Garage floor levelling

[DIY-Si]

With the floor having received a second coat of primer, I poured the infill section last night. Despite putting the primer on with a brush, and therefore it was a bit thicker, I still got some pinholes. 

 

 

I did end up going just over the cut edge in a couple of places as I was using the edge to guide the trowel. These bits will be easily cut back to flat with a combination of my new grinding cup and a sander. The open end now has the crisp, clean edge I was wanting.

 

 

[DIY-Si]

With some time from an early finish at work, I managed to grind and sand the join line fairly flat as well as remove most of the compound that spilt under the dam. I didn't clean all of it off, as one bit near a wall pier will be under some shelving and I was getting fed up of not seeing what I was doing in the corner.

 

With the floor now as prepared as I was going to make it, the time had come for the first coat of paint. I ended up using Watco's basic epoxy in light grey. I've used their paint a few years before, but it was Snags that reminded me if the company name. They suggested that a 5L tin would suit 30m2, so I duly ordered a couple. The paint is a water based epoxy, so it has a usable life of 2hours. I didn't want to use the solvent free epoxy,as the pot life of 20-30 mins wouldn't be enough. It was also more expensive and overly shiny, and I wanted a matt floor if possible.

 

It started to go down well, with a heater running to keep the temperature up. 

 

 

 

As it's my weekend with the boy, he decided to lend a hand and did most of the cutting in for me. He also had a bit of a go with the roller, and did the last bit as we painted ourselves out the door. With his help, the whole floor took 1hr 45mins to do, against a pot life of 2hrs.

 

Overall, I wish we had put the paint on a little thicker to start with as we had loads left over. I reckon i could've covered another 10-15m2 with out any bother! I hope to do the second coat tomorrow, after which time it should have an even colour and then needs 7 days to fully cure. The garage will be usable after 2 days though, at which point I can make a start in getting the storage and workbench sorted.

 

 

I shall update this again once the second is down and dry.

[John Loudon - Sponsorship Liaison]

That Watco stuff has a good reputation

[Jim RS]

When they state the coverage they allow for absorption by the substrate(base to us mere mortals) and so with your job being pre coated and sealed the coating will cover further. We used to carefully and accurately divide the amounts from the tins especially when doing small areas to allow for differences. Adversely we had jobs where it absolutely sucked in the coating and ended up needing 3 coats plus especially on screeded floors as they have greater air gaps with the material being laid semi-dry. If you do divide the tins be very accurate with the amounts as it is pretty crucial to the mix, I used to buy cheap measuring jugs in bulk and the pound shop used to give me strange looks😒

[DIY-Si]

So the second coat has been done and I have to say that I am rather pleased with how it looks. As I knew I would have loads left over, and nothing else to do with the remaining paint, I decided to put down a thicker coat as well as paint further up the walls. I could've split the mix down, as Snags suggested, but I'd have no use for the paint in the near future so it would probably end up wasted. I reckon I had maybe a large mug full left over, vs the 1/4-1/3 of a tin that I had with the first coat. Now the paint is dry, the floor should be good and waterproof so any spills won't soak in anywhere and should be easy to wipe up or just mop out the door.

 

I did leave a little heater running for a while, as the drying times are all stated at an air temp of 20C and it is not that warm right now! Equally, that one little heater is enough to make the garage warm enough to work in a t-shirt so all the work that went into the roof and the insulation is paying off already.

 

 

 

Essentially, that is the floor done! The existing floor wasn't the worst by a very long way, but as I hate kneeling on loose bits and divots in a floor I felt the effort was worth it. Certainly I feel that the transformation from before to now has been a most positive change. The floor has only been one part of the change, with the new roof, lighting and electrics all making it a nicer and more convenient to be. Having a double socket every 4' may seem overkill, but it will save having cables trailing everywhere which is another pet hate of mine!

 

I do have a new door seal strip to fit at some point today but that's a final finishing touch. I hope that this thread has shown others one way of doing things and that a decent level of finish can be achieved with only a few basic tools and the right products. There are no doubt cheaper ways of doing the work I have, but I wanted a finish that I can expect to last for many years.

[jjmilot]

Hi @DIY-Si. I'm new here. My name is James. And I want to say that you made a very cool garage. I look and admire.

I also have a garage, I have a workbench there, several shelving units, but its main use is just to park a car there because, over the past year, I have never done anything in the workshop. The other day my son and I decided to reorganize the garage into a play area so that one could gather there, play table tennis, but also work in a workshop on occasion.

And I have a few questions.

1. What is the best way to fill the floor?
I read that it is possible to make a screed with concrete, but I prefer the option to fill the floor with epoxy resin. But this option turns out to be much more expensive.

Tell me please how durable the epoxy floor is and is it worth making an epoxy screed?

2. I would like to use as much space in the garage as possible and I thought to make part of the shelving suspended. Lay on it a light tool, bolts and etc., and then lift it up to the ceiling. Has anyone done this? How convenient is it?

3. And the last question, but it is also important. Do you know which tennis table is best? The price/quality ratio is important. I don't want to give 1000 bucks for a ping pong table.

 

Thanks

[TAFKARM]

37 minutes ago, jjmilot said:

Hi @DIY-Si. I'm new here. My name is James. And I want to say that you made a very cool garage. I look and admire.

I also have a garage, I have a workbench there, several shelving units, but its main use is just to park a car there because, over the past year, I have never done anything in the workshop. The other day my son and I decided to reorganize the garage into a play area so that one could gather there, play table tennis, but also work in a workshop on occasion.

And I have a few questions.

1. What is the best way to fill the floor?
I read that it is possible to make a screed with concrete, but I prefer the option to fill the floor with epoxy resin. But this option turns out to be much more expensive.

Tell me please how durable the epoxy floor is and is it worth making an epoxy screed?

2. I would like to use as much space in the garage as possible and I thought to make part of the shelving suspended. Lay on it a light tool, bolts and etc., and then lift it up to the ceiling. Has anyone done this? How convenient is it?

3. And the last question, but it is also important. Do you know which tennis table is best? The price/quality ratio is important. I don't want to give 1000 bucks for a ping pong table.

 

Thanks

3. Stiga blue performance indoor tennis table, widely regarded as the industry leader. 

 

[Jim RS]

55 minutes ago, jjmilot said:

1. What is the best way to fill the floor?

Best materials to repair concrete are cement based repair mortars. I used a dry bagged product from Dichem in Bracknell which set hard in a very short time and could take road traffic after a couple of hours. I have repaired roads, sewage works and countless concrete structures with this stuff and never had a failure, additionally the only preparation is to clean out the area (scabble or grind) to expose and prime with fresh tap water. Also as just mixed with water to use you can choose just the right amount and not have set quantities to activate.

Initially used epoxy materials but because they are flexible they act differently to concrete and I had many failures, usually having to replace with Dichem stuff.

Epoxy is great for finish works and where flexible coatings are required but can be problematic in structural cases, concrete continues getting stronger throughout it's life whereas epoxy material reach a peak and start degrading(all very slowly).

55 minutes ago, jjmilot said:

shelving suspended

Silverline do a woodrack system that is attached to the wall and has adjustable arms that are compact and able to carry heavy loads, I have used these in my cave very successfully and made the shelves out of s/hand ply with edge battening for strength, I have batteries, tools, etc. so can testify their strength. Triton Woodrack Srorage System is the product and if you are close to me at Thatcham, Berkshire I have a direct account if you'd like to save money.

Edited August 22, 2021 by Jim RS
spelling error