Epoxy garage floor prep can I have a bit of help please?
Discussion
Sorry guys. Still mega pleased with it yes. You can scratch it - as the drive isn’t finished yet it sits a little lower than the garage presenting just a small lip.
Reversing the sunbeam in the other day in the wet one wheel span on the floor as it went up and the bits of grit did a good job of grinding tread marks into the epoxy, in a minor way.
In the wet there is no escaping it - it is a bit slippy - but your choice of footwear does matter in terms of how slippy. I’m fitting a threshold mat near the bifolds so I can make sure I have dry feet.
The sanding tool was single phase, and came with a 16 amp breaker. I notice they also did a 110v version too.
Reversing the sunbeam in the other day in the wet one wheel span on the floor as it went up and the bits of grit did a good job of grinding tread marks into the epoxy, in a minor way.
In the wet there is no escaping it - it is a bit slippy - but your choice of footwear does matter in terms of how slippy. I’m fitting a threshold mat near the bifolds so I can make sure I have dry feet.
The sanding tool was single phase, and came with a 16 amp breaker. I notice they also did a 110v version too.
Hi guys.
Andeh I think you might be about to make a mistake with the primer. Let me reiterate a few things I learned.
Firstly - the primer I had was - basically - a clear version of the same stuff that is grey - ie epoxy - and it set R O C K hard. Seeing how sticky the epoxy is don’t panic about primer. It sticks like **** to a blanket.
Secondly - the key is cleanliness. That floor has to be absolutely (and I mean OCD level) free of dust. The minute you try to cut the edges in with your brush and hit a bit of dust the paint picks the dust up and you’re then frantically trying to clean the brush - a right pickle. Use fine surface filler to get rid of nasties rather than trying to fill them with epoxy.
Thirdly - spiked shoes - be careful - we used these and as you move about it’s possible to spike your surface filler, ripping a bit, and create little particles in the finished job.
Finally - time.
This is a big point. Please do not attempt this job alone. Please wait for help. Remember when I messed mine up alone mixing the filler wrong? It’s easy to get flustered once you’ve mixed up. You absolutely cannot join areas - you have to do it in one big go and with the current temperature it will begin to be “sticky” very quickly. Also, cutting in the edges takes AGES - it doesn’t paint easily as it’s thick and super sticky. Your helper will end up doing the edges for over half the time of the job. If you do it alone you will struggle unless you are an octopus!
Drying to hard time on a thick coat definitely a week. Do not use a roller the finish is crap. Pour directly onto concrete and use a float. Only employ a roller for your helper to “even out” material accross the job. Then finish with the float.
Hope this helps!!!
Best of luck
Andeh I think you might be about to make a mistake with the primer. Let me reiterate a few things I learned.
Firstly - the primer I had was - basically - a clear version of the same stuff that is grey - ie epoxy - and it set R O C K hard. Seeing how sticky the epoxy is don’t panic about primer. It sticks like **** to a blanket.
Secondly - the key is cleanliness. That floor has to be absolutely (and I mean OCD level) free of dust. The minute you try to cut the edges in with your brush and hit a bit of dust the paint picks the dust up and you’re then frantically trying to clean the brush - a right pickle. Use fine surface filler to get rid of nasties rather than trying to fill them with epoxy.
Thirdly - spiked shoes - be careful - we used these and as you move about it’s possible to spike your surface filler, ripping a bit, and create little particles in the finished job.
Finally - time.
This is a big point. Please do not attempt this job alone. Please wait for help. Remember when I messed mine up alone mixing the filler wrong? It’s easy to get flustered once you’ve mixed up. You absolutely cannot join areas - you have to do it in one big go and with the current temperature it will begin to be “sticky” very quickly. Also, cutting in the edges takes AGES - it doesn’t paint easily as it’s thick and super sticky. Your helper will end up doing the edges for over half the time of the job. If you do it alone you will struggle unless you are an octopus!
Drying to hard time on a thick coat definitely a week. Do not use a roller the finish is crap. Pour directly onto concrete and use a float. Only employ a roller for your helper to “even out” material accross the job. Then finish with the float.
Hope this helps!!!
Best of luck
PPS I’ve now had mine down long enough to do some pretty serious work on it. Report is that as a general floor it’s fantastic. Incredibly resistant to impact of dropped tools - impact resistance in general is amazing. The floor only gets actually damaged when a) hot welding residue drops on it or b) you accidentally spin a gritty wheel on the surface, which creates a dull patch ground into the surface. Oh and it turns out it is very slippery when covered in anti freeze or brake fluid....
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