put down, and it left some tire impressions. So I would give the floor at least 1 week to fully cure, before parking a car on it…
Johnboy, they use a lot of salt around here. I have had my garage floor done in epoxy for about 20 years now. The salt does not effect mine. I have had to put a second coat on about ten years ago and am in need of another coat as it has been another ten years. As mentioned above, the salt seems to have no effect on the Rustolem brand that I use. The salt and slush melt off of both of our cars all winter long.
We put epoxy down in my shop. It didn’t last very well. Granted every car that comes in has sand stuck to the tires from the dirt driveway, plus we have tool carts, and other things on caster wheels rolling over it along with dragging, dropping, hammering on things on the floor----it’s a heavy work bay. The floor was used and oil stained. It was degreased and pressure washed twice before installation. At the time it was clean enough to eat mashed potatoes and apple sauce off the concrete. What would have probably made my floor accept the epoxy better would have been to scarify the concrete. Scarifying will expose fresh concrete surface and rough it up for a better mechanical grip by the epoxy. Scarifiers can be rented at a local hardware or equipment rental store. With scarifying first, I’d like to try the epoxy again.
Bingo…winner winner, chicken dinner…grinding is huge. Unless you’re starting with clean, virgin concrete to begin with, in which case the acid etch prep works well. My shop got acid etched, since I did it while building. The attached garage got the grinder, since it had a failed Rustoleum floor, and the carnage of painting The Heap all over it. Then it got the 100% solids epoxy, and has held up great.
For those who used epoxy, did you do it yourself? What brand did you use? Rustoleum has a couple of products, both water based. Reviews have been fairly good, but not great.
If you want durable, I’d go with a 100% solids epoxy. The big-box store Quickcrete/Rustoleum kits are typically only around 50% solids.
If I had it to do over(which I might, someday), I’d not use the chips(makes finding dropped hardware a bit of a pain), and I’d go ahead and use a clearcoat over the top.
