Let's see what I can deliver from personal experience.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Mike Lee - Team Banana Racing [SMTP:mikel@ichips.intel.com]
>
> Yet another question about garage floor painting....
>
>
> I recently bought a house, and expect to be moving in within a couple
> of weeks.
>
> Luckily, there are no old oil/grease spots I need to remove. So I
> plan on getting
> some muratic acid from Home Depot, mix in a 1:10 ratio with water, and
> use that
> to wash down the floor. Rinse with water, and if I'm feeling
> energetic, maybe
> repeat. Then dry overnight and sweep with a brush/vacuum with a
> shop-vac. The
> final step would be to actually paint the floor (see? I've been
> paying attention..)
>
>
I tried a couple of products at various strengths. This was on a new
concrete floor, too.
You'll want an etchant that really etches. After several "concrete prep"
products, I finally tried Muriatic acid with a wire brush attachment to
my broom handle. The right amount of etch leaves scratches you can see
in the concrete from the wire brush. Anything less won't adhere as well
(though probably well enough for home use.) I don't remember the
dilution I used for the muriatic. so try a few until you get etching
with the wire brush, especially near any prior floor stains.
These etchants need a lot of water for rinsing. My garage floor needed a
couple of days to dry after the treatment. It was during the California
winter, so now is better, but still, allow time for the drying.
> The biggest problem is actually obtaining the paint. I've called an
> auto-body
> paint supplier (for Imron), and they said to try a house paint place.
> Most of
> those don't have anything that they think would be suitable. The one
> place that
> did, said it was something I should leave to a professional (I do have
> a f.a.
> respirator and bunny suit, and the house is unoccupied, so fumes
> aren't an issue).
> The industrial flooring places won't supply the material, but would be
> happy
> to come by and do the work for me. So where have you guys been
> finding this
> paint????
>
>
I got mine at a commercial paint store, the place my neighbor the house
painter uses. He recommended Benjamin Moore. I used it and it works very
well. You very definitely need a respirator. I painted it during the
winter, when the shop temperature was around 55 degrees Fahrenheit, the
lower limit for application. It took weeks to cure. :) Don't do that.
Now in the summer, even with the slow cure, the floor is great. It's
easy to clean, easy to sweep, and repels automotive oil/grease stains.
> Home Depot had something by Thompson (whose quality reputation I've
> heard is
> suspect w.r.t deck treatments), but it did seem like the "right"
> stuff. It
> required a "special" Thompson cleaner, and had a two part paint that
> doesn't
> dry until mixed. Is that the stuff I should be using?
>
>
Back in my house painting days, I used Thompson's water seal for wood.
It worked pretty well for that, but I'd use the BM epoxy for a concrete
floor.
On the other hand, a coworker used a water based epoxy paint for his
porch. He thought it was good as well. But for the garage, I'd still
poison myself with the petrol based two part epoxy.
> Thanks for any recommendations,
> Mike
>
>
Ken Landaiche
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