Armorcoat floor coat-turned out well
05-13-2013, 01:30 PM
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Armorcoat floor coat-turned out well
Well my semester is over and figured I would throw this up for anyone interested in doing it. If this is in the wrong area please moved it if needed. I was planning on doing a how to part, but apparently I've lost that memory card.
So far it has been great! I dropped the oil filter out the bottom of the Jeep the other day and it emptied all over. Few paper towels and some green cleaner and the floor is spotless. I have put a few small scratches in it from car stands with a car on it. Funny thing is I can't find the scratches now. Might put some cardboard under them in the future for funsies. I still need to coat the spot where the garage door closes. Being cold and wet I couldn't do it then.
We got a new house over xmas and other than a few little things we had the builder change I wanted a worry free floor for the garage. There was a thread about floors and came across this place Armorcoat - Professional Concrete Floor Coating Specialist the dude that runs it is a really cool guy and walked me through it step by step over the phone over the few day process. I think his name is Randy and even takes calls on the weekends to help. Since I was doing a floor epoxy in the winter (below freezing at times) on a brand new floor I had my paranoia, plus I'm a bit high strung.
The garage concrete was about 2+ months old so it had cured enough. Being new concrete I didn't have to clean any oily spots, but did have to scrape up some paint drips from the builder. I used this to etch the floor and clean it.
I masked my baseboards before starting and the water heater. Yes it is a finished garage. Walls and paint in the garage match the inside of the house. Walls are all insulated and so is the door. A mis-communication with the build left the ceiling un-insulated, but will be remedied this summer.
My mistake at first was using a hand pump bug sprayer on an already wet floor. It just wouldn't "foam", but let the floor dry a bit and then spray it down wit the bug sprayer. Yay "foaming" action. Also the stuff posted isn't nearly as nasty or get up in the air as bad as stuff I've been around before. STILL WEAR A MASK THOUGH. Once all done use baking soda to neutralize and then rinse the hell out of the floor.
I let it dry for 3 days. Keep in mind this is winter. With the door open during the day and a small space heater door closed at night. I also left the door to the house open to let the house heater help a bit.
Get some gloves, shoes you don't care about (also clothes), face mask, and get prepared in general. Mix up the base 50/50 in small ish batches. I used a paint roller and extension. The wife sprinkled the flakes as I rolled the floor. One good thick coat was fine for me and having a second set of eyes look for thin spots helps. HINT: I used a small pint mixing cup to hold the flake while she spread it out like fairy dust, don't spread the last little bit in each cup. The stuff down there is itty flake and looks odd around the big flake. He sent me 30lbs of flake and had plenty. I let it dry/cure for a few days. The vapors from the floor curing are pretty strong. I don't recommend you leave the house door open. Trust me.
Top coat goes the same as the bottom, but the mixture is different. Read the can and follow. I use quart paint mixing cups to get it just right. Also a second set of eyes looking for thins or missed spot helps. Holy hell the fumes on the top coat are bad. Just be warned.
Let it cure and win. I think it's a 72 hour wait to move anything in and 7 days or so to drive on it. Something about the plasticisers in tires messes with the floor curing. My mother-in-law got me shelves and I put them all on plastic couch coasters from Lowes.
Taking off the baseboard masking was fun covered in epoxy, but a box cutter helps a lot. Someday I'll get a welder and use that plug.
Most of the floor the baseboards are even with the floor. As it gets near the door it slopes for drainage. So I coated up the side a hair. I love that the floor almost matches the paint.
Pic with my hand for flake scale. I have pretty small guy hands. The little flakes are what is left at the bottom of the cup. I have a few spots were I notice it. No one else does.
Getting it all moved in. I had all this stuff plus some no pictured stuffed in the dining room and the bike in the living room. It pays to have an awesome wife.
He sent me 30lbs of flake (for way cheaper than Lowes) and somehow according to my bathroom scale I still have 30lbs left.
Projector testing for garage game nights.
So far it has been great! I dropped the oil filter out the bottom of the Jeep the other day and it emptied all over. Few paper towels and some green cleaner and the floor is spotless. I have put a few small scratches in it from car stands with a car on it. Funny thing is I can't find the scratches now. Might put some cardboard under them in the future for funsies. I still need to coat the spot where the garage door closes. Being cold and wet I couldn't do it then.
We got a new house over xmas and other than a few little things we had the builder change I wanted a worry free floor for the garage. There was a thread about floors and came across this place Armorcoat - Professional Concrete Floor Coating Specialist the dude that runs it is a really cool guy and walked me through it step by step over the phone over the few day process. I think his name is Randy and even takes calls on the weekends to help. Since I was doing a floor epoxy in the winter (below freezing at times) on a brand new floor I had my paranoia, plus I'm a bit high strung.
The garage concrete was about 2+ months old so it had cured enough. Being new concrete I didn't have to clean any oily spots, but did have to scrape up some paint drips from the builder. I used this to etch the floor and clean it.
I masked my baseboards before starting and the water heater. Yes it is a finished garage. Walls and paint in the garage match the inside of the house. Walls are all insulated and so is the door. A mis-communication with the build left the ceiling un-insulated, but will be remedied this summer.
My mistake at first was using a hand pump bug sprayer on an already wet floor. It just wouldn't "foam", but let the floor dry a bit and then spray it down wit the bug sprayer. Yay "foaming" action. Also the stuff posted isn't nearly as nasty or get up in the air as bad as stuff I've been around before. STILL WEAR A MASK THOUGH. Once all done use baking soda to neutralize and then rinse the hell out of the floor.
I let it dry for 3 days. Keep in mind this is winter. With the door open during the day and a small space heater door closed at night. I also left the door to the house open to let the house heater help a bit.
Get some gloves, shoes you don't care about (also clothes), face mask, and get prepared in general. Mix up the base 50/50 in small ish batches. I used a paint roller and extension. The wife sprinkled the flakes as I rolled the floor. One good thick coat was fine for me and having a second set of eyes look for thin spots helps. HINT: I used a small pint mixing cup to hold the flake while she spread it out like fairy dust, don't spread the last little bit in each cup. The stuff down there is itty flake and looks odd around the big flake. He sent me 30lbs of flake and had plenty. I let it dry/cure for a few days. The vapors from the floor curing are pretty strong. I don't recommend you leave the house door open. Trust me.
Top coat goes the same as the bottom, but the mixture is different. Read the can and follow. I use quart paint mixing cups to get it just right. Also a second set of eyes looking for thins or missed spot helps. Holy hell the fumes on the top coat are bad. Just be warned.
Let it cure and win. I think it's a 72 hour wait to move anything in and 7 days or so to drive on it. Something about the plasticisers in tires messes with the floor curing. My mother-in-law got me shelves and I put them all on plastic couch coasters from Lowes.
Taking off the baseboard masking was fun covered in epoxy, but a box cutter helps a lot. Someday I'll get a welder and use that plug.
Most of the floor the baseboards are even with the floor. As it gets near the door it slopes for drainage. So I coated up the side a hair. I love that the floor almost matches the paint.
Pic with my hand for flake scale. I have pretty small guy hands. The little flakes are what is left at the bottom of the cup. I have a few spots were I notice it. No one else does.
Getting it all moved in. I had all this stuff plus some no pictured stuffed in the dining room and the bike in the living room. It pays to have an awesome wife.
He sent me 30lbs of flake (for way cheaper than Lowes) and somehow according to my bathroom scale I still have 30lbs left.
Projector testing for garage game nights.
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05-13-2013, 01:51 PM
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That does look really good. I wanted to do that to mine when I moved in but got lazy... I think I need to rethink that. I already have started get stains in the concrete cause I work like a real man.
do you have a before shot?
do you have a before shot?
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05-13-2013, 01:59 PM
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The best I have for a before shot is this odd one. I would have some better ones if the little people hadn't decided mu SD card would make a great coffee table. Wish I could find the pics of the dining room with all my garage stuff. Would drive wives everywhere nuts seeing floor to ceiling garage crap in their new kitchen haha.
I know it's not great, but the garage floor was all new and basically looked like this piece.
I know it's not great, but the garage floor was all new and basically looked like this piece.
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05-13-2013, 02:06 PM
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Also fun fact:
Times I've mopped inside my house = 0
Times I've mopped inside my garage = 5, maybe more.
Everything comes right up. I pull the car in from driving covered in road gunk. Pull it out on a nice day and sweep and mop. Done, all pretty again. Just keep in mind some things will scratch it. It's not diamonium or anything. However, I'm told just re-applying the top coat solves 99% of scratches as long as they aren't concrete deep and yes you can touch up just one area like a car. I try to take care of the floor. By that I mean I just don't actively try to mess it up.
Bonus hint- Call the guy. ? forget his name ? I got a better price shipped by calling him than what it was online. Truly a helpful guy.
Times I've mopped inside my house = 0
Times I've mopped inside my garage = 5, maybe more.
Everything comes right up. I pull the car in from driving covered in road gunk. Pull it out on a nice day and sweep and mop. Done, all pretty again. Just keep in mind some things will scratch it. It's not diamonium or anything. However, I'm told just re-applying the top coat solves 99% of scratches as long as they aren't concrete deep and yes you can touch up just one area like a car. I try to take care of the floor. By that I mean I just don't actively try to mess it up.
Bonus hint- Call the guy. ? forget his name ? I got a better price shipped by calling him than what it was online. Truly a helpful guy.
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