Wow! Check out this beautiful metallic epoxy/urethane garage floor coating job. I have to give kudos to Tim Seay with Decorative Concrete of VA for creating this awesome video of how they applied an awesome metallic epoxy floor coating. It’s really neat to see the transformation of the gloss to a matte finish urethane top coat! Metallic multi-color epoxy jobs require some expertise to achieve a natural flowing look. In this video they give some great tips explaining the techniques they use to create a beautiful finish.
One tip is regarding the metallic powders used. The powder can create quite a mess as it can easily go airborne like a glitter bomb. They recommend you dump them into the epoxy quickly to minimize disbursement and contain most of the metallics to the bucket.
All good applicators know that proper floor preparation is the key to good adhesion and a quality long lasting garage floor coating. Professionally surface grinding is a must but another great tip is the application of a vapor barrier product prior to applying the epoxy. Moisture lift can be especially problematic with garages lacking proper exterior drainage around them. This potential moisture problem is not something readily visible without testing. I have personally experience hydraulic coating lift of epoxy floor jobs I’ve completed that were lacking a vapor barrier. Let me just say “it is no fun going back, regrinding the floor, and starting fresh after you’ve already completed a job!”
You will spend a lot of time an money coating your floor so it is wise to do the preparation properly. A quality vapor barrier product can help keep your coating from lifting and peeling. For the DIY person it can be difficult to find a high grade commercial epoxy vapor barrier. Luckily, Master Protective Coatings sells a quality epoxy barrier with free shipping on Amazon.
This video by Laggari Products explains in more detail why you may need a vapor barrier and the benefits. Laggari offers a full line of epoxy, stain and polymere products. They may not be the cheapest but they offer some of the finest floor coating supply kits, and backs them up with a lifetime warranty.
I hope you enjoyed this video and these techniques come in handy if you decide to tackle a metallic epoxy floor job. The only question is: Would you leave it glossy or opt for the matte finish?