Spruce Up Your Garage with Garage Floor Coatings

Garages are too often left out to dry when it comes to home improvement. Most homeowners view their garage as a wasteland. As a place that maybe gets and annual cleaning when you can’t get from one side to the other anymore. A garage can be an attractive and valuable space to spend your time and store some of your most valuable possessions, however. But think about it. Would you put up Grandma’s antique china hutch in an oil-stained, dirt-ridden room? Of course not. But many homeowners have no problem storing their prized automobiles, ATV’s, and other mechanical wonders in less than prime conditions.

A Clean Garage Starts from the Bottom Up

One of the best improvements you can make when it comes to your garage is installing garage floor coatings. They protect your garage floor and look great at the same time. And when an area of your home looks good, you’re more likely to keep the rest of it organized and in good shape. Your garage is no exception.

Good Looks and Longer Life

The sharp appearance of a garage floor coating is what convinces most homeowners to take the time to treat their garage floor. Garage floor coatings are manufactured in a number of great looking colors, and you can add flaking materials (usually stone) to give it more traction and a classier appearance. But garage floor coatings are also a good project to undertake because they extend the life of your garage floor. Most are made of a high-grade epoxy which repels water, oil and other materials, resisting the contaminants that eat away at your garage floor and eventually cause it to fail. Not to mention they make clean-up a lot easier. There’s a reason that auto shops are one of the prime commercial customers when it comes to this innovating garage flooring solution.

Is Your Garage a Candidate?

The easy answer is yes, but it may take some work. There are several types of garage floor coatings out there, though by far the most popular are the epoxy based paints. And because it’s a paint, you need to make sure your floor in the right shape for the paint to take. The best test is to pour some water on the floor and see if it soaks in or beads up. If it’s still sitting there after a few minutes, your concrete has been treated with a sealer, and you’ll have to break that down, or “etch” it, before you apply the coating. It doesn’t mean you’re out of the running, but you will have to purchase and apply a special concrete etching solution that breaks down the sealer and preps your floor for the final application. After that, the most important thing is making sure your floor is as clean as possible before starting the job.

Applying Your New Garage Flooring Coating

Once you’ve prepped your floor and cleaned it sufficiently (think about renting a power sprayer for this part of the job), all you need to do is roll on a primer coat and then apply the paint itself. Make sure you follow the instructions that come with the coating diligently, however. A poorly installed floor won’t hold up to the tough treatment a garage floor gets on a daily basis. And if you want your new coating to really stand out, then hiring a pro to do the installation for is your best bet. Additives like the flaking mentioned earlier are better done by someone who knows what they’re doing, and if you do hire a professional, you can be sure your new coating is going to serve you well for years to come.

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