When it comes to concrete floor coatings the major reason for coating a concrete floor is to stop water contaminants, sealants, and other chemicals getting into the embedded reinforced steel and causing oxidization, concrete cancer and cracking. Here is a few things you need to consider when choosing your concrete floor coating to ensure you get it right!

  Concrete surface preparation prior to applying coatings

EVALUATING THE SURFACE

• Is it structurally sound, clean and free from curing components and laitance (a by-product of water in fresh concrete)?
• Has it been properly prepared in terms of levelling, patching, roughing or texturing
• Has it been adequately cured? Some coating products need concrete to cure for longer in order to adhere properly

PERFORMANCE NEEDED

• Will the concrete floor be exposed to chemicals? And what chemicals?
• Will it be exposed to temperature fluctuations, heat from cleaning processes or low temperatures (freezers and refrigerators)?
• What impact will it be subject to, high foot traffic, forklift traffic or any traffic with steel wheels?

OTHER THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING YOUR CONCRETE FLOOR OR EPOXY COATING,

• How fast do you need to turn the floor around? Some products can be walked on within hours like polyaspartic epoxy floor coating. Other concrete floor coatings need days before they are fully cured.
• How difficult is your space to coat? Some products are easy to use in tight spaces and around drains etc. while others are sprayed on, need a lot of careful masking to address over spray and will ‘curl up’ if not properly adhered around drains and crevices etc.
• Maintenance – will it need to be cleaned regularly with chemicals and will it need re-coating regularly
• What is the cost to install and maintenance?

There is a large range of concrete and epoxy floor coatings available nowadays to fulfil these objectives to varying degrees and the major products used outside the acrylic or penetrating sealers are epoxies, polyurethanes and polyureas.

Overall epoxies are often cheaper  and have a great resistance to chemicals. Polyurethanes will flex with moving concrete and resist cracking, polyureas are quick drying. Naturally every project is different, and no two concrete floors are the same so with choosing the right product you are best to speak to the coating manufacturer to work out exactly what one you require.      

LET'S HAVE A CHAT,

Want to discuss how you can get back into business and make more on your epoxy floor coating and polyurethane application jobs without spending more time preparing and leveling the floor than it's worth. It's our job to do the thinking for you. All Preparation Equipment is only a phone call away – call us on 1800 422 992 today.