ᐅ Screed in the garage floor, or is there a better option?

Hello,

I would need some advice on what kind of flooring you would recommend for a garage.

According to the plan, the garage floor structure should be 20cm (8 inches), but 10cm (4 inches) would be enough for me to better fit the height of my car.

Now the question is, would it be possible to install underfloor heating with a 10cm (4 inches) floor structure (with screed, or is there a better option)?

Heating is not essential as I could solve it with radiators as well.

Or is there something completely different recommended for a garage? As a mechanic, there will be some oil stains, so some kind of protective floor covering is necessary anyway.

The garage has 55 m² (592 sq ft).

I would be very grateful for your opinions.

Best regards

Hello,

if you want to install a screed, you need to use a bonded screed and apply it according to regulations (roughening the base slab, priming, etc.). Otherwise, with the daily direct load from your car, there is a risk of the screed separating from the concrete slab. 10cm (4 inches) is already a considerable thickness.

If you can still make changes, I would recommend making the base slab 10cm (4 inches) thicker right from the start. Structurally, this is usually not a problem, as it can be considered a non-structural topping. You can then have this concrete roughened or smoothed. If you are going to apply a surface covering anyway, roughening should be sufficient. If you choose to smooth it, you might also be able to apply a coating that prevents oil or other contaminants from penetrating.

Best regards,
Jann

Oh, by the way, personally, I would avoid using heating because of the resulting stresses if the screed is not installed as a floating screed.
And a floating screed is also not recommended for your load.

I would also skip the heating. A garage is (almost) always frost-free.

For screwing work, an infrared heater is usually sufficient.

There are many options for floor coverings depending on taste and budget (epoxy, tiles, asphalt, etc.).

Since you also mentioned oil and similar substances, I would suggest an industrial epoxy floor. Coordinate the required construction layers with the contractor. Most likely, you can make the slab thicker and apply the floor covering directly on it.

rick2018 schrieb:

I would also skip heating. The garage is (almost) always frost-free.
For screwing work, for example, an infrared heater is sufficient.
There are many options for the floor covering depending on taste and budget (epoxy, tile, asphalt…).
Since you also mentioned oil and such, I would suggest an industrial epoxy floor. Coordinate the required buildup with the contractor. You will probably be able to make the slab thicker and then apply the floor covering directly on it.

Very good! That’s exactly how we did it; I can really recommend it. Usually, you won’t need screed in that case. The industrial floor isn’t cheap but is very durable and extremely easy to maintain.

Thanks in advance for your great responses.

Unfortunately, the garage is already built. I overlooked this in the plans or didn’t consider that pouring a 20cm (8 inches) screed in the garage wouldn’t make sense.

Jann St schrieb:

Hello,

if you want to install a screed, you need to use a bonded screed and apply it correctly (roughening the concrete slab, priming, etc.) because otherwise, with the daily direct load from your car, the screed could separate from the concrete base. 10cm (4 inches) is already a significant thickness.

So is that probably the best solution?

Likely cheaper than filling it up again with 10cm (4 inches) of concrete.