In real estate, we always say…Appearance Matters!  No where is it more evident than in a messy, nasty garage.  When you walk into your garage, what do you see?  Is there stains on the ground?  Can you see the bare concrete and wonder what can be done?  Which of the below would you rather have?

The answer is to coat the floor with epoxy and with the help of Rust-Oleum EpoxyShield from Home Depot, you can easily do it yourself.  The process does take a little bit of work but over the course of a weekend, you can easily have a shiny new floor in a variety of colors.

The first thing to do to get rid of any current surface issues like old paint, cement chips or oil stains.  To do this, you will need to scrub the floor with degreaser and then rent a diamond grinding wheel to go over the entire surface.

The unit is available at Home Depot and you may need help loading it in the car.  The unit comes with the cutting edge attached.  You simply attach a water hose and walk behind the unit allowing the diamond blades to resurface your floor.  Once this is complete, you will need to flush the surface VERY WELL to remove all the debris.  If you floor was like mine, I had an old floor cover that had failed and I had to grind that off.  It really made quite a mess but with a little patience and a shovel and broom, the work was tolerable.

The next step is to prepare the floor with the etching solution provided in the kit.  Be sure and closely follow the instructions on the box as this article is nothing more than an overview.

Once you have the floor properly prepared, you can begin the process of applying the new coating.  Rust-Oleum has come up with a very innovative way to handle this process with a two part mixing bag that you simply push down on to open the separation between the bags allowing the chemicals to mix.  Once mixed, you cut a hole to pour the contents on the floor and use the supplied special applicator.  It is here that was troublesome for me.  I did not feel I had enough material for the garage size and ended up having to buy a second box of material.  I would have appreciated it if the material was easily sufficient for a two car garage but that was the only negative to the process.  If you are wanting the surface to have texture and color differentiation, you will need to apply the decorative flakes which are bought separately.  You simply cast them into the air in a somewhat equal pattern and the floor does the rest.

The process of cleaning & preparing the floor along with ample time to dry will take a day.  From there it is just a couple of hours to apply the material BUT you will need to mark off the area and not allow any foot traffic for a couple of days and no tire traffic for about 5 days.  The instructions have shorter time periods but I believe the longer you can let the floor cure, the better chance you will have a long lasting beautiful garage floor you can be proud of.

Pat Rary owns and operates Atlanta Real Estate Brokers and All American Contracting in Marietta, GA.  The information contained herein is for informational purposes only.  Individuals who want to do this work themselves need to read the instructions on the box and follow them carefully and take all necessary personal safety precautions.