Don’t listen to all that negativity, Mike I’ve watched you for quite a while now you’re top-notch. I’ve never experienced any negativity coming from you. It’s all positive and helping people. Retired in Wisconsin
My wife and I did my brand new 22X40 shop. Looks great. We went with Exterior Coatings. As a home owner and DIY person we figured out how to do it correctly. There is a ton of info out there. You make it sound like all home owners are POS’s. There is a reason that I do all my own projects. Contractors are to expensive and you never know what you will get. I was a millwright for 12 years. I am a journeyman machinist. I have worked in maintenance and fabrication all my working life. I consider my work better than most contractors. Don’t get me wrong your works is top notch. It’s just that I have had two shitty contractors do some work and I regret it.
Brother, coming from local 102, we aren’t a normal home owners. I rent but, the owner usually asks me if I’d like to tackle the project on my own because he knows I’ll give maximum shits and enjoy doing the work.
I also found this video very condescending to homeowners. It's not necessarily the homeowners' faults that the information they get is almost all marketing. Why would an average person have any idea what 50% solids or 90% solids even means? For those who don't know better, the stuff at Home Depot or Lowe's is just what you buy. Then the instructions and data sheets intentionally oversell the product and make it seems like a piece of cake. What reason would an average homeowner have to NOT trust the instructions on a "trusted," well-known brand like Rustoleum? In the end I think all of it comes down to greed. The big box store versions like Rustoleum intentionally market these things as easy just to get people to buy it, knowing that if it fails, or comes out too thin, they'll just buy more and do it again. Why else would they say that a kit of less than 2 gallons could do 450-500 square feet? It's dishonest and they know it. Then the reason people turn to them in the first place is it seems that every contractor out there is trying to get rich now. Very very few contractors are doing quality, honest work at an honest price anymore. It's all about extracting maximum profit from every interaction. The result is guys with a huge boat house spending $10k on an epoxy floor while the "DIY class" is talked down to in videos like this and left to do things on their own with sub-par products. Heck I'd be willing to bet that most folks who can afford to pay contractors to do it have NO IDEA the contractors use a better product until the contractor tells them it's better in their OWN marketing pitch.
You’re right. What arrogance! Do you think maybe he has an agenda and a bias? He’s saying, “Don’t do it yourself… since you can’t do it right. You have to hire a professional (like me).” For many of us, we can’t afford to hire pros and use top quality artisans. It’s a choice between doing it ourselves with economical products, or not doing it at all!!!
100% agree I like my work better then all the “contractors” I’ve hired. My grandpa and other old timers are really great at what they do but most people now days are just punch out crews tryna get in and out for a check. The shower we just had replaced bc of a leak was leaking again after replacing 😂😂😂 I was pissed I had to tell them how to lay tile how to hang doors and come back for the leaking shower. NEVER AGAIN! All bc my wife wanted to go with the “professionals” so it got done faster and I said fine but I’ll be here not wanting to say I told you so but still having to say it. 🤦♂️
Great job,I used to do alot of epoxy floors in the central coast i like the way you do the stem wall before hand ,thanks for the videos ,I'm thinking about getting back into it again.
I feel like floor will fail when professionals install it. Very hard to find someone who takes pride in what they do. All those reasons are basics. I installed 2 and now working on 3rd 100% solids with excellent results. Yes need helper, but I feel like I am getting better quality
Nice work Mike and your reasoning as to why this will probably fail for most who attempt it with no prior experience is totally logical to me. Of all the bad that's on the internet, it's so good to see folks like you share your knowledge. Like some others eluded to, I venture to guess most folks on here want a durable quality floor, which they know is highly unlikely in those big box diy kits. I will be subscribing to your course. thanks again
Just like any other coating or painting 75 to 90% prep, then application. Happy customer of a pro company in SC. 2400 ft2 garage. They spent most of the time grinding the new garage floor. And flake spread to rejection.
I have tried to do my old 12 x 24 garage floor, I used the concreate etching cleaner and pressure washed and waited two days to dry then painted with home depot epoxy floor paint and it would peel up every 3 months and painted 3 more times and finally gave up.
I have a moisture meter i use on surfaces like concrete or wood when I paint those surfaces. My brother in law had a contractor coat his garage floor down south (no snow or salt) and it failed twice already because they used the HD stuff. I told him I would come down and do it like you taught us on your videos but he's not interested.
Depending on the situation, it's just quicker (also depends on the size of blaster and grinder), grinders are easier to transport, and you don't need to pick up tiny beads everywhere. Also grinding will flatten out concrete crowns/imperfections, and can remove painted surfaces (which blasting will not). A pro to blasting is it's a slightly better prep, but damn you can leave some big wholes in the concrete if you're not experienced
Hi Mike, if I could hire your team to do my garage I would have, but we're on opposite sides of the world. It's hard to find good trustworthy tradesmen here but your videos have been a great source of guidance for my second option - DIY. I'm prepping my 2 car garage, which is on concrete at least 30 maybe 50 years old. Almost certainly no vapour barrier. I'm almost finished grinding it all back with a 7 inch grinder (hard work). The floor consists of two slabs of concrete side by side laid at different times, one is extremely hard grey concrete with a fine black aggregate and the other is soft and more yellow. As I grind it back I can see there are several coatings. Glue residue on top, paving paint under and then possibly some kind of sealer. So good thing I am grinding, there's no way acid would have solved this for me. I've sourced a 2 part water barrier which will go down first, and it's good for 60 PSI. I've also sourced a quality 100% solids epoxy.
I own an Epoxy Flooring and Concrete Polishing company in the northeast. This comment is not aimed at Mike… Most years we get lots of rain and snow (and the snow melts and runs by everyone’s slab). I don’t even test for moisture anymore. I just assume it’s there. In wetter climates, I recommend using a moisture vapor barrier that you can throw flakes into. After proper prep, it’s a three step process. Apply Moisture Vapor Barrier and throw flakes into it until rejection. Let cure. Apply a poly top coat (of course after scraping) The ones I use are 100% solids and go on thick - maybe too thick. There are several that I have used that can be thinned out with chemicals like Xylene to get better coverage rates - with no ill effects on the final cured floor. The percentage of allowable thinner use is located in the Technical Data. Also Mike - big fan. Can you do a close up video of how to make the stem wall transition look good with actually using coping? And if you don’t use coping is it more or less waterproof?
Just got my floor done professionally. Polyaspartic top coats had bubbles. Contractor just told me they scrape the bubbles. No issues. I feel like that cant possibly be true.
Hey Mike, as far as metallic floors go, instead of using a vapor barrier primer and then a base coat of epoxy, could you use a single layer of polyaspartic to act as both the vapor barrier primer and base layer then lay down the metallic layer followed with the same polyapsartic for the top coat? Or would you recommend a primer, epoxy base layer, metallics layer, and top coat?
You can get a tinted moisture vapor barrier epoxy primer that will work as the primer and base coat, then metallic, then polyaspartic. I've done it several times. People love to skip the barriers around here!!
GRACIAS BRO and God bless you and YOUR family and HARD WORKIG CREW . i personal apreciate this detail information i kinda already new the whole process to do this but thank to you and comfirm i was right on the stemps to do the job right GRACIAS brother
Profile the concrete by grinding or a light etching solution, power wash it real good, let it dry . roll out two-part solvent-based epoxy moisture barrier, let dry , roll out colored 2 part water based epoxy broadcast the flakes (there’s an art to this ) knock down the excess after it dries with a good floor scraper . Come back the next day & roll out a 2 part polyaspartic or polyurethane clear topcoat & done ✅ Pro tip : don’t waste your 2 part polyurethane sealer on the sidewalls ,you can use a single component acrylic wetlook on these . Only use the Poly on the part that is driven on.
Great video. Thanks. I have a brand new 1400 square foot garage that I want to epoxy with chips. It's a smooth trowel finish. Do I need to etch it? It's 4 weeks since the pour. Thanks.
Typically only happens on the first coat to raw concrete. The next day you'll need to sand the hell out of it, and patch the wholes in. A way to get around it, is throw sand or flakes into the material and it will pop those bubbles.
Exposed aggregate is not a smooth finish, it's very rough - terrible for a garage. Are you meaning a polished concrete finish? (grinding off the surface to expose the aggregate stones but dead-smooth). That'd be an option but you'd still need to coat it. Epoxy is the coating not the flake finish - it seals and makes the floor durable and impervious to oils and staining. Clear epoxy over polished concrete is beautiful but you wouldn't get the raised baseboard edge look and protection of this floor.
Great video! I'm in Florida and just started a concrete coatings company and would like to know if Deco Crete is good to use for a Vapor barrier base?. After watching most of your recent videos, you flake into an epoxy or poly base with poly topcoat. We are looking to do these in 1 day being able to flake right into the base coat but having some Vapor Barrier built in it, which seems like epoxy is the way to go? Any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks : )
Those DIY kits are junk. People soak the heck out of everything with acid then water. No grinding at all. The first hot day and the paint transfers to their tires. Should be lawsuits about that stuff.
Customer, not in the business. He may be pushing his info, but it is truth. The homeowner kits are expensive garbage, but the advertising dollars say otherwise. Just like those leaf guards that cost more than gutters, or an annual cleaning by a handyman.
Don’t listen to all that negativity, Mike I’ve watched you for quite a while now you’re top-notch. I’ve never experienced any negativity coming from you. It’s all positive and helping people. Retired in Wisconsin
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Don’t listen to all that negativity, Mike I’ve watched you for quite a while now you’re top-notch. I’ve never experienced any negativity coming from you. It’s all positive and helping people.
Retired in Wisconsin
My wife and I did my brand new 22X40 shop. Looks great. We went with Exterior Coatings. As a home owner and DIY person we figured out how to do it correctly. There is a ton of info out there. You make it sound like all home owners are POS’s. There is a reason that I do all my own projects. Contractors are to expensive and you never know what you will get. I was a millwright for 12 years. I am a journeyman machinist. I have worked in maintenance and fabrication all my working life. I consider my work better than most contractors. Don’t get me wrong your works is top notch. It’s just that I have had two shitty contractors do some work and I regret it.
Brother, coming from local 102, we aren’t a normal home owners. I rent but, the owner usually asks me if I’d like to tackle the project on my own because he knows I’ll give maximum shits and enjoy doing the work.
I also found this video very condescending to homeowners. It's not necessarily the homeowners' faults that the information they get is almost all marketing. Why would an average person have any idea what 50% solids or 90% solids even means? For those who don't know better, the stuff at Home Depot or Lowe's is just what you buy. Then the instructions and data sheets intentionally oversell the product and make it seems like a piece of cake. What reason would an average homeowner have to NOT trust the instructions on a "trusted," well-known brand like Rustoleum?
In the end I think all of it comes down to greed. The big box store versions like Rustoleum intentionally market these things as easy just to get people to buy it, knowing that if it fails, or comes out too thin, they'll just buy more and do it again. Why else would they say that a kit of less than 2 gallons could do 450-500 square feet? It's dishonest and they know it.
Then the reason people turn to them in the first place is it seems that every contractor out there is trying to get rich now. Very very few contractors are doing quality, honest work at an honest price anymore. It's all about extracting maximum profit from every interaction. The result is guys with a huge boat house spending $10k on an epoxy floor while the "DIY class" is talked down to in videos like this and left to do things on their own with sub-par products. Heck I'd be willing to bet that most folks who can afford to pay contractors to do it have NO IDEA the contractors use a better product until the contractor tells them it's better in their OWN marketing pitch.
You’re right. What arrogance! Do you think maybe he has an agenda and a bias? He’s saying, “Don’t do it yourself… since you can’t do it right. You have to hire a professional (like me).” For many of us, we can’t afford to hire pros and use top quality artisans. It’s a choice between doing it ourselves with economical products, or not doing it at all!!!
100% agree I like my work better then all the “contractors” I’ve hired. My grandpa and other old timers are really great at what they do but most people now days are just punch out crews tryna get in and out for a check. The shower we just had replaced bc of a leak was leaking again after replacing 😂😂😂 I was pissed I had to tell them how to lay tile how to hang doors and come back for the leaking shower. NEVER AGAIN! All bc my wife wanted to go with the “professionals” so it got done faster and I said fine but I’ll be here not wanting to say I told you so but still having to say it. 🤦♂️
@@aaronmcleland4772Honest non greedy contractors should charge between $3-$4/ sq ft for a 24 ‘ by 24’ garage,575 sq ft.= $1700 to $2100.
Great job,I used to do alot of epoxy floors in the central coast i like the way you do the stem wall before hand ,thanks for the videos ,I'm thinking about getting back into it again.
Cool, thanks!
What is the stem wall? Is that the trim you run or the epoxy coat you run up almost as a Basebord?
Just bought my first home, this is gonna be my first project. Appreciate your videos
Spot on. Seems easy but like most things - it’s not if you want to do it right.
I feel like floor will fail when professionals install it. Very hard to find someone who takes pride in what they do. All those reasons are basics. I installed 2 and now working on 3rd 100% solids with excellent results. Yes need helper, but I feel like I am getting better quality
Nice work Mike and your reasoning as to why this will probably fail for most who attempt it with no prior experience is totally logical to me. Of all the bad that's on the internet, it's so good to see folks like you share your knowledge. Like some others eluded to, I venture to guess most folks on here want a durable quality floor, which they know is highly unlikely in those big box diy kits. I will be subscribing to your course.
thanks again
Just like any other coating or painting 75 to 90% prep, then application. Happy customer of a pro company in SC. 2400 ft2 garage. They spent most of the time grinding the new garage floor. And flake spread to rejection.
What did you spend per square foot.
I have tried to do my old 12 x 24 garage floor, I used the concreate etching cleaner and pressure washed and waited two days to dry then painted with home depot epoxy floor paint and it would peel up every 3 months and painted 3 more times and finally gave up.
That's exactly why I made the video. You did the prep wring and used subpar products
I have a moisture meter i use on surfaces like concrete or wood when I paint those surfaces. My brother in law had a contractor coat his garage floor down south (no snow or salt) and it failed twice already because they used the HD stuff.
I told him I would come down and do it like you taught us on your videos but he's not interested.
That's one helluva garage. Nice work 👏🏾
Appreciate it
So honest question, why do folk usually grind the floor rather than shotblast it? Thanks great video
Depending on the situation, it's just quicker (also depends on the size of blaster and grinder), grinders are easier to transport, and you don't need to pick up tiny beads everywhere. Also grinding will flatten out concrete crowns/imperfections, and can remove painted surfaces (which blasting will not). A pro to blasting is it's a slightly better prep, but damn you can leave some big wholes in the concrete if you're not experienced
Hi Mike, if I could hire your team to do my garage I would have, but we're on opposite sides of the world. It's hard to find good trustworthy tradesmen here but your videos have been a great source of guidance for my second option - DIY. I'm prepping my 2 car garage, which is on concrete at least 30 maybe 50 years old. Almost certainly no vapour barrier. I'm almost finished grinding it all back with a 7 inch grinder (hard work). The floor consists of two slabs of concrete side by side laid at different times, one is extremely hard grey concrete with a fine black aggregate and the other is soft and more yellow.
As I grind it back I can see there are several coatings. Glue residue on top, paving paint under and then possibly some kind of sealer. So good thing I am grinding, there's no way acid would have solved this for me. I've sourced a 2 part water barrier which will go down first, and it's good for 60 PSI. I've also sourced a quality 100% solids epoxy.
I own an Epoxy Flooring and Concrete Polishing company in the northeast.
This comment is not aimed at Mike…
Most years we get lots of rain and snow (and the snow melts and runs by everyone’s slab).
I don’t even test for moisture anymore. I just assume it’s there.
In wetter climates, I recommend using a moisture vapor barrier that you can throw flakes into. After proper prep, it’s a three step process.
Apply Moisture Vapor Barrier and throw flakes into it until rejection. Let cure. Apply a poly top coat (of course after scraping)
The ones I use are 100% solids and go on thick - maybe too thick. There are several that I have used that can be thinned out with chemicals like Xylene to get better coverage rates - with no ill effects on the final cured floor.
The percentage of allowable thinner use is located in the Technical Data.
Also Mike - big fan.
Can you do a close up video of how to make the stem wall transition look good with actually using coping? And if you don’t use coping is it more or less waterproof?
Just got my floor done professionally. Polyaspartic top coats had bubbles. Contractor just told me they scrape the bubbles. No issues. I feel like that cant possibly be true.
Hey Mike, as far as metallic floors go, instead of using a vapor barrier primer and then a base coat of epoxy, could you use a single layer of polyaspartic to act as both the vapor barrier primer and base layer then lay down the metallic layer followed with the same polyapsartic for the top coat? Or would you recommend a primer, epoxy base layer, metallics layer, and top coat?
You can get a tinted moisture vapor barrier epoxy primer that will work as the primer and base coat, then metallic, then polyaspartic. I've done it several times. People love to skip the barriers around here!!
GRACIAS BRO and God bless you and YOUR family and HARD WORKIG CREW . i personal apreciate this detail information i kinda already new the whole process to do this but thank to you and comfirm i was right on the stemps to do the job right GRACIAS brother
Profile the concrete by grinding or a light etching solution, power wash it real good, let it dry .
roll out two-part solvent-based epoxy moisture barrier, let dry , roll out colored 2 part water based epoxy broadcast the flakes (there’s an art to this ) knock down the excess after it dries with a good floor scraper . Come back the next day & roll out a 2 part polyaspartic or polyurethane clear topcoat & done ✅
Pro tip : don’t waste your 2 part polyurethane sealer on the sidewalls ,you can use a single component acrylic wetlook on these . Only use the Poly on the part that is driven on.
Great video. Thanks for sharing your knowledge, Mike.
Thanks for a great video and educational advice. What is a rough estimate per foot for jobs similar to this? To have professionally installed.
Great video. Thanks. I have a brand new 1400 square foot garage that I want to epoxy with chips. It's a smooth trowel finish. Do I need to etch it? It's 4 weeks since the pour. Thanks.
Can you resolve the moister issue you talked about?
Great video, Mike you are a great teacher. Love your enthusiasm. Nothing is easy! Have a great week!
Thanks so much!
Can i recast flake is i have a shy spot before top coat?
Well Done Mike and team .LOOkS fantastic
Also, what concrete was used. the highway concrete is the worst and cheapest, like the next impossible to fix once it starts going bad.
Thanks for your help!
It would’ve been great to give a brand name of the good stuff u use
How much would a job like this cost?
Professional job and beautiful l like!
do you run into off gasing often, and how do you deal with it?
Typically only happens on the first coat to raw concrete. The next day you'll need to sand the hell out of it, and patch the wholes in. A way to get around it, is throw sand or flakes into the material and it will pop those bubbles.
Thank you
Why not just do an exposed aggregate garage floor instead of epoxy?
Why would you want that
Exposed aggregate is not a smooth finish, it's very rough - terrible for a garage. Are you meaning a polished concrete finish? (grinding off the surface to expose the aggregate stones but dead-smooth). That'd be an option but you'd still need to coat it. Epoxy is the coating not the flake finish - it seals and makes the floor durable and impervious to oils and staining. Clear epoxy over polished concrete is beautiful but you wouldn't get the raised baseboard edge look and protection of this floor.
@DiscoFang Yes and makes sense!
think about what your saying before you speak
If you shot blast and use a vb epoxy and build from there you'll be fine!
Great video! I'm in Florida and just started a concrete coatings company and would like to know if Deco Crete is good to use for a Vapor barrier base?. After watching most of your recent videos, you flake into an epoxy or poly base with poly topcoat. We are looking to do these in 1 day being able to flake right into the base coat but having some Vapor Barrier built in it, which seems like epoxy is the way to go? Any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks : )
E2U epoxy has vapor barrier in their epoxy base coat.
You need to apply a vapor barrier first before a base coat if no vapor barrier was installed under concrete.
if you dont want to see me fail then dont let me do it
Cuz they don’t *Grind*…
That garage is twice the size of my house 😳
Straight forward answer is don’t DYI epoxy sub it out….
Those DIY kits are junk. People soak the heck out of everything with acid then water. No grinding at all. The first hot day and the paint transfers to their tires. Should be lawsuits about that stuff.
This chanel is all about advertisement, nothing more. Sory mate.
BS
Customer, not in the business. He may be pushing his info, but it is truth. The homeowner kits are expensive garbage, but the advertising dollars say otherwise. Just like those leaf guards that cost more than gutters, or an annual cleaning by a handyman.
Debbie downer!
Could your guys work any slower?
You kinda sound like I d be taking you to small claims court.
Blah,Blah
Don’t listen to all that negativity, Mike I’ve watched you for quite a while now you’re top-notch. I’ve never experienced any negativity coming from you. It’s all positive and helping people.
Retired in Wisconsin