Majofo

In mtgs until 4.

I won't climb under any hydraulic lift unless there are static safety stands to keep it elevated.

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

^^^ call me then....

man now I am really confused

Moog-Type-S

+1 deathwish

csmeance

I had epoxy floors put in for like 100 bux when I had my house built and it's held up alright. It's started coming up where I park the cars over time because of the tires contracting and pulling on the epoxy when they go from hot to cold (hot tire from driving). It's done this where the 760 resides, the TL, MDX, etc.

Epoxy will hold up the best and look the best when it's done with meticulous care and done right. Many dealerships use epoxy, however they actually roughen the texture of the concrete before applying it and apply a few coats of it to make sure it'll stay for a LONG time. Plus they use quality epoxy products, not the shitty lowes/homedepot mix it yourself kits.

If you want to do it the dealership route, it'll probably cost over 1K (renting the scuffing machine thing, using muriatic acid to etch and clean, cleaning that up, quality epoxy for a 3 car garage, etc.

If you have the time, money and as well patience, I'd go with commercial grade epoxy. If not, I suggest something else. I've had a soft spot for the racedeck style tiling after seeing it in a few nice garages!


^ That looks pretty amazing! It looks to be a "commercial" grade since it looks like its numerous coats over textured concrete, plus the clear coat of epoxy over it!

AZuser

Steven Bell

iTrader: (2)

Anil, it might be easier to just order the Sam's Club roll-out flooring and call it good.

Scottman111

What about staining the concrete?

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

ok i think I have made my mind....

I will be painting the garage walls this weekend....the epoxy and the tool boxes will come in around march/april (if budget allows then it will be sooner)....

For the epoxy, I will be starting out with degreasing (if needed) then muriatic acid wash and then the epoxy....

as for now, lift is cancelled....i might just get a nice racing jack and 2 jack stands (I have 2 already)....

Devil Dog 21

Sounds like a good idea. Let me know if you need any help. (Not that I have any experience, but I'm a pro at moving boxes and drinking beer)

My garage is already painted and I'll be doing the epoxy sometime in the spring. Of course I'm not the gear head that you are so mine is just for looks and to protect the existing flawless floor.

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

I am not a gear head either but love spending money on stupid shit LOL....thats why I am thinking of not getting the lift....but yeah I think i will need all the help for epoxy

weekend local Azine meet?

Moog-Type-S

I have epoxy flooring in my garage.

I love it. I learned early on to put carpet mats/squares under each tire of my vehicle to avoid having the epoxy pull up from the hot tires. I recommend you do this.

If you floor has any oil on it currently, you MUST heavily de-grease these areas....and I mean heavily. This will be the first place your epoxy flooring will come up. If it is severely oil stained, it may still pull up, no matter how heavily you de-greased your floor.

I had not issues with oil/grease since I did my floors when my house was brand new.

Steven Bell

iTrader: (2)

No lift????


That's all you've talked about!

Majofo

Which is why you should do it now instead of waiting..

Moog-Type-S

^^ If the floor is virgin concrete, then epoxy the floor before you drive/put anything on it.

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

Virgins?

Majofo

Moog-Type-S

It's extremely common to have a few fine hair-line cracks in a garage slab.
It's almost impossible to have one free of some sort of hair-line cracks....no matter how many control joints are implemented into the conc. slab.

Hair-line cracks are normal to a settling process for a concrete slab.

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

you guys are awesome !!!

I will be doing the epoxy flooring and no lift as of now....we will look into the lift on a later time

now how about the color combination:

for the floor am thinking:
med gray base:


for the garage walls
Steely Gray
http://www.sherwin-williams.com/home...4-steely-gray/

I want to go with a lighter color as it reflects a lot more light....and the tool chest/cupboards are grayish in color....

From Sams (thanks Steve for the research )
2 of these:
http://www.samsclub.com/sams/ultra-h....ip?navAction=

and 1 of this:
http://www.samsclub.com/sams/ultra-h...navAction=push

you guys think the color is good? should i go a little bit bolder with the epoxy/wall color?

Steven Bell

iTrader: (2)

I like the color-it's a great neutral color.

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

I haz an update

will post some pix in the next few minutes

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

first off, I would like to thank Matt to introduce me to this product...Then Majofo to convince me to get this product....wifey to take the pix

I think this was a very very simple product to apply....Here are the steps:

PREP
1> Move everything out of the garage
2> Broom the garage
3> Wash the garage and look for places where water beads up
4> Hit those places with a degreaser (I bought the degreaser at Home Depot and not from Ucoatit)
5> Wash the garage again and make sure water doesnt bead
6> In a pail, I put around 4 gallons of water and 1/2 gallon of Muriatic acid - (I bought the Muriatic at Walmart and not from Ucoatit)
7> Wash the garage with muriatic acid....dont keep the acid on the floor for too long or it will discolor the floor
8> Repeat this step

APPLICATION
9> Now you are ready to apply the ucoat
10> Clean the pail and mix the contents
11> Start painting, the floor
12> Keep tossing the iron oxide as you go if you want non slip surface

Onto the pix:
















Done with Base Coat....I will be applying a top coat tomorrow and finally the gloss finish coat on Saturday morning. Sunday is when I will move the stuff back into the garage...

Copy pointers for people who might wanna do it (maybe will save them some $$$)

- This kit comes with everything....you dont need to buy anything. All you need is a hose/nozzle/extension rod....
- I went by what the parts estimator said....I got the extender kit as well. But I think I could have done it without the extender kit. But you guys make your own decisions. I just wanted to put it there that I did almost 675 sq ft of garage and I could have done it without the extender kit. I will confirm once I put the second coat.

More pix to come tomorrow....

Moog-Type-S

^^ Nice.

You should paint the stem walls too.

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

^^^ Yezzir...I have some plan for that

Steven Bell

iTrader: (2)

Wait.....is this Groundhog's Day? I thought I just saw these pictures somewhere else!

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

deja vu eh...

yeah i posted the same post in my home build thread

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

COAT #2

Here are the pix....

I wanted to go easy on the sprinkles but I have very small air cracks on the concrete from the house settling and wanted to "hide" them and hence went a tad bit heavy on them....I still have more than half the box of sprinkles left....

TIP: to anyone who is looking forward to this project, you dont need the extender pack....I think you should be able to cover almost 700sq ft of concrete without needing the extender pack....the total cost for me was 715+shipping-10% discount (I called them and the girl was kind enough to give me 10% off)....so total was $701. I could have done the project in ~$450 if I knew they send in a ton of extra epoxy. Hope this helps someone save some $$$ or save some epoxy to tackle a different project....Once you mix the epoxy contents you cant store or "save" them....so mix a little by little as you go and save the rest for a future project

For the concrete between the dry wall and floor (dont know wtf they are called)...I got grey primer (very damn thick) from Home Depot...I will painting it when the floor dries and will be putting the final clear coat on the floor....

Onto the pix

First off...mad props to my father in law for helping me out....now am sad that they leave in 10 days








and a close up

Steven Bell

iTrader: (2)

Outstanding work young squire!

Acura_Dude

AWESOME!!!! Nice work Anil!

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

Thanks guys....the little dots you see is iron oxide....its added while putting the first coat....its for a non slip floor...

mrsteve

iTrader: (1)

I have been planning on doing this in our new place next month. I was about to start a thread before I found yours. My garage is 480 SF so thanks for the tip on how much I need to buy.

My main question is how warm does it need to be in order to do this? We're still in the 40's and down into the 20's or below at night. Am I going to have problems with the epoxy adhering to the concrete? I know the colder it is the longer it will take to cure but will I have problems with the material bonding to the concrete if it's cold?

mrsteve

iTrader: (1)

Here are pics of what the garage looks like now. Obviously it will be cleaned out by the sellers but the shelving stays. Is that going to be a pain in the ass to work around too?

terdonal

Looks great, nice work.

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

Steve....I think the biggest pain would be to move everything out of the garage....now you will be moving it out for around a week, so it will have to be in the basement or in the house.... Coating itself is a piece of cake...

If I was you, I would wait until spring....the couple reasons I tackled this project now was:
1> Weather was above 55deg
2> Garage is insulated, so in the garage it was around 60-62deg

The expoxy in the pail gets super thick within 45-50 minutes of mixing the contents....and this was at 50-ish deg....since the area you have is 480sq ft, it will be quick to coat....The lower temps will drag the drying time as well....

I suggest wait for spring or a nice warm week....I started moving stuff out of the garage in anticipation of a nice week....i suggest you do the same

From the pix, it looks like you dont have any major cracks/holes in the floor. Just buy some decent off the shelf degreaser and muriatic acid....you should be fine....

Finally, call them when you order and tell them, you are on a budget....helped me get a 10% off...I havent seen any coupons for ucoatit....


Thanks Terry...appreciate the complements....

-Anil

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

I had some clear coat left over so applied a thin second layer of clear coat

BEFORE:







AFTER










I still have to remove the painters tape from the wall and do some final touch ups there....

Next up in the garage:
1> Lights
2> Install some kind of molding between the walls and the concrete
3> Window frame/molding
4> Stain/Paint the stairs

mrsteve

iTrader: (1)

Here is the thing. We are buying that house on March 12th and moving in on March 16th. The stuff in the garage isn't ours. It's the current owner. I was hoping to do the work BEFORE my stuff gets moved in...

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

^^^ Makes sense....in that case, go for it....the curing might take a little bit longer...here is what I experienced and read:

1> when all the contents are mixed in the pail, you got around 45-50 minutes @ 55 degs....might be slightly less as temp goes further low...
2> Curing time is around 12-15 hours @ 60 degs....might be higher at lower temps...
3> You cannot leave the coat on for more than 24 hours as it wont bond....so if you leave it for say 30 hours, you will have to sand the floor down a little bit to apply the next coat....

mrsteve

iTrader: (1)

Thanks man!

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

you're welcome

03tlCHARCOL

iTrader: (3)

Hey I'm looking to do this do my 445 sq feet garage once my home is completed in June. They just poured the concrete last week, so I have some time for the concrete to cure before I do this.

Can you provide an update on the floor condition and is there a smell? The wife is afraid because a friend did an epoxy floor a few years back to their home and it still smells. I'm not sure the brand that they used though.

Looking through your thread it looks like you need to do:
-the Muriatic acid cleaning first
-then the UCoat Kit
-then the UFlek-AF Kit

Thanks!

swoosh

iTrader: (5)

Here is an update

Couple weeks back when all of KC thought the snow was done, I went ahead and washed the garage....we got some more snow after that, and I guess I gotta repeat that process

Before starting the wash, I lightly degreased the areas where oil which dripped down on the floor (mainly from working on Dan's car). Then with the pressure washer, I hosed down the floor...and finally with the soap attachment, I went ahead and sprayed a coat of Dawn soap...

Then it was a hard bristle brush on tough stains and rinse off....Finally used a squeegee to dry the floor off....Overall I am very very satisfied with the flooring....

Before:






After: