Epoxy Floors Can Bring New Life to Your Garage or Basement in Rockford, MI

Improving your garage or basement can extend your usable living space, increase the value of your home, and reduce maintenance needs for these parts of the home. Epoxy basement and garage floors offer a great option for finishing these areas while still retaining durability and
weather resistance. If you’re looking for concrete restoration and epoxy floor installation in the Greater Grand Rapids area, look no further than ReNew Hard Surface Restoration.

How Epoxy Floors Are Installed

Epoxy floors begin with a concrete surface. The concrete is then coated with a solution that hardens as it bonds to the floor; this is what’s called epoxy. These floors are well-known for their exceptional durability, longevity, and water resistance. That’s why they’re so perfect for garages, workshops, basements, sheds, and even outdoor kitchens. No matter where you choose to install epoxy flooring, you can expect a similar process.

• Step 1: Address any cracks and oil issues.
  Older concrete may require repairs for any chips or cracks. Excessive oil may require an additional mitigation step.
• Step 2: Prepare the subfloor.
  Grinding is a process that helps prepare the concrete subfloor for the epoxy surface to take hold. This is done with a floor grinder equipped with diamond tooling. Depending on the desired finish, the surrounding room will also be prepared with plastic sheeting taped along the bottom edges of the walls.
• Step 3: Mix and apply the epoxy.
  Epoxy is a two-part solution with a hardener that activates the resin base. It must be applied within a short window after mixing in order to ensure even curing.
• Step 4: Allow the floors to cure:
  Epoxy surfaces need at least 24 hours of cure time for normal foot traffic.  You may want to avoid vehicle traffic for several days. Areas should be well-ventilated to ensure complete, even drying.

Customize with Decorative Concrete Staining

If you choose to add some personality to your floors with stained concrete, you can make this part of your epoxy floor installation. Concrete staining offers a wide range of color choices with acid- and water-based stains ranging from neutral earth tones to bold shades of orange, red, and green.

Rely on the Pros for Your Concrete Restoration

You may see epoxy basement floor installation or concrete restoration projects pop up frequently on DIY home repair sites. However, your best option is to go with the pros. Epoxy floors can be difficult to work with and require that the installation process be completed in just a couple of hours. Most importantly DIY kits commonly use a chemical etching rather than a complete grinding of the floor, which requires special equipment. This method does not create enough surface for the epoxy to bond to. Incorrectly applied, epoxy floor coatings can bubble, shift, or otherwise cure with noticeable faults.