How to Prepare a Garage Floor for Epoxy
Epoxy is the toughest concrete finish available for garage floors. It is impervious to almost all chemicals, maintains its sheen and prevents moisture, grease and oil from penetrating into the pores of the concrete. However, epoxy is not an easy finish to work with, and the final results will depend on how well the floor has been prepared prior to sealing. The floor must be thoroughly cleaned and free from any grease or oil, and either chemically or mechanically etched to ensure a solid bond between the concrete and the epoxy or the finish will not adhere permanently. Does this Spark an idea?
Things You'll Need
- Muriatic acid
- Industrial stripper
- Butyl-based degreaser
- Stiff bristled broom or floor machine with black stripping pads
- Ammonia
Instructions
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1
Determine if the garage floor has a seal or finish by dropping a couple of drops of muriatic acid onto the floor in several different areas. If the acid bubbles, there is no seal and you can move on to Step 3. However, if the acid sits on the surface with no apparent chemical reaction, the floor has some sort of seal or finish that needs to be completely removed before epoxy can be used.
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2
Remove any existing finish using an industrial stripper. Polymer finishes can be removed with ammoniated strippers, but paints and solvent-based seals need to be removed with a heavy-duty paint stripper such as methylene-chloride. If neither ammoniated or paint strippers will remove the seal, the finish on the concrete finish is probably epoxy. In this case, the only methods of removal are shot blasting or diamond grinding, jobs best left up to a professional.
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3
Remove grease and oil by mixing a strong solution of butyl-based degreaser and flooding the garage floor. Allow the solution to sit for at least 10 minutes on the surface, and then use a stiff bristled broom or a floor machine with black stripping pads. Rinse the floor thoroughly at least twice to remove any trace of alkali.
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4
Mix one part muriatic acid with 10 parts of water and wet the entire surface of the concrete with the solution, allowing a few minutes for the solution to etch the surface. The dilution ratio of the acid/water solution is extremely important as a weak solution will not do an adequate job, and an overly strong solution will damage the surface. Rinse the floor thoroughly and neutralize the acid with a solution of one part ammonia to 10 parts water. Rinse the floor again to remove the ammonia solution.
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5
Allow the floor to dry thoroughly. In dry climates, this will require at least two days. However, you will need to allow a least four days in humid areas. When it is completely dry, dust mop the floor to remove any concrete dust that remains from the etching.
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Tips & Warnings
After the floor preparation is complete, fill any cracks or holes in the garage floor with a good quality epoxy concrete patch.
Check with your local waste management authority before disposing of methylene chloride and its residue.
Wear protective clothing when working with muriatic acid.
