Finding the most suitable coating for your garage floor could be a difficult task, especially if you’re not familiar with the different options in the industry. This blog will dive deep into understanding one of the top-rated options: polyurea garage floor coating.
What Is Polyurea Garage Floor Coating?
Polyurea coatings are a type of polyurethane. Its use is widely spread for coating concrete garage floors, mainly. This material is a relatively modern and advanced protective coating. This product presents itself as a durable and resistant alternative to epoxy coatings.
For this reason, it has become a good option for homeowners and business owners alike who want to make a long-lasting investment in their garages.
Benefits of Polyurea Coatings
Like any other protective coatings, there are a lot of advantages, and of course, some limitations, of polyurea floor coating for garages that you should know about to make an informed decision.
High Resistance
One of the most notable benefits of polyurea coating systems is that it can resist impacts, scratches, extreme weather, and chemicals and, at a certain point, is presented as a UV resistant coating.
Its ability to resist extreme weather brings you the opportunity of coating your garage floor in almost any season of the year, no matter if you live in a city with colder weather.
Being chemical resistant makes it an excellent option for the garage floor, especially if there’s constant exposure to certain substances for car maintenance, such as oil. For this reason, polyurea is highly popular in the auto industry.
It’s also functional for exterior spaces. However, they could experience discoloration over time. Nevertheless, this won’t affect their performance.
Time
Another significant benefit of polyurea floor coatings is their high curing speed. It can take hours or even minutes to dry, which is a lot less than other materials, and it gives you a waiting period of one day to drive on.
However, even being an important factor, there’s also a big drawback to having a high curing speed. Being a product with a fast cure period, it doesn’t have a long pot life, which doesn’t give you time to correct errors.
It is even necessary to mix it at a certain speed. This is a primary reason to leave the job to trained contractors.
Flexibility and Elongation
It’s more flexible than other protective coatings, making it less likely to crack, peel, or bubble than other coatings.
Additionally, polyurea floor coating offers excellent adhesion, durability, and the possibility of customizing it to resemble other materials and not absorb liquids because of its lack of porosity. However, not all polyureas are created equal, and it depends a lot on the manufacturer.
Know The Steps for a Proper Polyurea Garage Floor Coating Installation
As a general rule, applying polyurea coating is a difficult task that shouldn’t be a DIY project. In fact, it requires the proper knowledge, tools, and equipment. However, this guide wouldn’t be complete without the installation process.
If you are a handy home or business owner with previous knowledge of the coating industry, check these steps. Even when hiring a professional to do the job, you should familiarize yourself with the installation process to know if it’s worthwhile.
Grinding The Concrete
This first step allows removing the impurities of the concrete and opening the pores to allow the coating to penetrate the concrete properly.
Remove The Dust
Vacuum the entire concrete area to remove all the dust and debris.
Inspect and Make Repairs
The concrete condition is vital for a proper coating. For this reason, as part of the process, contractors should inspect and make the necessary repairs with a patching material. Once patched, repeat the first two steps.
Apply The Base Coat
Once everything is clean again, it’s time to apply the primer base coat. The manufacturer usually recommends several coats. This primary coat can be colorless or come in some limited color tints.
Spread a Layer Of Chips
This step depends a lot on the desired design of the garage floor. Once the base coat is fully dry, you can walk on it and apply a layer of decorative chips or a color tint.
If you choose the chips or flakes, then remove the excess chips, so you can continue with the next step.
The Last Clear Top Base
Apply the last coat to cover the chips. Vacuum all the dust or possible debris again, and then wait 24 hours so that you can drive on.
The Best Choice for Your Garage Floor Coating
Choosing which one fits better for your commercial or residential depends on several factors, such as the concrete condition and the area you want to protect. Taking the right decision will determine the performance of the product.
Polyurea coating is ideal if you want to make a long-term investment in protecting your garage floor from stains and other damages. It’s also an excellent alternative to increase your home value and have a nice-looking garage floor.
Compared to other coatings such as epoxy and polyurethane, polyurea has superior durability and chemical and moisture resistance. However, other modified options, like polyaspartic coatings, overcome the limitations of polyureas.
Remember that not all polyureas are the same. They can even change depending on the manufacturer.
Always do in-depth research on the advantages and disadvantages of the products you are considering for your concrete floor coating.
Choose The Right Company for Your Polyurea Garage Floor Coating
Now that you have a general yet complete understanding of polyurea garage floor coating ensure you find a list of certified coating companies to do a professional installation because it involves a lot of training.
Best Floor Coating LLC counts on a highly trained team and specialized equipment to do a project like this. You can also check our floor coating services for residential and commercial properties.
We also offer free estimates. Call us to request yours!