New shop/Garage floor

Hey all,
I've been lurking here for a while, but now I have a real question. I've read about epoxy floor coatings before, but here is a specific case to consider.
I have a new garage shop floor, about 60 days since it was poured, and I'd like to coat it before it accumulates the usual tire marks/oil/grease. First question, should I wait for more concrete cure time? Second question, will a shop heater be sufficient, or do I really need to wait for summer? It gets cold up here in northern PA. No matter how much I heat the garage, the floor will still be cold.
Next set of questions, who has used what products and what do you recommend? I've seen the Rustoleum epoxy at Home Depot (which gives NO clue as to square footage covered on the packaging), in the Google group archives someone recommended Sherwin Willians floor epoxy. Any experience or opinions here?
I don't mind doing lots of prep, muriatic acid, etc., as long as it pays off in the end! I have about 800 sq ft to cover.
Also I was thinking of mixing sand in where the autos go and none where they don't, any technique or type of sand preferred? Thanks in advance.
HF

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30 days cure should be adequate, per most labels.
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^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Too late for you, now, but let's repeat for the benefit of anyone doing this in the future: PEX tubing is cheap if you put it in the slab when you pour, and is not the problematic (metallic) leaky floor heat you may have heard horror stories about dating back to the 1950's. However, I successfully painted my floor last winter (in Vermont) without having got the floor heat hooked up. I have another floor painted with the same material, in service since 2000.
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This subject is well-covered in the archives. There are several instructive epoxy horror stores there, as well as epoxy sucess stories. I have used, and recommend, UGL Drylock floor paint (which is _not_ the same as their "waterproofer" wall product). I have specifically used, and pefer, the latex (water cleanup) version of this product, because I'm not too fond of paint thinner. As compared to various "epoxy" products I looked at, it gets the job done with _one_ product that has pretty good coverage per gallon (and dollar), and it can be cleaned and recoated in wear areas without needing to strip the whole floor. It does not need sanding, because it does not make the floor surface excessively slippery. It makes the floor white (or whatever color you buy, but white is best for lighting effectiveness), keeps it from dusting and makes it easier to sweep up. Being able to recoat easily stuck me as a far better bet than hoping that I had an expen$ive epoxy $uce$$ $tory. Your bet may vary.

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I am not sure about the home-owner versions of epoxy floor coatings, however, a professional floor coating system will last, probably your lifetime with daily use. It stands up in industrial plants for years and years. This is not cheap, by any stretch of the imagination. But it is extremely durable, with several different styles of top coat available. I do not have info at hand on this...but there should be a flooring specialist in your area who provides this service.
The sand the specialists use in epoxy floors is extremely fine...almost a powder...

I used three of the HD epoxy kits to paint the floor of my shop (900 sq ft). The floor was poured 90 days prior, so there was no problem with water. We used muriatic acid to clean and etch per the directions, and the paint took about two days to cure with daytime temps in the mid-60s.
If your slab has joints cut in it, take a look at the self-leveling polyurethane sealer made by Sika (also at HD). This fills the cracks with a rubbery compound and it's 10X easier to apply than regular caulk.
HangFire wrote:
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For joint sealer I use SL1 from Sonneborn. Available from the concrete products suppliers. NOT from Home Depot and friends. Polyurathane product, not silicon base, handles sunlight better. Beware that "self leveling" is exactly that, it will flow very nicely over a couple of hours. If the cracks are deep, be sure to use backer rod (closed cell foam rod) to keep the joint thickness to about 3/8" max.
Tim Killian wrote:
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HangFire wrote:
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Some years back there was a product called "concrete Hardener" it combined chemically with the concrete, made it hard & slick & prevented absorption. It's probably still around, all the Gov't jobs specified it. Call a few Concrete plants and/or Equipment rental places..--good luck

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I used the Rustoleum epoxy from HD to do my 1200 sq foot floor and waited 6 weeks after the pour instead of the 4 stated on the can. My slab is 6" thick and it was very carefully kept covered and wet for about 10 days. After a couple of months the paint in flaking up all over the place. Considering belt sanding it off and starting over. Several painting contractors I know said I should have waited 12 weeks. Based on my experience I would wait until the slab has cured more and until you can get the slab temp up to the minimum specified on the can.
Steve.

Benjamin Moore industrial coatings, the two part is the best, single part epoxy is also good. wait till spring, I painted mine too late and it didn't go off right till spring,
rustoleum epoxy is junk, peeled up in minutes in my shop
ben moore 2 part is 2 gallon sets, thirty something a gallon, good coverage, this is the best deal I have seen anywhere, bullet proof
etch the floor the day before you do anything
SteveF wrote:
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All of the two-part epoxies are pretty much the same formula. The key is to apply them after the concrete dries out, and as you said, etch the floor properly.
One way to test if the floor is dry enough is to tape a 2-foot square piece of clear plastic sheet to the floor. If there is condensation under the plastic the next day, then the floor is too wet to paint.
yourname wrote:
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I just finished coating the basement and garage of a 4 year old house I bought in Toronto, did a lot of reserch and found the preferred prep is shot blasting. Was able to rent a small unit (8DEC) from ISP:
http://www.surfacepreparation.com /
Did the 1000 sq ft. in about 10 hrs. which included blasting off an acrylic sealer in the basement. Used a diamond cup wheel on a 5" hand grinder for the edges. Didn't want to mess with muraiatic acid.
Finished the job with Endura:
http://www.endura.ca /
Two coats of primer and two of topcoat, went with slight off white or very light grey. Looks great and I know it'll last longer than me:)
ps: used a 220v construction (4800 BTU) heater in the garage with two 110v space heaters for the entrance. Put a tarp over the door from the outside to be able to paint the whole slab. E-mail me for pix if you want...
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