Shop floor coverings

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There hasn't been much discussion in this forum regarding what to put on a shop floor (i.e. paint, epoxy, tile, rubber mats, etc).  I'm looking to surface my concrete shop floor and would like to stimulate some discussion on floor coverings...  I understand epoxy floors often look the best and are easiest to clean-up but can be slippery when wet and may not stand up well to sparks from cutting or molten spatter (particularly the home-kits).  Paint is easy to touch-up if damaged, but not as durable. If your shop floor is anything other than bare concrete, what do you have on it and how do you like it?  If you could have any floor covering, what would you choose?Any comments on what you've seen or heard is good would be welcomed!Lincoln AC225 & MigPak 140, Lincoln Magnum SpoolGun, Miller Spectrum 375-X Plasma, Syncrowave 200 TIG, Millermatic 252 MIG, Miller Digital Elite, General 7x12" horiz/vert bandsaw, 3' box/pan brake, 20 ton press, milling machine, 12x28 lathe, etc.
Reply:AF,  When I first moved into my new house I put down the rustoleum epoxy that you can buy at home depot.  Its now about 5 years later and it still looks pretty good.  It looks a little duller than when I first put it down.  Welding sparks will put little burns in it but otherwise the stuff is pretty tough.  A couple of years back I spilled acetone on the floor and thought it would eat right through it but it did nothing to it. I am quite satisfied with the product.  I would recommend putting down a welding blanket if you are worried about burns in it.............RichLincoln 255XT Power Mig                                                                    Lincoln Precision Tig 225Hypertherm Powermax 30
Reply:Originally Posted by Aquafire  I understand epoxy floors often look the best and are easiest to clean-up but can be slippery when wet and may not stand up well to sparks from cutting or molten spatter (particularly the home-kits).  Paint is easy to touch-up if damaged, but not as durable.
Reply:I love my ceramic tile.  It was cheap; it's easy to clean, pretty much impervious to stains.  Oil wipes right up.  Dried-on spray paint comes up with a little acetone on a paper towel.  You can walk around on the stuff barefoot -- blow it clean with an air line or a leaf blower.  It's fine when it's wet -- it's got a better coefficient of friction than the epoxies I've seen.  It's held up well to dropped tools and lots of jacking the car up.But it does scar when slag burns it.  I don't know if any surface other than bare concrete holds up to molten metal.  I put a welding blanket down when I work, and everything's fine.Here it is all cleaned up and pretty.  The burn marks from welding and grinding are like small dots.  You really can't see them in pictures.Jack OlsenMy garage website
Reply:one bad thing about my epoxy floor is condensation.if the building is cool and you open the door on a warm humid day,its almost like it rained indoors. this can lead to rust stains,but they can be removed with muratic acid.
Reply:I've been on a lot of shop floor. The solvent based epoxies held up well.  I've never been fond of the water born epoxies. There was this this one aircraft hanger floor that stood out. It was much like a sprayed in bed liner but seemed tougher. Due to the texture it wasn't too slippery when wet. It was an off yellow color and made the hanger look like it had great lighting when in fact the same lighting on a concrete floor would just appear fair. It held up very well to solvents but never did any welding in that hanger. Knowing the owner of the hanger I'm sure it was very expensive.Tough as nails and damn near as smart
Reply:Originally Posted by Jack OlsenI love my ceramic tile.  It was cheap; it's easy to clean, pretty much impervious to stains.  Oil wipes right up.  Dried-on spray paint comes up with a little acetone on a paper towel.  You can walk around on the stuff barefoot -- blow it clean with an air line or a leaf blower.  It's fine when it's wet -- it's got a better coefficient of friction than the epoxies I've seen.  It's held up well to dropped tools and lots of jacking the car up.But it does scar when slag burns it.  I don't know if any surface other than bare concrete holds up to molten metal.  I put a welding blanket down when I work, and everything's fine.Here it is all cleaned up and pretty.  The burn marks from welding and grinding are like small dots.  You really can't see them in pictures.
Reply:Nice shop there!  I'm disappointed to hear that ceramic is also vulnerable to slag-burns.  There must be SOMEthing that will be more resistant (other than bare concrete).Lincoln AC225 & MigPak 140, Lincoln Magnum SpoolGun, Miller Spectrum 375-X Plasma, Syncrowave 200 TIG, Millermatic 252 MIG, Miller Digital Elite, General 7x12" horiz/vert bandsaw, 3' box/pan brake, 20 ton press, milling machine, 12x28 lathe, etc.
Reply:x2 on the power troweled and sealed concrete.  Nice Porsche Jack, widebody?There is no failure...only feedback
Reply:If you're using the floor in a shop with grinding, cutting, welding, moving heavy stuff around, etc, doesn't matter what treatment you put on it, it will be burnt off, ground off, or scraped off.  Plain old bare concrete is best for a real working shop.MM350P/Python/Q300MM175/Q300DialarcHFHTP MIG200PowCon300SMHypertherm380ThermalArc185Purox oaF350CrewCab4x4LoadNGo utilitybedBobcat250XMT304/Optima/SpoolmaticSuitcase12RC/Q300Suitcase8RC/Q400Passport/Q300Smith op
Reply:Jack, saw a nice article on your setup in Wood Magazine's great garage makeovers (p. 8). Those tiles are pretty nice and and add a unique touch to your shop. Very nice!
Reply:Some piece of metal would get away from me while grinding etc... and zingo, there goes the spendy Porsche paint.  I'd mope around for weeks.   So keen,  I'm not ready for that clean a shopWhen I built my shop I used the epoxy grey floor paint from Lowes all around the edges for about 5' out.  This hopefully decreases cleaning problems under cabinets etc. then the rest is just concrete, and these days concrete with a little grease, mud, spills etcLincoln Power MIG 215Lincoln WeldPak 3200HDLincon ProCut 25Lincoln WeldanPower 225 AC/DCIf all else fails... buy more tools
Reply:Originally Posted by mainecowboyJack, saw a nice article on your setup in Wood Magazine's great garage makeovers (p. 8). Those tiles are pretty nice and and add a unique touch to your shop. Very nice!
Reply:In the process of building a new shop. Going to have a friend/client trade work for doing my floor. He's a professional floor finisher and does lots of crazy stuff. He said the "apply over the surface" stuff is junk. The floor will be poured and bull floated, then he takes it from there. He's got a treatment that soaks into the concrete and chemically bonds to it. Then he sands it down and polishes it. He's done it on his garage/office floor and it's banana's. And banana's is good. Super smooth and shiny. He's spilled adhesives on the and they just wipe up easy do to the smooth non-porous finish. It's really quite something. He's does do work in Van. Let me know if you want his contact info.I think anything you put on the surface has the potential to a) get lifted of from moisture in the concrete or b) get burned/scratched off. But budget is always the great leveler.Good luck,Bert200amp Air Liquide MIG, Hypertherm Plasma, Harris torches, Optrel helmet, Makita angle grinders, Pre-China Delta chop saw and belt sander, Miller leathers, shop made jigs etc, North- welders backpack.
Reply:wonder if line-x or a coating such as that would be an OK option with a lower level of texture than ur average bed? probably pretty damn expensive, but that stuffs going into concrete bunkers so it has met one or two standards i'm sure.
Reply:Geat garage / shop / car. I am envious. if your welding is confined to one area, i would consider installing expanded metal panels (grating) with fastenders to remove for cleaning as desired.
Reply:I used cure & seal on my concrete when it was still fresh, not super slippery but it squeaks when you walk on it wet. It also helps the concrete cure harder (traps the water in as it cures). Deal with an actual concrete place, ask them what to use. You will find that it is actually cheaper than the DIY stuff. In Vancouver you could deal with NCA http://www.nca.ca/nca/contact/offices.asp and there are others that can help you out. I have yet to burn mine and I have plasmad and welded over it.
Reply:...I used urethane aircraft hanger white paint on my concrete floor...after cleaning with muriatic acid (swimming pool stuff)...holds up pretty well..Dougspair
Reply:I did a U-Coat It about a year and a half ago.  I did the automotive option.  The shop sees more race car prep than fab work.  It has held up to any kind of fluid we've been able to spill on it.  It just wipes up.  The few places it did rust when I left stock on the deck it cleaned up with Simple Green.  On the big spills I put some Speedy Dry down then shop vac it up.  The coating was about $600 for the kit plus the rental of the pwoer washer and diamond grinder and the three days it took to put the floor in.http://ucoatit.com/