re: garage question/no alfa content (late reply)

[David R Johnson <QA2282@domain.elided>]

Bill,

a late reply to your garage question.  Hope its not too late to be useful.  I
have not built a garage, so I have no experience with that, but I did put an
epoxy coating on my garage floor last fall.  I have decided to post this to the
list even though the thread is dead because I didn't see any comments about
floor coatings, and the information may be of use to other digesti, even those
not planning to build a garage.  I would also be interested to here experiences
others have had with floor coatings.

I used the Rustoleum brand two-part epoxy, which I bought from one of the big
chain warehouse hardware stores (Home Depot).  The key with this stuff seems to
be to properly prepare the floor before applying the coating.  The instructions
are somewhat different for a new slab, but what I had to do was etch my floor
with a good acid etcher.  Before etching, a thorough degreasing is required for
an oil-stained floor like mine, but this might not be necessary for a newly
poured floor.  The instructions for the epoxy are quite clear on what you have
to do and how to tell that the preparation was successful.  We found that it is
critical to remove the acid fully from the surface after etching, otherwise it
leaves a powder which things will not stick to.  What worked for us was applying
a lot of water (buckets are not enough, you need a hose) and a sqidgee (sp?).
We got one which mounts on the end of a broom handle, which makes the work much
easier.  We also used a broom to work the acid into the surface, with good
results.  I should point out that the task would have been easier if whoever
poured my slab had sloped it properly so the water drained into the drainhole,
instead of pooling in some spots or running the wrong way.  It would also be
easier with an empty garage, whereas mine had to have the entire contents
(including most of a GTV6 in boxes!) moved from one side to the other and back
as we worked to coat the entire floor.

The rustoleum product seems to work quite well, and once cured withstands such
abuse as dragging heavey metal objects like an air compressor across it, bending
conduit on it, dropping things, in addition to surviving oil spills (so much
easier to clean than bare concrete!) and hot tires parking on it.  The cure time
is not long at all with this stuff.  It was about 4 days before I could drive on
it, and less than that before I could walk on it or put light objects down.  The
first time I parked, it resulted in some light rubber marks, but these have
since dissappeared, and the coating did not peel off at all.  The cure time
varies quite a bit with the ambient temperature, but I applied the last parts of
this in quite cold weather (40's F) without a problem.  What is more likely to
be a limiting factor is the cure time required for the new slab before you seal
it.  The slab must be thoroughly dry or the coating may not stick.  I don't
remeber the details, but you will probably need to wait at least 30 days before
applying it.  There is a test you can do to see if it is dry, which basically
involves leaving a large sheet of plastic on it overnight to see if any
condensation gather underneath it.

Overall I am very satisfied with the results.  One reservation I have is that I
used the Rustoleum anti-skid additive (not included in the kit), which really is
just fine sand.  While I think some kind of anti-skid is probably essential to
stop you from duplicating the "slipping on a bannana skin" comedy routine
whenever the surface gets wet, this stuff is very abrasive and leaves lots of
tiny spikes sticking up from the surface, so beware of letting your skin slide
across it.  On one side of my garage I applied a second coat without the
non-slip, which makes it somewhat less nasty, but if I were to do it again I
might experiment with less than the recommeded quantity of additive.
Alternatively, one of the competing epoxy products (don't remember the brand)
came with some kind of plastic chips included in the kit which you sprinkle on
the freshly applied coating to give the non-skid effect, which might work
better.

The rustoleum cost 90 dollars for the kit, which claims to cover 400-650 square
feet.  My old and porous 25 foot square slab used up two kits, including enough
to put the second layer on one side only.  Expensive, but I think it was worth
the time and not inconsiderable effort.  Maybe if I put this much work into my
Alfa I will be able to drive it again some day...

Hope this helps.

Dave J.
1982 GTV6 (resting during garage restoration project)

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