Expoxy or Racedeck for Garage Flooring

[jw]

I'm trying to decide between these two options for flooring. Some of the cons i've heard for epoxy is taht sometimes the flooring comes up and it needs to be retouched. Racedeck supposedly makes a weird clicking sound when you walk on it and it can't get really wet. Which should I go with.

[P1et]

I am in the same boat. I've priced out Racedeck and it will cost at least double that of something like a UCoatIt.

Would love to see what everyone has in their garage, and what their experiences are.

[SCoach]

I moved out of my house before I had the chance to do this, but I woul do epoxy no question. Texture it to reduce slipping, put down OSHA safety mays where needed, and enjoy my new spill-proof floor. I would do several coats to be on the safe side.

[rjstaaf]

I have been leaning towards Expoxy from Wolverine myself but I am still concerned about traction when the floor is wet. I can imagine riding into the garage on the motorcycle out of the rain, coming to a stop, putting my foot down and my foot sliding and the bike falling over

Wolvering paticipates over at the Garage Journal forums and you can see examples of Garage Journal member's floors over there.

Wolverine Coatings Corporation - Products - Polymer Flooring

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The textured additive they recommend just doesn't appeal to me as it basically is like putting sand under the clear. Gotta imagine that would make rolling things over the floor a pain as well as not feeling that great when you walk on it in bare feet or crawl around under the car on it.

I am moving on with the rest of my garage remodel and will be saving the floor for last. I may not do anything with it other than clean it really well.

[artm3]

my brother owns a company that does industrial/commercial flooring, he recommended it...iirc it's a German company

ARDEX Engineered Cements > Company Overview

ARDEX Engineered Cements

This high quality Portland cement-based product mixes with just water and readily bonds to all concrete surfaces, providing a durable, new wear surface suitable for foot, rubber-tire, and automobile traffic. ARDEX recommends the use of ARDEX CG Concrete Guard to seal and protect ARDEX CD, both interior and exterior.

Benefits:
Provides "new concrete" finish to worn concrete surfaces
Bonds as thin as 1/16" (1.6 mm)
Easy prep - no scraping, primers, or pre wetting
Portland cement-based - High strength - 4,000 psi
Mix with water only, no additives needed
Fast and easy, apply with a trowel or squeegee
Dries fast, walk on in 2 hours, drive on in 6 hours


it's an epoxy/cement mixture, trowelled on, 6 hours to dry for use...

surface prep, wire brushed, adhesive coat, then apply

looks like fresh concrete when done, I sealed it with 3 coats of water based sealer...

took less than 8 hours and $300...

easy to patch if required...very hard, difficult to scratch...I've dropped tools and not damaged it...if you apply it with a 'broom' finish, very slip resistant

[Jack Olsen]

I did ceramic tile.

[mixmaster209]

Wow! What a garage! Love the car, love the setup. And I'm digging the floors.

[bdh2009]

I had my garage floor epoxied – very very happy with it – no problems with it lifting although the mob who did it cleaned the old concrete pretty well with acid etc. A few pros
• Can wash the car on it (as long as the slop runs outwards)
• Easy to use a squeegee afterwards to get rid of the water
• Easy to clean up by just using a mop – like when wet cars are parked on it and drip dirty water on it

Make sure they finish it with the right additive for roughness although in my experience it’s a bit slippery no matter what when wet.

If you can think about coving up the sides to make the bottoms of the walls water proof as well – saves water getting under the skirting boards.

Good luck !

[kn38ms]

I live in hot, sticky TX so epoxy is was not a good option for me.
Over time the hot parked tires took its toll on the paint.
I've had the chance to walk on Racedeck floor.
They can be a bit noisy but would choose it over epoxy for my particular application.
Me thinks ceramic tile will be on my next garage floor.

[DETAILKING]

I researched the heck out of this, and ended up doing nothing.

Racedeck (look for similar competitors at lower prices) is awesome, but unless your garage is for your showcar that rarely goes out in the rain or snow, it will be a pain to clean and you could have issues if water gets under the tiles.

Epoxy is a nice solution, or a cement stain, but to do it right, (solvent based with acid etch) it isn't easy,and it could become a maintenance issue if it starts to peel up.

I almost went for rollout flooring, I found it attractive, and the ability to sweep water off it was a plus, or pull it out of the garage once a yr to clean,etc.

check out...

Coin Pattern Roll-Out Flooring from Better Life Technology

Ceramic tile is another nice solution.

I just cleaned up the cement real good with chemicals and pressure washing and it looks nice enough for me.

[billium]

I've had both, here's my opinions:

Racedeck:

If the tiles stay clean, it never rains and you don't live in a part of the country where winter = sand & salt, go this way. You'll get a look that everyone comments on. My pattern was white/black/red. The tiles show every drip, speck of dirt sand, etc. The bigger problem for me was when we drove the cars in in winter and the slop melted off. The dirt/sand would work its way under the tiles and the tiles would creek and pop every time I walked on them, let alone drove on them. Hosing/mopping the tiles doesn't eliminate the problem, you have to disassemble the floor into three of four pieces, drag the pieces out of the garage, hose/mop the concrete floor, squeege, turn the Racedeck tiles upside down to wash the muck off of them, drag the tiles back in the garage and reassemble. One winter of this routine and I re-considered the visual appeal vs. practicality. When we moved from that house in 2007, I left the Racedeck for the new owner. He was thrilled...........until his first winter.

Epoxy (commercially applied):

Current home had two layers of the commercial epoxy applied to the garage/utility room floors with the confetti stuff and a clear coat topper. Practical and looks good, but not great like the Racedeck did three or four times a year. It is a bit on the slippery side, even with the confetti. A quick hose down and squeege and I'm good to go.

Living in Iowa, I'd never consider the Racedeck or similar product again. Similar to owning a daily driver in black, looks terrific when freshly cleaned, but you have to have a serious case of OCD to keep it that way for long.

[budman3]

I just saw a show on Speed or something that highlighted a new MFG of garage floor coatings -- Rock Solid Floors (RockSolid Floors Polyurea Garage Floor Coating). Their product is Polyurea based (same ingredient in truck bed liners) instead of epoxy. It is supposedly a lot more durable and easier to work with than epoxy based products. A little on the expensive side but may be worth it if it lasts that much longer than epoxy.