ᐅ Garage Floor Covering on Concrete: Tiles? Resin? Self-Leveling Compound?

Hello,

my 54m² (580 sq ft) garage has a concrete floor, and I would like to smooth and seal it to prevent melting water from damaging the concrete over the years during winter. I have attached two pictures showing the current condition. There is a 2cm (0.8 inch) gap up to the wall panels. There is no slope.

For the floor, I have the following requirements:
- long durability (withstands loads such as rolling jack stands, motorcycle stands, oil, gasoline)
- waterproof
- suitable for DIY installation
- low cost
- preferably minimal work during installation
- preferably fast drying or installation time

What are the available options?

Thank you!
Marius

Search for water glass here in the forum, there are already some threads about it…

I have come up with the following plan:
1. Cleaning and vacuuming
2. Priming with deep primer (toom.de/p/tiefengrund-transparent-10-l/8211813)
3. Applying self-leveling compound (toom.de/p/bodenausgleichsmasse-20-kg/2350352)
4. Applying epoxy floor coating

Does this sound correct?

Hello Markus,
I fully agree with you on points 1-3.
However, when working with epoxy resins, basic knowledge and the appropriate tools (including a basket mixer and spiked roller) are necessary.
From a cost perspective, this is not the cheapest solution, but it is definitely the best.
That said, with epoxy resins, the yellowing effect (purely visual, but usually unwanted) should be taken into account.
After completing the preliminary steps according to points 1-3, I would choose a concrete paint.
It may sound “cheap,” but from a technical standpoint, it is not!
Apply two coats with intermediate drying, use clean footwear, and apply the second coat within 24 hours.
This would be a good alternative to the epoxy coating.
Currently, the resin costs around 120€ per small container, and it is questionable whether a large portion would remain unused and need to be disposed of.
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Best of luck: KlaRa

Sealing is a good idea, but it needs to be done correctly. I was lucky that our neighbor is a professional painter specializing in underground garage coatings, so he prevented me from making many poor decisions and coated our garage.

Yes, sealing is useful to keep water out. However, too smooth is also a problem because it becomes very slippery in winter! One of his clients had their garage sealed with a smooth finish, then drove their SUV in during winter and immediately slid out through the back wall. So, the coating must be rough enough but still easy to clean. Also, the coating should stay on the floor and not stick to the tires if the car is parked for a longer time – unfortunately, this is a common issue.

First, the concrete must be completely dry. If the garage is newly built, this is often not the case. To be safe, lay down plastic wrap and check for any condensation. You can’t use certain products here due to restrictions, so look for “Sto traffic area coating,” which I used in the garage, mixed with glass beads for slip resistance. Summer, winter, a vintage car parked for a long time, occasional tire spin, saltwater, oil stains, mopping – everything works perfectly.

In public underground garages, different types of grit are used, but that’s like sandpaper and not suitable for private use.

Could you please specify which exact product you used? There are quite a lot of products from Sto for traffic areas…