Most people aren’t aware that garage floor coatings are cost-effective solutions for flooring. But a high-quality garage floor coating in Birmingham can last decades with little to no maintenance. These polyaspartic coatings are 100% aliphatic, creating a waterproof membrane that adverse weather events, hot tire pickup, and forklifts won’t damage.
However, each concrete coating option offers different benefits. Below, our trained technicians outline a few choices you may want to consider for your garage in Alabama.
What is a Floor Coating?
Floor coatings commonly feature in commercial and, residential properties in loading bays, drive-thru areas, and parking garages. These robust layers protect the concrete substrates beneath them, providing a barrier against the onslaught of trucks, SUVs, foot traffic, and spills.
According to the New York Times, SUV purchases have grown to nearly half of American vehicle sales. So, garages, parking lots, and commercial work areas will face even heavier vehicles in the coming years. Can your floor coating handle the load?
Why Install Garage Floor Coatings?
Portland cement becomes naturally porous after curing, forming tiny holes that admit moisture, mold spores, and chemicals. With absorption, it also starts to flake, spall, and crack under the weight of vehicles and equipment. If those vehicles are towing campers or speedboats, that’s thousands of pounds testing the limits of your concrete.
With concrete floor coatings, any home garage or commercial structure with a parking space has extra protection. Neglecting to install garage floor coatings will mean frequent repair, renovation, or refinishing expenses. That’s why engineers and interior designers alike agree that coatings are worth installing.
Do you plan to sell your Alabama property? A concrete coating could eliminate cracks and dents across your property’s flooring. It might even help you attract higher bids from more committed buyers.
Three Types of Concrete Coatings
Resinous Epoxy Coatings
Epoxy coatings are a cost-efficient protectant from manufacturers like Catalog, Copps, and Ellsworth. This material combines a monomeric resin with plasticizers, hardeners, and a chemical catalyst to create a hard-wearing surface.
If you have low-traffic areas, like long-term storage facilities and residential kitchens, where forklifts, work tools, and machinery are absent, epoxy could be an option. However, an epoxy garage floor coating offers inferior protection compared to polyurea-based products. That’s why many flooring experts deploy epoxy only as a base coat.
These self-priming products adhere well to a concrete substrate but only survive with a polyurea or polyaspartic topcoat long-term. So, it is cheap to produce and install and has some resistance to abrasion, but it is not nearly as weatherproof as modern coatings. Epoxy is also not UV-stable, so the surfaces near windows and doors will turn yellow after some exposure to direct sunlight.
Polyurea Floor Coatings
If you want the strength of epoxy with far better durability, consider polyurea coatings. Polyurea uses a polyamine and isocyanate molecule, which manufacturers sometimes combine with a polyol molecule to create polyurethane, another popular protectant.
Polyurea creates a waterproof and weather-resistant polymerized surface for industrial flooring, truck beds, and tank linings. You’ll see it on the floors of cruise ships and factories for abrasion and chemical resistance. Concrete Coatings also offers it as a base coat for garages in Birmingham.
Our polyurea products are branded and certified as UV-stable for at least ten years, repelling brake fluid, oil, and other vehicle maintenance fluids with ease. We can also install vinyl chips and metallic paint for aesthetic effects and unique designs.
Polyaspartic Coatings
Another excellent option is a polyaspartic coating, an aliphatic sub-type of polyurea coating patented by Bayer Material Science. The department originally wanted to improve its urea-based product line but discovered that polyaspartic and polyurea make a winning combination. A polyurea base coat will lose its UV stability after a decade or two, but a polyaspartic coating on top will shield it from yellowing for up to 30 years.
Polyaspartic coatings will never sustain scratches from all-terrain tires or work boots. They also prevent floors from chipping under falling tools, which makes them a staple in residential garages, repair bays, and farms in Alabama.
Why Choose Licensed Experts like Concrete Coatings?
Concrete Coatings is a leading independent company providing high-quality, long-lasting garage floor coatings for homes and businesses in Birmingham, AL, and the surrounding areas. Our floor experts have decades of combined experience in concrete floor solutions for commercial and residential settings.
Our coatings protect your floors from the following:
- Scratches
- Dents
- Depressions caused by heavy foot and vehicle traffic and more
Garages handle a heavy load each day, and they do it so much better with a floor coating to keep their concrete substrate in great condition year-round.
The Benefits of A Garage Floor Coating in Birmingham
Lower Maintenance
Waterproof floor coatings significantly reduce maintenance requirements. A mop, soap, and water will keep it clean and prevent stains that would have been permanent on bare concrete.
Better Curb Appeal
Floor coatings keep your garage presentable, no matter what you throw at it.
Safer Living Spaces
High-quality floor coatings prevent mold colonies, mildew, and algae from taking hold. When combined with regular cleaning, these coatings make your property a safer place for children, pets, and visitors with allergies.
Expert Services and Workmanship
A team like Concrete Coatings has ample experience in installing robust and beautiful coatings in garages and many other surfaces. And the workmanship speaks for itself.
Why not call Concrete Coatings at (205) 973-6197 to learn more about which garage floor coatings could serve your home or business best?
