Which Coating Is Best for Your Garage Flooring?
If you want your garage to look and perform its best for years to come, your best bet is to apply a proper floor coating. Coating (or sealing) your floors prevents moisture from gaining entry, provides additional strength and flexibility to handle high levels of pressure, makes cleaning easier, and enhances the appearance of your floors.
You have several options to consider when it comes to sealing a garage floor. Ultimately, the best type of coating for your floors will depend on your personal needs and preferences. To help you make a decision, let’s go over some of these options and explore how they differ from one another.
What Are the Best Garage Floor Coating Options
Epoxy Options
Epoxy floor paint is perhaps the most popular coating option for all concrete floors. Epoxy is sort of like a combination of glue and paint, strongly adhering to concrete while also providing many color and texture options. These coatings come in three basic types: 100% solids, water-based, and solvent-based. However, their life expectancy can be disappointing, lasting only a few years even if they're properly maintained. However, they are a great quick fix on a budget.
Polyurea Coatings
Polyurea floor coatings can look and feel very similar to epoxy coatings. However, polyurea is more flexible and durable, generally speaking. Polyurea is also versatile in application and appearance. Penntek Industrial Coatings, for instance, use polyurea for a variety of flooring options. They offer multiple styles, flexibility, and repel moisture from absorbing into the concrete itself. They also last up to 30 years with proper maintenance.
Choosing the Best Coatings for Your Garage Floors
In order to decide which garage floor sealing method is best for you, you need to determine your priorities. Ask yourself what matters to you, and how best to achieve your goals. Here are some factors to consider.
Level of Protection
Different coatings will offer more or less protection than others. The amount of protection you need will depend on how you use your garage floors. Is your garage merely for storing a vehicle or two as well as some tools and other items? Are these vehicles lighter or heavy-duty? Does your garage experience a lot of foot traffic? Do you frequently work or spend time in your garage?
The more activity your floors receive, the more protection they’ll need. So, if you’re looking for long-term durability, consider polyurea coatings. If you merely want to keep your floors clean and safe from moisture, you might go for water- and solvent-based garage floor coatings.
Aesthetic Preference
If you spend a lot of time in your garage and want to show it off to guests, then you most likely care about its overall appearance. Coating your floors can go a long way toward enhancing your garage’s aesthetic. As mentioned earlier, both epoxy and polyurea coatings come in a variety of colors, textures, and sheens. You might decide to go with a single color epoxy paint for your floors. Or, you might install a Penntek Chip System concrete coating for a showroom-quality look.
Curing Conditions
The application process differs from coating to coating as well. Some materials cure quickly while others can take a day or longer to fully adhere and dry. In most cases, epoxy floors can take anywhere from 24 to 72 hours to finish installing, and polyurea coatings less than a day. If you’re looking to get the job done quickly, then, polyurea might be best for your floors. Keep in mind, though, that faster dry times mean less time and less room for error, so hiring an experienced professional is key.
What’s Your Budget?
Finally, you have to consider cost. The more durable your garage coatings, the more expensive. You want the best protection for your floors, but you don’t want to empty your wallet in the process. Assess your needs and weigh them against your budget before making the final decision. However, investing in polyurea floor coatings now will pay off in the long-run when you realize you're not paying for new floor coatings every 2-3 years, and instead every few decades.
Still Can’t Decide?
Choosing a coating for your garage flooring can be challenging, and it’s easy to get lost in the details. Fortunately, the pros at Anderson Painting can walk you through this process and find the best option for your flooring needs. And then, we can handle the installation. For more about us and everything we do, call us today at (919) 610-1855 or email us at info@andersonpaintingnc.com!
