You might be surprised to learn that about two million slip-and-fall accidents occur each year.
If you’ve ever exited your home into the garage and nearly taken a spill, you know how slippery garage floors can be, especially when wet.
You probably also know how messy a garage floor can get with wear and tear over time. With polyaspartic coating, you can make your floors safer and better looking at the same time.
If you have questions about how polyaspartic coating works, read on to learn more.
What Does Polyaspartic Mean?
Polyaspartic comes from a type of polyurethane. The polyaspartic coating’s considered a plastic, synthetic material.
This substance gets created when reacting polyol forms with a diisocyanate or polymeric isocyanate. To create the polyaspartic, when this reaction happens, there must also be suitable catalysts and additives present.
Polyurethane compounds help to make materials like polyaspartic coating even more durable.
Polyaspartic coating was first developed in the early 1990s by the Bayer Material Science company mainly for industrial and mechanical uses. Since then, it has exploded in use for flooring covering because of its outstanding durability qualities.
What Are Polyaspartic Floor Coatings?
Polyaspartic refers to the material used to make the coating used on multiple floor surfaces. Polyaspartic is also referred to as aliphatic polyurea.
Before use as an application for flooring, polyaspartic was commonly sprayed as a coating for things like truck bed liners and tank coatings.
They are a type of polyurea coating now regularly used as a coating for flooring surfaces. Not only do they provide protection for the flooring surfaces, but they also help to make them slip-resistant.
How Is Polyaspartic Coating Applied?
If you decide you want to have a polyaspartic coating applied, you probably want to hire a professional to do it. They will have the expertise to understand the materials used and the best method to apply them.
With expert installation, you can guarantee a surface that looks great with the correct installation.
Professional installers will likely use one of a few methods. When applying a polyaspartic coating, the installer might use a squeegee or seal-coat broom.
Some installers prefer keeping the installation simple by using an 18” long 3/8” nap roller.
The “Dip and Roll” method or the “Ribbon and Roll” method are most common for floor installations.
Can Polyaspartic Flooring Be Applied If Cracks Exist?
If your garage floor has cracks, you need to do some prep work before having the polyaspartic coating applied.
It’s important that cracks are filled and repaired. If the cracks are not addressed it will impact the lifespan and integrity of the polyaspartic coating.
In addition to reparing cracks, the floors should get vacuumed and cleaned before any coating gets applied. You don’t want there to be any dust particles or debris on the floor before application.
What If Existing Floors Are Uneven?
Before you choose to apply a polyaspartic floor to your garage space, you may want to address uneven flooring.
In most cases, an uneven or buckling floor will slowly get worse over time. If you apply the polyaspartic coating to a buckling slab, over time, the uneven floor will continue to settle further.
This can, in turn, cause the newly installed flooring to eventually crack where major shifting and heaving have occurred.
Can Polyaspartic Coating Be Applied in Cold Temperatures?
It might surprise you to learn that there are formulas of polyaspartic applications that can be applied in cold temperatures. In fact, some can even get applied in temperatures close to zero.
You want to talk with your flooring installation specialist about the conditions when it might be installed. You want to ensure the installer is using the correct formula for the cold-temperature installation.
What Floor Coating Options Come With Polyaspartic Flooring?
Don’t assume that just because the flooring is super-strengthed, you don’t have decorative options when it comes to installation. In fact, polyaspartic coating comes in a variety of options for flooring installation.
In addition to a variety of industrial flooring options, the flooring can also be installed in Seamless Flake and Monolithic Quartz for a more ornate look.
How Long Does a Polyaspartic Garage Floor Coating Take to Dry?
One of the biggest benefits of polyaspartic flooring is the quick turnaround time it provides from installation, curing, and return to service.
It’s the reason many garages and industrial locations prefer this type of flooring. In a single day, the floor can be installed and cured, and ready to use again, unlike some epoxy counterparts that take much longer.
In just a few short hours, the polyaspartic flooring is dry.
How Does Polyaspartic Coating Compare to Epoxy?
It’s believed that a polyaspartic floor is more durable than the epoxy counterpart it’s often compared to.
In tests, it’s shown to have a higher level of abrasion resistance compared to epoxy coatings.
Can Polyaspartic Coating Be Applied Over Epoxy?
The short answer is that yes, the polyaspartic coating can get applied over an existing epoxy installation. It has strong adhesion qualities, making it okay to apply on epoxy.
You do want to ensure that the epoxy still adheres to the substrate. You’ll want to have a professional installer evaluate the flooring. They may want to simply apply a fresh polyaspartic top coat.
It might mean the epoxy floor needs sanding, scuffing, or even complete removal before the application of the polyaspartic. The reason for this is that not all coatings are created equal, and a professional will want to ensure that all layers of a coated floor are reliable for maximum durability and lifespan.
Where Can Polyaspartic Flooring Be Applied?
Polyaspartic flooring can be applied in nearly any concrete coating system, especially as a resinous top coat. Typically, this means the flooring application can get applied to:
- Garages
- Vehicle buildings
- Warehouses
- Hospitals
- Chemical labs
- Commercial buildings
If you have a uniform floor surface where a highly durable surface is in order, polyaspartic might be the answer.
Are There Any Places Where Polyaspartic Flooring Won’t Work?
There are a few situations where polyaspartic coating might not be the right choice for installation.
If you have a floor surface that asks for a breathable concrete sealer, then polyaspartic may not be the right choice. This might occur on:
- Stamped concrete surfaces
- Specialty tiles
- Natural and decorative stone
Oftentimes these materials were used for a specific purpose, and any type of coating would significantly alter the aesthetic. Remember, too, that you want to fix cracks and uneven surfaces before applying polyaspartic coating for them to be optimally effective.
Benefits of a Polyaspartic Floor
There are several benefits to polyaspartic flooring that make it a popular choice.
First, it is so durable, even more so than epoxy. This durability makes it popular for high-use areas like garages and industrial locations.
Second, it can be applied, cured, and ready to use in just a day. It actually dries within a few hours of application. This is much quicker than epoxy.
Finally, the application can happen to nearly any concrete substrate surface, even in cold weather conditions.
Choosing an Installer for Your Polyaspartic Floor
Once you’ve made the decision to invest in polyaspartic flooring, you want to hire an experienced installer who will get the job done right.
What should you consider as you prepare to hire this type of professional? Let’s take a closer look.
Experience
The simple reality is that you want to hire someone with experience working with these materials. It makes them more qualified to evaluate your flooring and know how an installation will proceed.
Their experience will also help them anticipate potential issues. They will be certified and trained in the best ways to prep your surfaces and ensure the coating will be installed to last a long time.
Reviews
Any time you hire a professional to do work for you, it makes sense to learn about previous customers’ experiences.
In today’s tech-driven world, it’s pretty easy to do an online search and read some reviews.
It’s important to know how to read online reviews, though. It can be a challenge to make every customer completely happy, some are just general complainers.
Instead, look for trends in the comments. Don’t get dissuaded by a single mediocre review. If they’re pleased with the results, it’s likely a good sign.
Cost
Again, anytime you hire a professional for a service, you should consider costs. When comparing the cost from one service to the next, it’s important to make sure you’re getting the same service.
It’s also smart to remember cheaper isn’t always better. Consider all the factors for hiring and use cost as one consideration.
References & Certification
Don’t be afraid to ask your polyaspartic professional for references. They may even include them on their website.
It’s always nice to talk to someone else who has hired the service and has the flooring already installed.
Another important consideration is the training and certifications that your installer has received. Handyman and jack-of-all-trades types of companies may simply not have the proper amount of specific expertise, training, and certification for top-quality floor coatings.
Get Polyaspartic Coating to Protect Your Floors
Polyaspartic coating is a highly durable flooring surface made to withstand dirt, grime, and abrasion. It dries fast, making it the least disruptive installation possible.
If you want to know more about polyaspartic flooring, we can help. Contact us to find an installer near you.