Choosing A Garage Floor Coating
Posted in Garage Floor Coating on October 18th, 2010 by adminWhen it comes to buying a new garage floor coating there are so many products out there for you to choose from. I’m going to try and make the process of choosing that little bit easier for you.
There are so many products out there that are made to make your garage look better or to increase the durability of your garage floor. More often than not the garage it totally neglected by home owners, but it is a huge space, probably the biggest floor space in your home, so you should be trying to make full use of it. Either for storing your car away from the harsh weather, or even for keeping your belongings in. If your garage is big enough it can be a multi purpose area and also somewhere for your kids to play in when the weather isn’t great outside, and also to keep them safe, away from strangers and busy roads.

Garage Floor Tiles
Tiles are one of the most popular choices in garage floor coating. There are so many choices for you to think about when choosing it, there are an infinite number of colors to choose from, as well as different materials and sizes of tile. Garage floor tiles are not by any means cheap, but they are very good at their job, they keep the garage looking nice and tidy and they protect the floor from any spillages, such as oil, coolant, brake fluid and so on. Because of the wide range of different colors that you can choose from, a lot of people go a bit crazy when they are decorating their garage, a lot of them decorate in the same colors as their favorite sports or racing teams. Or you could go for colors that match your car or the manufacturer. Garage floor tiles are also pretty easy to install, they are interlocking like a jigsaw, but obviously not a complicated one.

Garage Floor Mats
Floor mats are also pretty popular. Your typical garage floor mats come in a big roll, similar to a carpet, so all you need to do is to roll it out, cut it to shape and secure it down. You need to make sure that all of the edges are well stuck down and sealed up, using a silicon sealant or something similar, to ensure that the flooring is totally water tight. If all the edges are sealed well then garage floor mats will have the same properties as the tiles, resistant to water, oil etc, but will be easier to install, and also quite a bit cheaper.

Epoxy Garage Floor Coating
If you want to go for that showroom look in your garage then an epoxy garage floor coating is what you want to go for. You are going to be left with that shiny, durable flooring that they have at the local dealerships. While the epoxy coating can be easy to apply, a lot of people find it pretty hard to mix it up, also the floor underneath it has also got to be spotlessly clean and free from all moisture, oil and grease, if any of these a present then the epoxy is not going to bond to the floor. For this reason many people just leave it to a professional to do, it might cost more to do it this way, but at least you can be sure that you are going to get the best finish possible. If you want to have a non slip surface then while the epoxy is still drying you can have sand or little beads put on top of it, this will create a grippy surface. Before you can use the garage again you need to wait until the floor is totally dry, the time this takes will vary depending on the weather.

Garage Floor Paint
Using paint for your garage floor coating is the cheapest option you have available to you. It is also something that you can do yourself very easily and without needing to splash out on any expensive tools or equipment. Before you start painting you will need to make sure that the floor is nice and smooth, that there are no cracks or gaps on the concrete. You also need to make sure that the floor is spotlessly clean or the paint wont stick. You will also want to give some thought to using a primer before you paint, this will make the paint adhere better and also last longer.

It might take a number of coats of paint before you reach the look you want, so between each coat of paint you have got to leave the paint to completely dry before applying the next. Paint is not going to last anywhere near as long as the other methods mentioned above, no matter how well it is applied. High traffic areas and areas exposed to a lot of water will be the first to wear away. But because it is so cheap it is not going to break the bank if you have got to redo the garage floor every two or three years.
There is a garage floor coating out there for everyone, if you want to spend a lot of money on the job and have good durability, you should go for floor tiles or mats. If you are on a tighter budget or you just want to give you garage quick facelift then you will probably want to go for the epoxy or the paint for your garage floor. What ever method you choose your garage is going to look so much better once the job is complete. And to make you job even better you might want to consider some garage cabinets to match as well.
