4 Ways to Protect Your Garage Floors

4 Ways to Protect Your Garage Floors

 

How can you protect your garage floors?

  1. Have it applied with an epoxy coating
  2. Clean spills and leaks
  3. Get rid of paint stains
  4. Repair all cracks

 

Knowing how to protect your garage floors is important if you want to maximize the use of this part of your home. Though the garage is where you may primarily park all your vehicles, it’s also used for other activities. You may not have noticed it in the beginning, but sometimes the floors can get damaged. Especially after years of prolonged use. The cost of repairing and reworking your entire garage might be too expensive, so it’s best to undertake preventive maintenance. Here’s how.

 

Have It Applied With An Epoxy Coating

Concrete Garage Floors With An Epoxy Coating

If you have bare cement floors in your garage, then you may want to consider having it professionally-coated with epoxy resin. You may have been too comfortable with just having bare concrete in the past, but you should know that using this material alone can speed up the wear and tear of the floors.

Flooring Solutions’ team of professionals can easily provide you with the highest-grade epoxy coating in the market. Once installed with epoxy, your floors will become durable and impact-resistant like never before. It also helps keep your floors moist and stain-resistant with its smooth surface finish, allowing you to store equipment and do almost anything without experiencing problems.

 

Clean Spills and Leaks

Car oil spills on concrete garage floors

On bare concrete floors, spills and leaks from vehicle fluids may occasionally leave unappealing marks. These tough stains may be difficult to clean up if not done properly, so you need to make sure that you have all the tools at hand to prevent this from happening.

You could use sawdust and paint thinner solutions to clean up the stain. You’ll need to mix a clump of sawdust with a significant amount of paint thinner — just enough to cover the entire mark on the floor. Spread it on the target area and then let it sit for around 20 minutes or so. Repeat until the mark has faded. For stubborn stains, you may need to follow up on the process by applying a mild bleach or detergent solution.

 

Get Rid of Paint Stains

Paint Stains on a Concrete Floor

Paint stains might be more difficult to clean up compared to other spills on the garage floors. You’ll need the following materials: laundry detergent, a brush, a hose with a jetstream nozzle, and a paint stripper. Here’s how to do deep cleaning:

  1. Sweep the floors, making sure that no dust, dirt, or debris gets left out in the process. Then, you’ll want to wash it down with a warm detergent solution — use 1 part detergent and three parts water.
  2. Pour the solution onto the floors then simultaneously scrub using any sturdy brush you have on hand. Leave it sitting for 10-20 minutes.
  3. Rinse off all the soap with the hose, and repeat if necessary. Wait for it to dry before doing the next step.

Next, you’ll want to put paint stripper on the target area, making sure that you get all the bases covered. Allow it to set for some time before brushing it off, then wash the substance away with the hose.

 

Repair All Cracks

Cracks in Concrete Garage Floors

When there is a constant change in the temperature of your garage, cracks may eventually start showing on your bare concrete floors. Don’t worry because you can still do something about it. You don’t need to overhaul your entire floor space just to repair these cracks.

The best type of concrete fillers is polyurethane or epoxy-based compounds. Your local hardware store will have these materials available. Apply them on the cracks and then leave them to dry before evening the application using sandpaper.

 

Key Takeaway

Wondering how to protect your garage floors? This guide simplifies it for you. You should know that different stains require different cleaning agents. For typical spills like grease and other liquids, a sawdust-paint thinner solution can do the trick. More stubborn stains like paint markings, on the other hand, would require you to undergo deep cleaning before applying a paint stripper.

However, it shouldn’t be a surprise that the best way to clean your floors and avoid future damage is by hiring a professional to apply your choice of polyurethane or epoxy coating. Luckily, Flooring Solutions is here to help you out. Click here to contact us and learn more.