Question:
I will soon be clearing out a garage to convert it into workshop/shack...
It has a rather dusty concrete floor,so I would like to paint this....
I see that Screwfix sell the "concrete floor paint" and also some sealant
stuff...
is it simple as clearing the garage, sweeping the floor, sealing it with the
sealant and then painting it? Any other stuff I should beware of? anyone got
a rough idea of the area each 2.5 litre can of the paint covers?
Answer:
-I use International Paints' garage floor paint for factory floors. It is
durable (more so than some industrial floor paints) and non-slip. The floor
needs to be free of any grease or oil. We start by scrubbing down with
industrial kitchen degreaser, available from most engineers' suppliers or
commercial cleaning chemical suppliers in 5 litre packs. The floor is then
washed with acid etch primer, again from engineers' suppliers. The floor is
then hosed down a couple of times and left to dry. Any repairs needed (in
second hand factories there can be a lot of bolt holes where machinery was
fixed) are done with epoxy cement filler. One coat of paint, thinned with
10% white spirits primes the floor, which is followed by enough top coats to
get a smooth finish, usually two or three. A 2.5 litre can should be
adequate for a normal sized single garage unless the floor is particularly
porous.
-Yes... its *almost* that simple, treat any oil stains, sweep the floor
but don't seal it with another product, just thin the first coat of your
floor paint with White Spirit to satisfy the porosity of the concrete,
and promotes good adhesion. Usually this is by about 10-15 percent (but
follow the manufacturers instructions on the can). Then apply one full
(unthinned) coat of floor paint.
Cut in the edges with a brush, and use a cheap roller for the rest of
the area (short pile or medium pile - NOT long pile). One of the biggest
problems with floor paint is applying it too thickly, the extra thick
coating skins whilst the paint underneath is still not dry. 2-3 thin
coats, are much better than 1-2 thick ones.
If your floor was power floated or had additives added to the surface,
then you might need to etch or blast the floor - however this is
extremely unlikely in a domestic garage. Either way a super hard and
smooth surface is the tell tale sign of such a floor.
Coverage on standard floor paint is about 10 square meters per litre for
each coat. So a 2.5 L should cover about 25 square meters.
That's about it... other than to recommend the floor paint we sell, we
sell about 100 gallon each week to contractors and factories throughout
the North East... its also a bit cheaper than Screwfix.
