Garage Floor Reviews and Buying Guide

Many homeowners are deciding to upgrade their garages in more ways than one। Sure, it's nice to have storage cabinets and organizers in your garage, but one overlooked area is the actual garage floor। Luxury homes are being built with superior garage flooring with tiles, mats, and other coatings like epoxy. Garage flooring is definitely a high end feature and was for years reserved for car enthusiasts who wanted to show of their car collections in a nice garage. Today, the majority of garage floor coverings go right over your concrete floors and many are able to have cars and other items put on them the same day. Ultimately you want a garage floor that will protect your floor surface from oil spills, chemicals, dirt, and stains. Painting your garage floor is probably the easiest solution, but not always the best.

Beyond the obvious reasons for installing a new garage floor - great looks, clean, etc., you will need to know that maintaining your new garage floor could be more than you bargained for. To begin with, it's not always easy putting in garage epoxy flooring after you have already moved into the house and have all your vehicles, tools, and other items stored in your garage. I have some built-in cabinetry that is lifted off the ground with about a 3" clearance meaning any floor coating I put down would be difficult to extend back to the walls under the garage cabinets. Also, you will need to clear out any debris or items stored in your garage that are at ground level and move them somewhere else until the flooring can be put in. After the floor is painted on, layed down, etc, many of the product manufacturers recommend almost daily sweeping and dusting to keep the floor at their best. A few people I know that have had this process done (garage flooring) have regretted it a bit. We are all so accustomed to having a dirty, messy garage that the expectations change when all of a sudden you have pristine flooring in your garage. You will definitely need to change your mindset from throwing junk in your garage to maintaining it's new look. Garage floor mats are a much cheaper solution, but you will only be able to protect your floors in a limited space since they don't cover the entire garage surface (usually come in 20' x 9' shapes). Down below we have tried to described the 3 basic types of garage floor covers available to the public and how much they cost along with websites or stores where you can buy the materials.

Garage Floor Coatings - Garage Floor Paint:

We visited our local Home Depot to see what they offer in terms of garage floor coatings. They carry the Rust-Oleum Epoxy Shield garage coatings which vary in layers and cost. The Epoxy Shield Ultra ($4.25/sq ft) is the heavy duty offering of their 3 selections. The Ultra is a 3-layer system which calls for a primer, basecoat, and then a clear coat. The Epoxy Shield Ultra is resistant to chemicals, impact, and abrasions. Choose from 20 colors and get a 3-year warranty. The Epoxy Shield Premium ($3.25/square foot) is the next best product offering from Rust-Oleum for garage coatings and this epoxy coating is a 2-layer system with a primer and basecoat. Pick from 10 colors and this one has a 2-year warranty. Lastly, there is the Epoxy Shield ($2.50 per square foot) which is considered an average epxoy coating with a 1 layer system. You can find out more details on Homedepot.com or at Rustoleum.com. One reminder when buying an epoxy coating for your garage floor - in stores it's also called garage floor paint on the shelves.

Garage Floor Mats:

If covering your entire garage floor sounds like a big project then perhaps consider a garage floor mat to handle those trouble spots just below your vehicles or tool cabinets. A good protection mat in your garage (20' x 9') will cost around $270. Many of these mats are designed with PVC non-porous surfaces so your garage floors are protected from salt, oil, anti-freeze, and other debris. The floor mats are easy to cut and install and you can clean them with a simple soap and water mixture. The slip-resistant surfaces make for safe conditions in around your vehicles, especially in regions where snow and ice get tracks inside garages. Autobarn.net offers a good selection of garage floor mats to choose from.

Tile Garage Floors:

For a real cool look, you could go with a garage floor tile company and have them put in a some great designs for $2.90/sq foot. The interlocking floor tile systems are great for garage floors because they are attractive and provide a non-slip surface for safety. The tiles are easy to install or remove. Some of the heavy duty garage tiles can support up to 2500 lbs/sq inch with cracking or fading. One benefit with tiles over epoxy garage floors is that you can always just replace a tile or 2 if you have to without having to redo the entire floor. Garage floor tiles are also cheaper to do than epoxy coatings found in garages. Tile floors in a garage will also hold up to oils, chemicals, grease, anti-freeze, brake fluid, kickstands, falling tools, and more. For a truly customized garage floor, check out garage floor tiling at Jnkproducts.com or Racedeck.com.