Concrete floor coating for shop

[automizer]

Hello all
I am in the need of a coating for my shop floor. I need something that will be able to take the odd coolant spill, a forklift and a truck or two. Im after a tough coating but also something that wont break the pocket book to buy.
Sujestions?

[Dr Pete]

I used this in the shop about 6 years ago.
http://www.litexinc.com/2PART-EPOXY.html
It's a 2 part epoxy that drys quickly, you can walk on it after 24 hours and drive on it after 7 days.
I bought a few 1 gallon pails at the local home depot.
Holding up good after 6 years of foot traffic and lots of spills.
We don't drive the forklift over this section but it would handle it with no problems.
Don't remember price but it wasn't that expensive, maybe $30 for a gallon which covers ~250 square feet.
Hope this is helpful
Dr Pete

[cam1]

Hi: Boiled Linseed oil and varsol mix. Simple, effective and inexpensive.

regards

[automizer]

thanks guys that is the input I'm looking for. I wrote that post on my cell phone on my coffee break today, im impressed it worked
cam1 I think thats a little light duty for what I would like, or more for a little light for what I will be able to convince my father to let me use. (its a joint shop, he had 2 months to look for a coating, now its my turn)
Dr Pete I like what you have there now I just need to find it locally

[dertsap]

the 2 part epoxy is the way to go , its strong and easy to clean , you'll have an excellent floor if you use it , when i worked for Kavo we had that on the floors , it blew me away the first time i saw it

[jpd]

I just did my garage workshop and the 2 part epoxy is awesome. If you expect a lot of wear and tear on your floor then go with the 100% solids. It only covers 100 - 150 square feet per gallon but looks better and is much tougher. Some people pre-treat the floor with a cheeper water based epoxy to seal it first. Water based epoxy sinks in better but isn't as hard and doesn't cover as many sins. It's very do able even for a novice. The key is good floor preperation.

[automizer]

what did you do for your floor prep.?

[mc-motorsports]

Originally Posted by automizer what did you do for your floor prep.?

floor prep for epoxy is critical! Professionals, which charge $25 sq/ft (25 year warranty also) use a shot blaster that looks like a floor cleaner, like the ones you see janitors using at Wal-Mart. If the floor is not too dirty, it may be ok. But I worked in a shop that had been a nasty dirty machine shop for the previous 25 years, then the owner paid some general matience contractor to epoxy the floor using the home depot kinda epoxy and process and big sections lifted and cracked. They supposedly used acid to prep the floor, probably an alkili solution, wasn't enough. Then they just opened thier wallet and had to pro's come in, but that floor was destroyed from the previous renter.

Epoxy is the way to go! BUT, it's choice between traction and cleaning. The high gloss is great because you can just wipe up oil spills with a rag. The high traction kind made to prevent people slipping and falling in case of an oil spill, is hard to clean, gets dirty fast and you can scrub that stuff with a wire brush and you'll never the the stain out of it.

MC

[jpd]

Here's how I did my floor:

First (optional); level the floor via mud jacking or sand jacking ($500 - $1000). Most people won't need this.

Second (optional) ; degrease the floor. Use an industrial degreaser and a lots of scrubbing. If you have stains and water beads then you need to degrease it.

Third; pressure washed the floor.

Forth (optional); acid etch to remove any sealant and to open the pores of the concrete. If water bead where their is no stains then you have sealant and need to etch. I would etch anyway.

Fifth; chisel the cracks. I used a 4" masons chisel and widened all the cracks 1/4" - 1/2". Bang along one side straight up and down and then along the other at an angle. It takes about a minute per foot of crack. Note It doesn't have to be more than 1/16" deep.

Sixth; patched the cracks with concrete patch. I used Quikrete but any polymer modified concrete will do. Make sure the surface is clean and wet. Get rid of excessive water. Put it on thick with a trowel. Let it set for 10 min then using a wet trowel smooth and feather it. A light sweep with a broom also works. Don't patch expansion joints.

Seventh (optional); put down a water sealant if necessary. You can tell if rugs or cardboard lying on the floor tend to get damp underneath. Cheap water based epoxy works well for this or their are many other good products. Note! It must sink in and leave the concrete pores open.

That's it now your ready to epoxy. There are additives for no slip or anti slip specs can be broadcaste while the epoxy is wet. A uv protective top coat could also be applied (Epoxy yellows in the sun).

If your floor is really in bad shape (ie covered in grease ) I might just get the professionals in to shot blast it. Note/warning; not all professionals use shot blasting. Depending on how many steps this can be alot of work but the end result is incredible to look at and durable to use. Good luck.

[cam1]

I'd recommend De-greasing before shot blasting, as the shot blasting may embed the crap buit up on the floor.

regards

[Ultimate1]

Depends on how many sq. ft. you need to do. Although I'm a newb here, flooring and structural epoxies are my business (including machine base castings which we'd started over 12 years ago now). Anyone really interested can always send a message to get a quote, but I'm not here to do a sales pitch.

[automizer]

Well now this is more info then i was expecting. So i feel i need to give you guys a bit more info about my floor.
The floor is less then 2 years old and is very clean...dusty but thats all. I have a large CNC that can't be moved for coating but the rest of the floor can be emptied. The floor was power troweled when poured its not gloss smooth but its not rough either. The floor is 30'x70' so its 2100 square feet that i need to cover.
I'm still looking, I haven't decided on a coating yet.