So you’ve finally decided to spruce up your garage by adding some color to the concrete and you want to find the best garage floor paint that won’t break the bank. It must be easy to apply and reliable. With so many products available today, it can be difficult making a good decision on which to purchase. So, let’s take a quick look at which type of paint is best for your garage floor and why.
One of the biggest advantages to garage floor paint is the relatively inexpensive cost to completely change the look of your garage when compared to other floor coverings. But first of all, we need to make sure that it’s paint you are after and not an actual epoxy coating. If you aren’t sure what the difference is, then we suggest you take a moment to learn about epoxy vs. paint. If it is paint you are after, then read on!
Best type of concrete floor paint
Since paint is not as durable as other garage flooring options, the key is to choose the right formulation for the best wear. There are generally two types to choose from – latex acrylic paint for concrete floors and 1-Part epoxy garage floor paint. Hands down, your best choice between the two is the 1-Part epoxy paint.
The reason 1-Part epoxy paint is the better choice has to do with the properties of the epoxy ester resin that is mixed in with the acrylic latex. It helps to provide for a paint that is more resistant to mold and mildew, chemicals, gasoline stains, oil, scuff marks, and chipping.
It also tends to bond to the concrete better than standard latex acrylic concrete paint. Additionally, the better bond helps to resist peeling and problems with hot tire pick up.
Typical latex acrylic floor paint needs to be retouched or painted over about once every 6 months to a year depending on how much use and vehicle traffic that your garage sees. 1-part epoxy paint can last almost twice that long for an additional expense of only $10 – $20 per gallon depending on brand.
Best garage floor paint by brand
The problem with choosing good garage floor paint is that reviews for these products are all over the map in terms of good and bad. Part of the problem is just poor garage floor preparation and application and not with the product itself. Plus, this type of garage floor paint does best with foot traffic and not so much with vehicle traffic.
With that in mind, we’ve selected a few brands we can recommend, as well as one that falls into the honorable mention category.
Our first choice that we recommend is Drylok E1 by United Gilsonite Laboratories. We feel that this product is one of the best garage floor paints that you can purchase.
Dryloc E1 is available in 4 popular colors. You can usually find a good selection here at Amazon.
Next is Kilz 1-Part Epoxy Concrete and Garage Floor Paint. Like Dryloc E1, Kilz 1-Part epoxy paint does not require a primer. It comes with a satin finish and requires two thin coats to achieve the best results.
One gallon can cover 300 – 500 ft², depending on whether you have a rough surface or asmooth surface. Kilz garage floor paint is availabe in either Slate Gray or Silver Gray colors.
Etching of the concrete is required. If you can’t find Kilz at your local home improvement center or hardware store, you can find it here at Amazon.
Our honorable mention would be Epoxy-Seal garage floor paint by Seal-Krete. This is a 1-part epoxy/acrylic hybrid.
This garage floor paint used to be available in multiple colors. However, since they were acquired by Rust-Oleum in 2016, Slate Gray and Armor Gray are your only choices.
Hot tire pickup seems to be more of an issue with this paint if the surface is not prepped well and/or the recommended primer is not used.
If you can’t find it at your local home improvement center, you can usually find it here at Amazon.
Application is easy, but if you read their application instructions, they recommend applying Lock Down bonding first to achieve the best performance. Lock-down can sometimes be found at your nearest home improvement center. If you can’t find it locally, you can find it at Amazon.
The video below is a great example of how Epoxy-Seal is applied to your garage floor. These same instructions are fairly basic for all 1-part epoxy paints for a garage floor.
Most 1-part garage floor epoxy paints will cover an average of 300 – 400 square feet per gallon depending on surface porosity. They have a long pot life, meaning that you can pour the paint into a tray and not race to get it applied to the concrete.
One advantage with paints and coatings is that your garage floor will be much easier to clean. A soft bristle broom works great for loose dirt and debris, while a mop and mild detergent works great on the tougher stuff.
A word about hot tire pick up
Unlike a good epoxy coating, most garage floor paints will experience hot tire pick up at some point in their lifespan.
When hot tires sit on paint, the heat tends to soften the bond that the paint has on the concrete. The footprint of the tire eventually constricts as it cools, which in turn causes the paint to collect up with the tire. When you back out of your garage afterwards, you end up with a bare spot where the tire was.
This can be greatly reduced if you park your car on a mat, tire runners, or some other type of covering such as pieces of old carpet under the tires. If you do this, you may prevent the frustration that can develop from this annoying characteristic of garage floor paint.
Note: One important bit of information that we want to point out is that standard latex garage floor paint or even 1-Part epoxy paints such as these are not designed for a clear coat.
Most clear coats are solvent based and will soften the paint if applied. Technically you could apply a 2-Part water based epoxy, but the cost is much higher than the paint. With the expense, it’s not wise to apply a higher performing clear top coat to a lower performing color base coat.
Choosing the best paint for your garage floor is important in order to obtain the best performance. Make sure you follow all manufacturers’ instructions to insure a successful installation and be sure to pay particular attention to cleaning your floor properly. If you do this, you should get good results and a much better looking garage floor.
Hello Shea,
Earlier this year I had a screened-in concrete porch put in at the back of my house. My 3 year old is always playing out there, along with me entertaining friends… I wanted to give the concrete a better look, but also wanted durability due to the Florida heat. Obviously it will only be foot traffic in the porch :-). I would be doing this myself, so I’m looking for simple and easy… I’m not savvy with this type of DYI but I’m willing to try (if not complicated). What would be your recommendation?
Thanks,
Natalie
Hi Natalie. We would recommend the Drylok E1 for your purposes. It doesn’t require a primer and it is easy to apply. If you can paint a wall, then you can paint the concrete floor for your porch. It does require that the concrete be cleaned first and you may need to etch the concrete as well if you have a smooth surface. Since this is paint and not epoxy, you can use any of the safe bio friendly concrete etching solutions like this one here.
Hello, I just painted my 3 car garage with Rustoleum Acrylic Garage paint with flakes. Would you recomend a clear coat?
Hello John. The acrylic paint isn’t designed for a clear coat system. It’s a one-and-done type of garage floor paint. Most high performance clear coats will soften the paint due to the solvents, plus they will cost much more. You could apply an acrylic clear, but it never works well in a garage environment on paint.
Hello – I have a new house, can you use the Drylock E1 on virgin concrete or do you have to etch it first before painting?
Thank You.
Hello Dave. You can read the application instructions for Drylok E1 here. It does state that it can be applied to new concrete with just proper cleaning, however, they do recommend acid etching if you want to gain the full performance of the coating.
my basement floor was painted with oil based paint & i do not want to strip it. Can’t buy oil based paint anymore. What can I do
Sand it with 100 grit sandpaper Bonnie and then apply an acrylic concrete paint or 1-Part epoxy paint.
What if we have already painted the garage floor with what was supposed to be a concrete paint? Of course, we can’t park the car in the garage because it is pealing up the paint. Is there anything we can do short of removing the paint with acid, re-cleaning the floor, roughing it and then repainting it with the Epoxy paint you suggest?
Unfortunately there isn’t anything you can do Paula. If you want to remove the paint, you will need to use a chemical paint stripper or grind the floor. Acid will not remove paint. Acid reacts with the free lime in bare concrete in order to etch concrete, but it will just sit on the paint and do nothing except discolor it.
There’s so many products to choose for a basement floor…what do you recommend for preping and painting a 800-900 sq ft. concrete floor basement? My basement floor will likely see low to medium foot traffic.
I have filled in the all the concrete cracks with Quickrete concrete repair compound, vacuumed all the dust and washed the basement down. My basement surface is pretty smooth and even, therefore do I need to etch or do any further surface prep?
For paint i am stuck in choosing between the following:
1. SEAL-KRETE® Epoxy-Seal Concrete & Garage Floor Paint
2. Rusto-leum EPOXYSHIELD® Concrete Floor Paint
3. BEHR PREMIUM® 1-Part Epoxy Concrete & Garage Floor Paint
Hi Parthi. If your concrete is real smooth you will need to etch it. All three of the manufacturer’s you list have a safe citrus acid etch that will work fine for your project. If you don’t have a drain in your basement you will need to etch by mopping up the residue and then rinse mopping a few times. We would recommend either Seal-Krete or the Behr concrete paint. Both are a 1-Part epoxy where as the Rust-Oleum paint is not. It’s also recommended to use the bonding primer that both manufacturer’s have for their product. Seal-Krete is called Lock Down.
Why do you prefer Seal-Krete over Behr’s? I’m really struggling to figure out the difference between the two and which one to choose, as they both appear to have a fair bit of negative reviews (i.e. peeling, flaking, etc.)
Also, if I wash down the concrete with Epoxy Shield Citric Acid Etch, how long do I have to wait before applying primer and Seal-Krete or Behr’s paint?
Most all 1-Part epoxy floor paints are going to have negative reviews regarding peeling and flaking since they are primarily used in a garage environment. They just are not as durable as a regular 2-Part epoxy. However, they can do quite well when used just for just foot traffic as you intend. Seal-Krete makes a primer exclusively for their product (Lock-Down) where as Behr recommends their multi-use primer. Also, Seal-Krete has been making product for garage floors much longer than Behr has. In your case, however, the point may be moot as you are using this in a basement and not a garage. The Behr product would most likely work fine for you if they have a color which you prefer.
Since this is in a basement, you will want to wait at least 48 hours for it to dry properly. Longer if the humidity is up. A fan blowing across the floor helps tremendously.
Thanks for the response.
I used Rust-Oleum 238475 EPOXYShield Concrete Etch with water rinse today to finish off the surface prep portion of the job. However, I did not see quick absorption of the concrete by the etch and water solution. There was a quite bit of puddling and I had to use a push broom to disperse the puddles to a drain.
This concerns me as I think any 1-part epoxy paint will peel since the concrete will be too wet even after 48 hours of waiting time. Am I better off going with a concrete stain than 1-part epoxy floor paint?
I’m not sure what your worry is about Parthiban. The etch solution does not get absorbed into the concrete and go away. Concrete is not that porous. You still need to mop up or push excess water to a drain. You did rinse correct? Once the concrete is dry, apply a few drops of water to various areas. If the concrete turns dark and absorbs the water then the surface is ready. As far as stain goes, all it does is color the concrete – it does nothing else. It doesn’t protect it, nor does it seal it. It also looks very dull until you apply a sealed clear coating to it to make the color pop. The coating protects the stain and seals the concrete at the same time.
Yes I did rinse after the etch. However, it still looks like there is bit of residue no matter how many times I wash it. Am I able to send you a picture of the current state of the concrete? I am trying to figure out when it will be ready to primer, pain and seal. I guess 48 hours from now.
You can send us pics via our contact page. If you can wipe the concrete with your fingers and get just a small amount of white dust then you are OK. Did it pass the water drop test?
Good Afternoon! On Friday Sept 2nd I painted my garage floor with the rustoleum professional 2 part solvent based epoxy. I did everything by the book….rented grinder to get off old paint cleaned several times to pass finger dust test and allowed to dry completely (also used dehumidifier) waited for break in humidity and a 71 degree day and had to go to a sherwin williams to find a 3/8″ nap roller for epoxy paint and used a power mixer to mix and let cure for the recommended 30 minutes. Now the problem….you can see the paint roller lines and it shows as shiny and dull stripping effect. What do you think caused this? The directions stat a second coat can be applied in 72 hours but that wasn’t possible as I will need to order and its humid again. Do you recommend doing anyways and what floor prep would be needed? Do you think it would be better to apply the sealant instead of paint. (possibly less work) Or just live with it. Sorry so long 🙂 Jeff
It sounds like the epoxy went on too thin Jeff. Grinding does a good job of exposing the pores in order to get good penetration of the epoxy. This can reduce the coverage rate 10% – 15%. If you tried to stretch the coverage rate by rolling it hard you will get the roller marks and dull looking areas. It’s easy to fix with a second coat however. You will need to rough up the surface with 100 grit sandpaper. The idea is to degloss the surface and provide bite for the new coating – you aren’t trying to remove the coating. A pole sander works well for this and can tackle a two car garage in about an hour. Once you do that, sweep or vacuum the floor and then wipe it down with some denatured alcohol on a clean, lint free towel. You are now ready to apply a second coat. Just make sure that you have enough according to the coverage rates and keep your roller wet. If the roller is making a lot of noise as you apply the coating, then you are spreading it thin.
I forgot to tell you that I did put the chips down. Is it still ok to just rough up with sander? Thank You for this wonderful service. You have been very helpful to me along the way!! Jeff
You will lose some chips in the process Jeff, but it’s not that big a deal since you will be coating over them. You can apply new chips to the second coat.
Hi guys I am going to put down the e1 epoxy but I really like the flake look as well. Since you typically don’t add a clear seal over the top of e1 can I add flakes and will they stick? Or do you never add flake to something like this? Thanks
Yes, you can add the color flake Dustin. You need to apply it as you go. If you wait too long and the paint starts to set up, the flakes will not sink into the paint and adhere well.
Two years ago I used Rust-Oleum EpoxyShield High-Gloss Epoxy Garage Floor Coating Kit . After one year there were a lot of chips and bare spots, especially around the location of my snow blower. If I were to re-do the floor, I would be painting or coating over this. It’s not used for cars any more, but a lot of foot traffic, lawn mower, snow blower storage, etc. Should I go with Epoxy seal again, or try the Dry-lok semi-gloss. Also would either of these be slippery? Like I said, a lot of foot traffic.
Dennis, did you use Rust-Oleum EpoxyShield or Epoxy Seal? EpoxyShield is a 2-part epoxy coating and Epoxy Seal is a 1-Part epoxy paint. Foot traffic for Epoxy Seal and Drylok is fine and will hold up well. If you previously used EpoxyShield, however, then the area where the snow blower sits is going to look worse since the 1-Part epoxy paint is not as durable as EpoxyShield. You may want to consider a small mat for where the snowblower sits.
It was Epoxy Shield, a kit that I needed to mix the two together before I could apply it. Yes I placed a mat down after the first winter, but the salt and ice would melt off and seep off the edge of the mat. It looks real bad now, that’s why I wanted to re-do the floor. will those bad spots need a second coat of a one-part epoxy?
The key Dennis is to make sure the bare concrete that is exposed is cleaned real well before application. We do recommend two coats for the best performance.
I have a garage floor with a silicone acrylic concrete stain and sealer on it. I need to repaint/recover but now the previous product is no longer available. Would 1-part epoxy paint work over the silicone?
No it wouldn’t Jeff. You will need to grind the concrete to remove the sealer first. If not, anything you apply is going to peel up.
Hi, I’m about to repaint a concrete floor in my cabin. It was originally painted with a red epoxy paint that held up well. Then painted over with a cheap latex paint that scratches. If I sand the grey down and paint on top of the original red will I need a primer? I’ll be using behr 1 part epoxy paint as well.
No you won’t need a primer Dustin. It’s a good plan.
Hi Shea – I’m looking to do a concrete overlay on old outdoor walkway along with a colored epoxy paint and sealer. My concrete guy is suggesting behr one part epoxy paint and behr sealer. Since I’m more about good results than saving $s, would you suggest SealKrete or some other product better for outdoors (UV and water, etc)? Thanks very much!
Kim
Are you looking for a solid color coating Kimberly or something more opaque?
the ppast owners of the house i bought had 7 dogs in the garage and 8 have bleachex the floors what should i xo prime them to cinish riddinv of oxors or use what to paint the garage floors?
Paint will not seal out the odors Steve. The reason is because paint breathes and will still allow the odor molecules to permeate through the paint. You need an actual coating such as 2-part epoxy or a polyurea coating to truly seal the concrete. These type of coatings do not breathe. Our suggestion is to prep the concrete for a coating by acid etching. This opens up the pores in the concrete in order for the coating to achieve a mechanical bond. Before you apply the coating, treat the concrete with an enzyme pet cleaner for concrete. It will penetrate well to attack the odors since the pores of the concrete are opened up. Once you do that, apply the coating to seal off any remaining odors.
I just finished the first coat on my basement floor with Drylok E1. The instructions say that 2 coats is recommended, but also says not to do more than 2 coats. Is there a reason not to do a third coat? Keep in mind this is a basement so there will be no vehicles, only foot traffic…
There isn’t any reason why you can’t apply a third coat that we know of Ron. We’ve used Drylok E1 on some projects and to tell the truth, more than two coats isn’t really necessary. The reason is that it’s still paint and not a coating. You really are not gaining any additional protection with more coats like you do with a coating since it does not go down thick. You are just spending more money.
I am getting ready to seal my garage floor in a 10 year old house we just bought. My son-in-law did his floor with an epoxy kit without the sealer from H.D and when it is humid or rainy outside his floor is wet a very slippery. This is my only concern with using the correct product.
Epoxy is a sealer GMC. The wet floor is a result of water condensing on the surface. If moist and relatively warmer air comes in contact with a relatively cooler surface, condensation occurs. Applying a clear coat (assuming you are thinking of that as the sealer coat) will not stop condensation. It’s much more noticeable on coated floors than bare concrete. The reason is that a fine film of moisture can collect much easier on a smooth surface (coating) than it can on a rough surface (bare concrete). With bare concrete condensation still occurs, but the moisture tends to collect in the small pockets and pores of concrete and gets absorbed. As a result, it doesn’t get slippery and may not even look wet. A good example of this is when you may observe dew on the clean surface on the tops of cars, but you don’t notice it on the pavement or concrete the car is parked on.
I am getting ready to expand my business and wanted to finish the bare concrete flooring that’s been there. I do have some heavier equipment (1000lbs on casters) and some other equipment but not dealing with anything wet or hot. I was looking at trying out either the E1 or the Epoxy Seal and everyone reviews for Garage flooring which I won’t be driving on. Any advice? Will any of these work well with my application?
Unless the casters are something other than steel BW, we wouldn’t recommend either of these paints. That kind of weight with steel wheels will wear out a painted floor fairly quick. We would recommend a high solids epoxy coating or polyurea instead of a paint for that kind of use.
Just ordered some Drylok E1 online. I noticed you said that 1-part epoxy paint will need to be redone every so often (2-3 years or so?) in a garage. What would be the process involved in that?
I’m also planning on filling the contraction joints with Sikaflex, would you recommend doing this after letting the Drylok E1 paint cure, or can this be done before and then painting with the Drylok? Thanks for the informative site!
Just clean the floor and then rough up the paint with some 100 grit sandpaper on a pole sander Jason. It doesn’t take long at all for a 2-car garage. SikaFlex is not paintable, so it’s generally easiest to apply it after you paint the concrete.
For a garage that was painted over 20 yrs. ago with a water or oil based paint we don’t remember. what needs to be done to paint this with a 2 part epoxy paint. Will we need to clear coat the floor also after painted. Does all existing paint need to be removed. Also what would you recommend paint wise thank you.
What you are looking for is a coating system then Frank, not paint. You first need to remove the existing paint via grinding. If you use the Diamabrush, be sure to use the coating removal tool. There are many different types of coating systems available depending on your budget and how you plan on using your garage. I suggest looking at this page and read up a little on the different types of systems that are available today.
Hi,
I applied two coats of Drylok E1 to my garage floor about three weeks ago. After driving on it for about a week I have some tire marks, a couple of peel ups and some blotches. Is there a way to touch it up?
Hello Mark. Drylok is essentially a latex paint so unlike a true epoxy, it’s fairly easy touch up. Just rough up the areas with some 100 grit sandpaper and paint right over it. It will blend in nicely. Any areas where it has peeled up from the concrete is a sign of contamination of some sort such as oil, silicone, grease, or etc. In those areas we suggest cleaning the concrete thoroughly before reapplying.
Just wanted to say what a great service you provide.
You are very helpful to so many.
I know where to come when I need help with painting my garage floor!
When I convince my husband it needs doing!
Amazing site.
Thank you. We do appreciate the kudos!
Can a 1-part epoxy paint be applied over a cured and sanded 2-part epoxy finish? I would like to add multiple coats to finish my garage, but don’t want to spend the $$$ for multiple coats of 2-part Epoxy.
I think we answered your earlier question as well Joseph. Technically you can do just that, but we don’t understand why you would want to. As we stated before, 1-part epoxy paint is not even close to the same as a true epoxy. Multiple coats of 1-part epoxy will end up costing more than one coat of a true 2-part epoxy in order to get the same thickness On top of that, it will not provide even close to the same protection. The biggest problem will be when it starts to wear out in a year or two revealing the epoxy coat underneath. We suggest waiting until the budget allows for more epoxy or it’s just going to cost you more to fix it correctly later.
I want to do something with my small woodworking shop but concerned about the safety of acid etch. It will have a table saw to roll around and foot traffic. The floor has a broom finish that I am sanding down with 40 grit paper and a belt sander. What product do you recommend?
Hello Jeff. Can you be more specific about what you want the product to do for you? Are you looking for something decorative like paint or more protective such as a coating? Or do you just want something that will seal the bare concrete to make it easier to clean up?
Hello, We’re moving into a new home and are planning to have a professional apply the epoxy. He told us that he first will rough up the garage, apply a sealant, then the epoxy and finish with a top coat. Our concern is that one of the homes in the neighborhood used his services and complained that they have yellow stains that look horrible. The contractor who applied the coating said that it was due to the type of tire on their car and not his product. Does this sound true or a cover up? He has been working diligently to appease our neighbor, but I worry that it can happen to us.
Hi Paxton. The sealant is most likely an epoxy primer which is a good thing. The yellow stains you refer to are from car tires. However, you generally don’t have much of a problem with that when a high performance top coat is used. We suggest finding out what type of top coat he applies and ask to see the data sheets. They will give you a good idea of what to expect performance wise. If he’s not using a good polyurethane or polyaspartic/polyurea top coat, then you may have the same issues. We suggest reading this article to learn more about tire stains and this article about choosing top coats.
Hey had a quick question, I wanted to use rustoleum rock solid in my basement. I seen that to prepare the concrete you should acid etch it. I have a drain but after you rinse it down, does it neutralize the acid or will it eat my pipes? Also can’t find to many videos on the application process (of the rock solid paint) but in all the pictures and videos I did find it looks like he way you brush it on will give it the grain. If you have used this product before can you tell me if they are just not applying it thick enough or is this what effect you get when using rustoleom rock solid?
If you use muriatic acid to etch the concrete Gavin, you will neutralize it first before washing it down the drain. We have an article here about proper acid etching procedures. If you are using an etch from the RockSolid kit, then it is ECO friendly (it’s a citric acid) and is safe for your pipes and plants. Just be sure to follow the directions closely.
RockSolid is an actual coating and not paint. For more information, we suggest reading our article about RockSolid here. There is a lot of information there, particularly in the comment sections. The biggest issue with RockSolid is that their coverage rate is very generous. You need to reduce it by 10-15% to get the best coverage. If not, it goes on too thin and can look blotchy with some concrete.
Thank you for all your help to so meany.
Im looking at painting a new concrete floor (4 weeks old) it has nothing on it except for some tire tracks where tractor was used for building it, and it has plastics under it. I plain to have autos driving on it. What the best paint? And should i use acid wash?
Paint is not the best application for a garage floor Gary. However, if you want an actual coating that goes on like paint and does not require extensive concrete prep in most cases, then we highly recommend Rust Bullet. You can read our article about it here.