Recent studies show that about 63% of occupied housing units have a garage or carport. In addition, about 70% of new construction projects are also installing garages and carports.
With garages so prevalent, it’s important to know how to get the most out of your garage flooring. Understanding how to clean a garage floor, for example, can brighten your space and protect your concrete.
If you’re curious about a garage makeover, we’re here to offer our assistance. Read on to learn about some excellent garage makeover ideas for your flooring. We’ll also look into the benefits of some of the top trends.
Benefits of Garage Concrete Sealants
One of the first things you should look into when dealing with a garage floor is concrete sealants. The vast majority of garages have concrete flooring to manage the weight and strain of vehicles.
Sealants go on the top of your concrete and help to protect it, enhancing its natural durability and providing many more benefits. Here are some of the primary benefits of garage concrete sealants.
Easier to Clean
Are you stuck figuring out how to clean a garage floor? Exposed concrete is difficult to keep clean.
When sweeping, you’ll often find that most material gets stuck in the small ridges of concrete. If your concrete is exposed, you may also be dealing with concrete dust. The white dust is ever-present and can make most things in your garage dusty while also providing several health risks.
Concrete sealants give your concrete a much smoother surface. As such, it’s significantly easier to sweep and even mop, removing most debris from the concrete.
Additionally, sealing your concrete will stop concrete dust from forming. Not only will this keep things cleaner, but it will also avoid the health risks of concrete dust.
Gleaming Appearance
Exposed concrete is drab, gray, and dull. While the brutalist look is nice in some respects, it can make your garage feel uninviting. When thinking of garage flooring ideas, sprucing up the appearance should be your first choice.
Concrete sealants will give your concrete a gleaming appearance. Even choosing one with no design or color to it will give your concrete a sheen, drastically improving its aesthetic value.
Furthermore, you also won’t have to worry about oil stains or dirt scuffs. Your sealant will protect your concrete flooring from such hazards.
That said, some garage sealants are vulnerable to chemical damage. Make sure you aren’t leaving chemicals spilled on the surface of the sealant for too long or it may eat through.
Longer Life
Concrete has a natural life of about 50 years if properly cared for. But what hazards will lower its life?
Direct sunlight and excessive dryness can make your concrete brittle and crack. Garages are often subject to direct sunlight, making this a considerable threat.
Water or extreme cold are also threats. The winters or rainy seasons can bring both, damaging your concrete over the years.
The sealant will help to protect your concrete from any and all exterior threats. As a result, your concrete will last significantly longer.
Improved Home Value
Do you have intentions of selling your home in the future? If you own your home, sealing the concrete can provide an enormous benefit to your home value.
When selling your home, factor this benefit into your asking prices. Many clients are happy to have a garage with a protected, attractive floor.
Garage Sealants
Now that we know the benefits of concrete sealing, what are the best options?
There are three major options available, though some others are also viable. Here are the three sealants to consider when looking at garage makeover ideas.
Epoxy
Epoxy is one of the most popular options for garage flooring. Epoxy provides a bright and professional appearance, helping to spruce up your garage.
In addition, they’re resistant to most types of damage. Oil, bleach, cleansers, transmission fluid, gasoline, and most chemicals will not damage epoxy flooring. As such, they’re exceptionally popular in garages and professional mechanic shops.
Another perk is that epoxy lasts longer than many other options. It’s also low in cost, making it an affordable choice.
However, epoxy is far from all perks. One issue is that epoxy will eventually need to be replaced. It doesn’t bond with concrete, existing as a secondary layer that will fade out before the concrete needs replacing.
Epoxy also chips easily, especially if heavy things are dropped on the floor. In a garage, it’s exceptionally common to drop a tool or car part, chipping the epoxy.
Some also have safety concerns about epoxy. The surface is glossy and resistant to water but can create a severe slipping hazard. Falling on concrete can cause serious injuries, often leading people to put non-slip mats over their epoxy flooring.
Overall, epoxy is a good choice, but far from the best.
Polyurea
Polyurea is a popular alternative to epoxy that offers a variety of benefits over its competition. Like epoxy, it’s extremely durable and flexible. It’s significantly more durable than epoxy, as it is resistant to the drops and cracks that can damage epoxy.
Polyurea is also flexible and forms a long-lasting chemical bond with concrete. Since it bonds with concrete, it can last much longer before being replaced.
Finally, polyurea can also be installed very quickly. Epoxy takes a while to set, while polyurea is done almost instantly.
Polyaspartic
Polyaspartic is a type of polyurea that seeks to fix some of the flaws that polyurea has. One of the greatest benefits is that it’s more affordable than polyurea. Polyurea is drastically more expensive than epoxy, while polyaspartic provides a great middle ground.
Polyaspartic also has a lengthier curing rate that allows it to bond to the concrete better than polyurea. It shares polyurea’s durability and is resistant to scratches and impacts.
Two further benefits are that polyaspartic won’t cause fumes to linger as both epoxy and polyurea can. It’s also consistently UV stable, making it virtually immune to sunlight.
Overall, polyurea and polyaspartic are much better options than epoxy. Our poly coatings are significantly stronger, apply faster, and will give you the garage floor of your dreams.
Other Improvements
What improvements can you make to your garage floor without simply coating your flooring? There are still many changes you can make that will shift your flooring.
Here are some ways to follow flooring trends once you’ve finished sealing your concrete.
Hobby Space
One of the best ways to improve your garage is to shift it into a hobby space. Many homes use their garages as bland carports or cluttered storage areas.
Consider different activities you can shift your garage into. One great way is to turn it into a woodworking or crafting station.
If you’re still keeping vehicles in your garage, make sure you aren’t putting in anything that can potentially damage your car. Also, make sure you keep any harmful chemicals away from floor coatings that are susceptible to chemical damage.
Avoid the Dreary
Is your garage floor still a dreary, gray surface that seems to sap the light out of your garage? You have plenty of options to improve the aesthetic.
One way is to opt for garage floor coatings that offer designs. Some polyurea coatings have paint chips or other flecks of color in them that will leave your ground gleaming.
Others may have a tint of color to them. You can also paint your garage floor the color of your choosing.
Most polyurea and polyaspartic coatings are paintable. Acrylic latex house paint works the best over polyurea.
It’s important to paint the surface after sealing. Painting the concrete before you seal it can cause poly paintings to fail to bond.
Additionally, polyurea will dry clearly and transparently. That means whatever color the concrete is will remain for as long as the coating does. You’d need to remove and redo the coating just to remove the paint in that case.
Cars or No Cars?
Carports have little purpose beyond keeping a car and as such, rarely have enough space for more. But a garage tends to be roomier and offers more area for you to act on your garage makeover ideas.
An important thing to decide is whether you want cars in your garage at all. You can make considerably more room by parking your vehicles outside of your garage instead.
In some designs, this is not desirable, and you may want your car to receive the protection of being in a garage. But if you’re comfortable leaving your car outside of your garage, you’ll have more room to act on your new ideas.
Mastering Your Garage Makeover
If you’re wondering how to clean a garage floor, making a polyurea or polyaspartic coating part of your garage makeover is the best way to do so. Coatings will bring new life, better stability, and brighter aesthetics to your garage flooring. From there, you can customize your garage to whatever trend you desire.
Curious about how to get started on your garage makeover? Find the closest Garage Force to see how we can help you on your journey.