Paint garage floor?

[duckhunt]

So we are putting up a new 32 x 40 pole barn garage. I do basic maintenance on our vehicles, garden tractor, etc. I'm thinking about painting the floor for easy clean up and no oil stains. Are there any pros or cons to this from anyone that has done this? My wife is concerned that it might make it slippery.

 

[ccc23454]

Seal it and be done. keep sheets of carboard for when doing oil and such. Buy a mop/bucket, bag of kitty litter and clean up after yourself. In 20 years if it looks like hell then you can epoxy it or paint it but neither will last as long as you expect.

 

[WestKyHunt]

There are slip resistant paints available. May be able to add sand to the paint as well.
Of course it could still be slick at times but the pros out weigh the cons IMO

 

[C17loadclear]

I am thinking about doing this very thing in my new shop. I want to paint it white for light reflection but I also know it isn’t really practical especially where I live.

Please keep us posted

 

[MarvB]

Next door neighbor tried to epoxy paint his garage floor when he first moved in.... prob is prior owner put some kind of sealer on it. The epoxy adhering was pretty hit and miss, ended up doing some spots three times as it would break loose when he turned the wheels on it. Your going from brand new so shouldn’t be an issue but just a warning to those who aren’t.

 

[Wallydeuce]

I can't remember the brand but I did it when we purchased our house. The kit comes with a bottle of sprinkles that helps with traction. It's tiny pieces of colored cardboard like flakes. Oil, WD 40 wipes right up. You can even power wash the floor without damaging anything.

 

[mdhunter]

I love the epoxy floor in my garage but it can be slippery when wet. That said, I wouldnt want it any other way.

 

[crock239]

I had a pro put down epoxy coating w urethane topcoat in our garage....expensive as hell but once I saw the process I understood major differences between a pro and DIY, mostly around surface prep....the epoxy includes flake to prevent slipping when wet (it's still slick but not terrible). you can still get stains, but it's a durable coating and you can still squeegee or use stiff push broom it to get water off.

If I were starting from new I'd go whole hog and have a slope to floor drain and heated garage (Midwest snow + coated garage floor = garage ice rink or pool sometimes), and get a coating down when concrete is new and surface isn't yet contaminated.

Screened porch I did myself, with no issues and it's holding up fine, but my research into DIY garage floor coatings led me to believe results are very mixed and I wasn't sure I could get a DIY system to stick well enough to our old concrete to hold up to hot tires.

 

[mtmuley]

I had a pro put down epoxy coating w urethane topcoat in our garage....expensive as hell but once I saw the process I understood major differences between a pro and DIY, mostly around surface prep....the epoxy includes flake to prevent slipping when wet (it's still slick but not terrible). you can still get stains, but it's a durable coating and you can still squeegee or use stiff push broom it to get water off.

If I were starting from new I'd go whole hog and have a slope to floor drain and heated garage (Midwest snow + coated garage floor = garage ice rink or pool sometimes), and get a coating down when concrete is new and surface isn't yet contaminated.

Screened porch I did myself, with no issues and it's holding up fine, but my research into DIY garage floor coatings led me to believe results are very mixed and I wasn't sure I could get a DIY system to stick well enough to our old concrete to hold up to hot tires.

Yep. The hardware store stuff won't last. mtmuley

 

[mdhunter]

I had a pro put down epoxy coating w urethane topcoat in our garage....expensive as hell but once I saw the process I understood major differences between a pro and DIY, mostly around surface prep....the epoxy includes flake to prevent slipping when wet (it's still slick but not terrible). you can still get stains, but it's a durable coating and you can still squeegee or use stiff push broom it to get water off.

If I were starting from new I'd go whole hog and have a slope to floor drain and heated garage (Midwest snow + coated garage floor = garage ice rink or pool sometimes), and get a coating down when concrete is new and surface isn't yet contaminated.

Screened porch I did myself, with no issues and it's holding up fine, but my research into DIY garage floor coatings led me to believe results are very mixed and I wasn't sure I could get a DIY system to stick well enough to our old concrete to hold up to hot tires.

I agree with the above. The pros get in there and sand the floor and get it right. The only real issue with being slippery is when the temps go from cold to hot and the floor sweats. Maybe this can be prevented with better insulation or heat.

 

[diamond hitch]

In 1975, after somewhat of a running gun battle with a five point bull in a lodge pole jungle, I got the suck cornered and finshed him off. I didn't have time to figure out the damage so I packed the hide home. As things settled down I laid that hide ( hair down and bloody) on my fathers new cement floor to figure out what shots hit and what ones didn't. Being in my early 20s I never thought of the lasting effect of blood on that cement.

When dad died 25 years later, I cleaned out the barn and upon washing the floor there was the image of that bull. Somewhat like the shroud of turin.

Did he yell at me? Pretty much but not any more than when I sawed a bull in half with a chainsaw after he painted the barn. That lasted quite a while too.

so with respect to the original question, if you are into memories feel free to leave it pure but otherwise a little silica sand and a coating is an option.

 

[Qubo]

I helped my dad epoxy his shop floor 15 years ago and it has held up great. My house had it done already in the garage when I moved in. I’ve lived here 7 years so its older than that and I’m still happy. It’s flaked in a couple spots but not bad. I love it and will never not have an epoxy floor. I once spilled 2-3 quarts of nasty sooty diesel oil and just wiped it all up. Sprayed a little cleaner down to get it really clean. I will say I think the key to my dad’s being in better shape than mine is partly that it was new but I think the more important thing is we got a quality commercial kit that came with acid to etch the concrete first. You mop it on and would sizzle and leave the concrete more porous when it dried.

 

[Gellar]

Like all painting the work is in the prep. Shop Vacuum the entire floor before you paint. Pay special attention to cracks. I used to paint floors at pipeline pump stations. We always used a 2 part epoxy paint, cut in the edges with a good brush and roll the rest.

 

[Pucky Freak]

I’m epoxying my garage tomorrow. Spent the last 2 days scrubbing the hell out of it with industrial degreaser and then acid etched to get a nice rough surface for the epoxy to adhere to.

 

[mtmuley]

I’m epoxying my garage tomorrow. Spent the last 2 days scrubbing the hell out of it with industrial degreaser and then acid etched to get a nice rough surface for the epoxy to adhere to.

Prep is key. mtmuley

 

[tackdriver]

Do it right and rent a surface grinder

 

[Otto Matic]

"Voice Of Experience"

"PAINT THE DAMN FLOOR (SLAB) BEFORE ERECTING THE BUILDING!"

It'll be a helluva lot easier.

Actually, I couldn't care less which way you roll. Paint, seal or leave bare.
When we built our home, because of my progressing disabilities, we decided to just stain and seal the concrete.
BUT....
We didn't do it before we got the house dried in!
What a mess!
Degreasers!
Etchers!
Volatile chemicals, etc, etc!

Yeah, select a "non-slip" surface.
Even with a sealed, painted floor, protect it with cardboard, plywood ($'s !) or something. Stuff like antifreeze, brake fluid and power steering fluid can peel paint, sealer or stain right off.
In fact, be aware that regardless of how cautious you are, something WILL eventually screw it up! LOL! !

Cat litter!
Get the really cheap clay type.
I spilled about a pint of motor oil on our living room floor during construction. Poured a butt load of cheap cat litter on it and it sucked it right up. No problem.

 

[Akcabin]

I sprayed my floor right after the lid n walls as it was already mostly done. I did have it washed n prepped in planning so went well.

 

[deskdemocrat]

There are basically two types of paint that you can use on your garage tile flooring material redding – latex acrylic paint or an epoxy paint. While the latex paint is a bit of a cheaper option in the short term, epoxy paint is more durable and will provide a better bond to the concrete making it more chip resistant.

 

[Steiny]

I'm a fan of just finishing the concrete with a real hard, burned in, slick trowel finish. It looks good, is very durable and cleans up easily. Hard to do a good job of it if using fibermesh, need to reinforce with welded wire.

If you go the epoxy route, hire a pro. As others have said, the DIY stuff won't hold up. If you insist on going DIY, may as well just use an economical floor paint and know that you'll be repainting every few years.