Epoxy Floor?

[dfsuther]

I'm considering doing an Epoxy floor in my basement. What am I getting myself into? Basement is roughly 20x40 feet, concrete floor.

I dimly recall that various members here have gone the epoxy floor route. Advice, tips, encouragement (or DIScouragement) would be greatly appreciated.

Dean

[Scottydont]

Mine has held up great and it was a 20 year old carport slab. Three words, clean, clean,clean. I used the HD variety Rustoleum. I started by going around all of outside perimeter first then the rest went very fast. The little color chip flakes are imperative to give the surface grip when wet.

Here is a pic of my shop with the epoxy floor. (Double click the pic to enlarge.)

[twistsol]

In my last house we put Rustoleum EpoxyShield over basically new concrete in the garage / shop and it held up beautifully for five years until we sold the house. A couple of scratches but they didn't go through to the concrete and absolutely no peeling.

Did the same thing in our "new" 30 year old house, had the floors professionally cleaned first. I'm suspect the floor was either sealed in the past or there were a number of spills because we have peeling in some spots. The majority looks great.

I think in a basement you shouldn't have any problems because it would be unlikely it would have been sealed by a previous homeowner and you shouldn't have and spots that need extra cleaning. Follow the instructions to the letter and you should be fine.

It really brightens up the space. My only complaint is that it is very slippery when it gets sawdust on it. Otherwise I love it.

[dlminehart]

I suspect the epoxy may be overkill for non-commercial applications. My folks used patio and deck paint in their garage (1/3 shop, 1/3 storage, 1/3 car) and patio, Sherwin Williams I think, and it's held up great for 10 years so far. About a third the cost of epoxy.

[dedaddy]

I used the Rustoleum basement epoxy product. It looks and has held up great. I used the "sprinkles" included with the kit to keep it from being slippery. However, that makes it hard to spot small parts and dirt.

I made a mistake when I painted part of the floor, waited a few days while I got more epoxy, and then painted the rest. There is a definate color difference. Try to do the whole floor at once and use epoxy with the same batch number or date. I used a roller on a long handle to apply it.

But once you get the floor covered with tools, mats and sawdust, it make little difference what color it is!

[jking]

Make sure you check your slab for moisture. If there is moisture coming up through the concrete, the epoxy can tend to peel. Duct tape a piece of plastic down to the floor for a day or two & come back & check to see if moisture has collected. If not, you're good. If there is moisture, the epoxy paint may not adhere well long term.

[WoodPirate]

I put the Rustoleum Grey Epoxy (from HD) on my garage floor last year. It looks great and is a breeze to keep clean. Try sweeping sawdust off of a concrete floor!!! I have used a blower to sweep the shop and it only took about 30 seconds.

CAUTION: If you apply water, then apply foot, prepare to apply ass, too. This stuff is extremely slippery when wet.

When we move and I set up another shop you can bet I'll use this product again, although I might add some fine grit for better traction.

[mater]

I have a friend who did this on new concrete about 5 years ago and it still looks great. I am thinking about doing my house garage and it is about 16 years old with spots on the floor. Will this Epoxy cover spots on concrete like small oil spots and stains?

[dlminehart]

Ken, I think you have to remove the oil spots. The epoxy treatment starts with a couple of other chemical steps, one to remove oils and the other etch the surface, so the epoxy will then adhere securely. Stains, if not oily, are probably not a problem.

[mater]

quote:Originally posted by dlminehart

Ken, I think you have to remove the oil spots. The epoxy treatment starts with a couple of other chemical steps, one to remove oils and the other etch the surface, so the epoxy will then adhere securely. Stains, if not oily, are probably not a problem.

Thanks David. I haven't really check on what prep I will need to do. Now I know I have to remove the oil spots.

[twistsol]

quote:Originally posted by mater

I have a friend who did this on new concrete about 5 years ago and it still looks great. I am thinking about doing my house garage and it is about 16 years old with spots on the floor. Will this Epoxy cover spots on concrete like small oil spots and stains?

The Rustoleum kit comes with a cleaning solution. In our first house, there was alot of oil on the floor. The kids got an old lawnmower from a neighbor and took it apart in my garage. They drained the engine oil into a dozen dixie cups and then ended up spilling them all over the floor in different places. The oil cleaned up really well and the epoxy covered it completely. If water beads anywhere on the floor after cleaning it, the epoxy will peel there within a few months.

This product really does exactly what it says it will do. The warnings about when it will and won't adhere well are very true.

[msfireenginered]

quote:Originally posted by dfsuther

I'm considering doing an Epoxy floor in my basement. What am I getting myself into? Basement is roughly 20x40 feet, concrete floor.

I dimly recall that various members here have gone the epoxy floor route. Advice, tips, encouragement (or DIScouragement) would be greatly appreciated.

Dean

I have seen the Rustoleum product advertised on tv and checked it out on the web. I am thinking of doing my laundry room in the basement (half bath and then a shower stall all in the same area) Does anyone know where can I purchase the product and how much it is? Thanks!!

Karen

[dlminehart]

HD has the product, and it's not cheap. Perhaps twice as much per gallon as regular paint, and not as big a coverage. I figured that my garage (2 car, but small) would cost at least a couple hundred dollars, once the other necessary cleaning and etching chemicals were included.

[Otter]

I did this floor in my shop on the basement floor, it is a great system, more expencive than paint, but it has held up so well we are looking at doing the whole basement with it.

[BobSch]

What's a good way to remove oil-based paint from concrete? We painted our basement floor many years ago and patches are peeling up. I'd like to epoxy the floor but I'm not going to try it over the existing paint.