Garages are one of the most multi-purpose spaces in a house. You park your car there, it’s a workspace for DIY projects, it's an extra storage room, and you can even have band practice there.
Even though it’s one of the most versatile and most used places in the house, it’s often neglected, particularly the concrete floors. Without proper treatment, garage floors are subject to cracks and stains.
To avoid future problems, or cover up unsightly stains, the best protection is epoxy garage floor paint. It’s durable and customizable. Some people choose to apply the epoxy coating themselves, while others hire professionals.
Before getting started, get familiar with why epoxy paint is the best option, and what is the best garage floor paint available.
Other garage paint options are cheaper, but epoxy floor paint is the most durable, long-lasting option for areas with high traffic. Also, epoxy is the best looking option because of its glossy look. Most high-end showrooms choose epoxy for its clean and sleek appearance.
Epoxy paint is a two-part application (1 part resin and 1 part hardener). Because of this, epoxy doesn’t dry the same as paint. Once the resin and hardener are mixed, you must work fast to apply it before the epoxy hardens on its own.
It’s important to consider environmental factors as well because epoxy hardens quicker or faster depending on the temperature of the room.
The epoxy hardens and works to seal any cracks or pores in the concrete. The hard curing process makes the epoxy more durable against cracks, stains, and abrasion. It’s a more difficult application process than standard garage paint, but it’s worthwhile for multiple years of carefree use.
There are a lot of garage paints on the market, and many of them cater to DIYers. The process with each is similar, but each product has a different application and result.
Rust-Oleum is a familiar paint brand, and it’s easy to find at just about any home improvement store. For that reason, it’s common among DIY garage floor painters.
Like most epoxy paints, this product requires a lot of prep work. Of course, you have to prep the epoxy mixture. But you also have to make sure the garage floor surface is clean and free of debris.
For the best results with this product, we suggest two coats to get the smoothest gloss. As long as it’s applied correctly according to the package instructions, then Rust-Oleum epoxy is an easy to find, durable option.
Another common brand, Valspar clear epoxy kit is a great solution for people who don’t have a specific look in mind but still want an extra layer of protection on their garage concrete floors. Plus, it gives concrete an attractive shine.
This product is also great for people who have already painted their garage floors but want an extra layer of protection and gloss. It’s easy enough to apply with a roller, but like other epoxies, it does dry very fast. So, work quickly.
Valspar says one can make your garage floor 2x more durable. One can cover about 500 sq ft, but it’s recommended to do two coats of epoxy paint.
This epoxy flooring is similar to Rust-Oleum’s product because it’s ultra-durable, but it’s a little tricky to apply yourself because it dries very fast. Quikrete epoxy is self-leveling, which means it’s a bit runnier than other epoxy kits, which makes it harder to work with, especially for novices.
Even though it's more difficult to apply and slightly more expensive because it requires more epoxy to cover an area, it still has some of the best results for glossiness.
As always, for the best results make sure to properly clean and prep the area. The manufacturer recommends applying their epoxy to a clean, damp floor.
This one-part epoxy paint is one of the easiest to use on this list. Because it’s one-part, there’s no need to mix the resin and hardener before applying it to your floors (which saves on prep time and leaves less room for error).
For application, you can roll this epoxy paint onto your floors like you would regular paint. It will go on a bit thicker than regular paint, but still thinner than 2-part epoxy. Because it is thinner, you should apply two coats.
This product is very easy to use, but it’s not as durable as other epoxy floor paints. To help with its durability, you can use another clear epoxy coat—such as Valspar clear epoxy—to add another layer of protection.
For the most professional-grade epoxy garage floor paint on this list, use Colored Epoxies. Because it’s a professional product, it’s more difficult to use for novice painters. But, it results in the most durable and extremely glossy garage flooring.
This epoxy comes in two parts that you have to mix before using. Make sure to prep the surface so the epoxy sticks as well as possible. If you follow the preparation steps on the packaging, you shouldn’t run into any problems.
Even though this epoxy goes on thicker than the other epoxies on this list, you will still need to apply at least two coats for the best results. This epoxy paint is more expensive than other options, but it is the superior product for a complete garage floor remodel.
To get the best epoxy garage floor paint results, you have to use the right tools. For example, depending on the state of the concrete floors you’re working with, you may need a concrete grinder to properly prep the concrete surface.
Onfloor technologies offer tools for concrete flooring for all your business's needs. To learn more about our tools and how they can help with applying epoxy garage floor paint, request a demo with one of our experts.