How to Pick Garage Floor Coatings: The Complete Guide for Homeowners

Is it time to repair those chips and cracks in your garage?

Studies show that over 55% of Americans spend 1-2 hours doing hobbies and projects in their garage. The same survey showed that the garage is the preferred storage space compared to attics and basements. Regardless of how you use your garage, there’s a high chance it has seen some damage over the years.

If your garage floor needs repair or if it’s still a slab of concrete, it’s time to pick garage floor coatings that will help it last. A good coating will improve your garage’s functionality and look, but how do you choose the right one? Here are some of the best types of floor coating for your garage.

Consider Performance and Aesthetics

When you pick garage floor coatings, it’s all well and good to go for looks. The whole point is to give your garage that extra level of polish. However, the polish won’t matter if your floor coating starts falling apart within a year or two.

Any investment you make, both cost and time, will be meaningless if it doesn’t hold up. You must prioritize performance as much as looks.

Consider the weight of the average SUV, which usually averages around 4,500 pounds. Can the coating withstand that day in and day out? Pickup trucks can easily exceed 10,000 pounds.

The industry standard for an average garage floor coating is around 20 years of use. Don’t settle for anything less.

The Types of Garage Floor Coatings

In terms of the types of floor coating, there are three big ones worth mentioning here. These are the ones you are most often going to run into.

Epoxy

Epoxy is the most common and most affordable. It’s easy to clean and, if done right, will allow you to make good use of it. As long as you work at maintaining your garage floor, epoxy should last you the full term.

One thing to note is that you should get an epoxy coating meant for driveways or garages. While an epoxy coating meant for regular floors can look nice, it won’t hold up to the wear and tear of vehicles.

Latex

The other significant options are latex and polyurethane. Both of these are solid options but more expensive. This makes them more like specialist picks.

Latex is superb in humid areas or if you expect lots of exposure to moisture. It will resist peeling or damage in those conditions, whereas epoxy might not hold out as long. Latex can be an excellent option for garages that see a lot of use; otherwise, the higher cost is hard to justify.

When applying floor coating, however, latex has a bit of an advantage. You get the full range of color and finish options of the others, but it has more surface variety. It can go on wood and asphalt as well as it would on concrete.

Polyurethane

The final type worth mentioning is polyurethane. A polyurethane garage floor coating is more expensive than most alternatives. The thing is that it lasts far longer.

Polyurethane usually holds up better to damage and discoloration. This option could be better if you need the extra quality and have some cash to spare.

Go by Reputation

Your options for garage floor coating providers will vary based on factors such as location and budget. But, at the end of the day, you’ll likely still have to weed through dozens of worthy contenders.

What you’ll have to do is sort based on reputation. This is a two-part process, but there is considerable overlap.

Make a Shortlist and Cross-reference It

The first thing you might want to do is make a short list of companies and providers that you can get. Start with big brand names you recognize from other products and start researching. Look at online resources like Google and Reddit for honest reviews.

Don’t rely on what the company website says or on their curated ads. Instead, look for any red flags that might apply to your situation or betray that the quality might not be up to snuff.

These red flags can vary, but here are prominent examples. If several people complain that it cracks in winter or breaks down after two years of average use, that’s a bad sign. Look out for reviews about difficulties with the application or price point.

Reviews on public forums are generally quite honest and informative, which brings us to the second step. Look for alternative suggestions from reviewers. Some will be cheaper or better bang for the same buck.

Cross-reference the list of suggestions with your shortlist and be ready to add any new ones that keep popping up. This can be a great way to snag a high-quality and well-respected product without overpaying.

Speed, Convenience, and Home Application vs. the Pros

When weighing up your options, the final thing to consider is whether you can – or should – do it alone. This will depend a lot on which garage coating you get and your skill. Remember that you want a coating that will last, so you have to do it right.

Many options offer quick and convenient applications, but they might not work as well as you’d think. A fast application coating doesn’t matter if the quality is terrible. The same holds for a high-quality coating applied incorrectly.

Doing proper floor coating preparation is crucial. Your garage needs to be clean, and you must follow all the steps to the letter. If something comes up or isn’t working the way you thought, it could spell disaster if you don’t know what to do.

Sometimes it is better to entrust your application to the pros. Of course, you don’t have to, but the decision is worth weighing up. If the costs are high, and your own experience or confidence isn’t, then ask for advice or go with a pro.
If you happen to be handy and know your way around, then, by all means, get the best one you can and get to work.