The best garage floor coating kits, also known as epoxy paint kits, are not what you may think. If you were expecting a comparison of Rust-Oleum EpoxyShield, Quikrete, Valspar, RockSolid, or some other kit you’ve seen at your local home improvement store, then you may be in for a surprise.
The best garage floor coating kits that are easiest to apply, long lasting, and offer the best protection, are the newer single-part moisture cured polyurea coatings.
Not familiar with polyurea garage floor coatings? No worries, the majority of other people aren’t either. Consumers who want to apply a DIY coating to their garage floor are commonly familiar with the term “garage floor coating kit”, “epoxy paint kit”, and etc. When they are using these terms, they are generally thinking about epoxy coatings and the above mentioned products.
Why? The reason is simple. These types of kits have been marketed and promoted for many years by the large companies that manufacture them. Rust-Oleum is a good example. These are the typical DIY garage floor coatings that are designed to be applied in one coat with the optional decorative color flakes to toss on top.
They are generally packaged in an eye catching box which includes the coating, a small bag of color flakes, and an ECO friendly etch/cleaner solution as well. It’s not everything you need to get the job done, but they like to use the word “kit” to sound all-inclusive for marketing purposes.
Prevalent in the home improvement centers and hardware stores where they are seen on a regular basis, this is all the average consumer is aware of in terms of coating choices in many cases.
The problem with most of these garage floor epoxy products, however, is that they are on the low end of the scale in terms of quality, durability, and performance when compared to the vast majority of garage floor coatings available. We suggest reading this article here to understand more of what to expect with these types of coatings.
Now that you know the history of these epoxy paint kits, let’s discuss what makes the newer single-part polyurea garage floor kits so much better.
What is a polyurea coating anyway?
Put simply, polyurea is a subset of polyurethane. It is a coating that seals and exhibits excellent chemical, stain, and abrasion resistance. The high elongation rate that polyurea provides makes for a flexible (relatively speaking) surface. Coatings that flex provide very high abrasion and scratch resistance. This is one of the reasons why polyurethane and polyurea is a much better top coat than epoxy for most environments.
Polyurea is actually fairly new for a coating. It was commercially developed in the 1990’s and was most known in the industry as a spray-on coating for bed liners, pipe linings, water tanks, pool coatings, and etc. When mixed with a catalyst in a sprayer it can cure in as little as 5 seconds. It can also be applied in extreme cold and warm temperature conditions.
It was later developed as a 2-part polyurea polyaspartic roll-on concrete floor coating. It has become very popular with many garage floor installation companies. The cure rates of less than two hours can provide a 1 day return to service for a complete garage floor coating system. This can be an advantage when selling this type of coating over a standard epoxy garage floor system that requires a minimum of three days to cure before full return to service.
The high solids 2-part formulas used for these garage floor coatings is expensive, however, and requires experienced installers to apply properly due to the short working time (pot life) of only 20-25 minutes. This is why it has not been popular for DIY application – that is until recently.
Why single-part polyurea coatings are better than epoxy paint kits
One particular formulation that has been introduced to the floor coating industry in recent years is single-part moisture cured polyurea. Most polyurea formulas require mixing of a part-A resin and part-B catalyst – just as epoxy does.
Single-part polyurea, on the other hand, does not require mixing of two components. Instead, the catalyst it reacts to is moisture in the air. The reaction happens after it has been applied and this is what induces the curing process.
Single-part polyurea is a commercial quality garage floor coating that is the easiest of all coating to apply – period.
With the addition of solvents in these formulations, manufacturers have created an extremely durable polyurea garage floor coating that does not require mixing of A and B components, has unlimited pot life, and can easily be applied to concrete.
Many of the mistakes from DIY epoxy coating applications generate from improper mixing of the A and B components. The anxiety of this mixing process is a common deterrence that causes some people to shy away from installing epoxy in their garage.
RockSolid has tried to eliminate mixing mistakes with the introduction of burst pouches to mix A and B components, but problems still exist. The single-part polyurea coating completely eliminates this step and greatly reduces the chances of DIY installation error.
To be more concise; Single-part polyurea is a commercial quality garage floor coating that is the easiest of all coatings to apply – period.
Furthermore, the typical epoxy coating and garage floor coating kits as mentioned before is no match to the superior durability, chemical resistance, scratch resistance, and abrasion resistance of single-part polyurea coatings.
As an example, commercial quality coatings provide a list of ratings based on testing. You can find these ratings as well as other pertinent figures in the Technical Data Sheets. This is what allows consumers to compare and evaluate how coatings will perform. Abrasion resistance and chemical resistance are two standard tests that can provide very good information.
The example below is a chemical resistance chart that lists how a particular product will react to a variety of liquid chemicals including acids and solvents.
You can’t find this kind of information for your typical epoxy paint kits by Rust-Oleum, Valspar, H&C ShieldCrete, RockSolid, and etc. It’s not listed. Instead, they use very vague terminology such as “anti-peel protection”, “2x stronger than concrete”, “hot tire resistant formulation”, “long lasting results”, and etc. They do not provide any testing data to back up these claims.
To their credit, RockSolid actually provides an abrasion resistance rating, but they do not provide chemical resistance data. The rating they provide for abrasion resistance is 40mg. This is how much material is lost during 1000 cycles for a CS-17 abrasion wheel test. The lower the abrasion numbers the better. To compare, many single-part polyureas test at only a 12mg loss.
Important to note is that each mg unit of loss is exponential. For example, a coating with a 4mg loss compared to a coating with an 8mg loss would last 3 times as long in terms of wear under the same conditions – not 2 times as long as most would assume. Now, can you imagine how much better a 12mg loss coating performs to a 40mg loss coating when it comes to wear and abuse?
Additionally, polyurea is U.V. stable whereas epoxy is not. This means that your coating will not amber (yellow tint) over time when exposed to sunlight. This is a typical complaint about epoxy paint kits.
Coating thickness is another issue. Most epoxy garage floor kits have a dry film thickness of only 2-3 mils when applied at the standard coverage rates. Thin coatings such as these can sometimes create cosmetic issues with the color looking inconsistent (blotchy) due to the coating being absorbed at different rates into the concrete.
Single-part polyureas on the other hand have a 4-5 mil dry film thickness. The thicker coating makes for a more durable surface and is less prone to color inconsistencies.
Benefits of single-part polyurea coatings
- No mixing of A and B components
- Long working times so you don’t feel rushed
- Recoat times as little as 2 hours versus 10-12 hours
- No primer required
- Can be applied in very low temperatures – most epoxy kits require a minimum of 60°F
- Over 50% thicker coating than standard epoxy kits
- Long lasting – 10 years or more versus 2-5 years for standard epoxy kits
- No hot tire lift – water based epoxy kits will get hot tire lift
- 100% U.V. stable for no yellowing – epoxy kits will turn yellow over time
- 100% more flexible than epoxy for superior scratch resistance
- Higher gloss ratings than most epoxy kits – maintains gloss longer
- High chemical and abrasion resistance – data not available for epoxy kits
- Excellent protection against road salts and deicing fluids
- Can be used as a clear sealer over bare concrete or stained concrete
- Available in both gallon and quart sizes to modify for any square footage
Single-part polyurea coatings can be used as a one coat stand-alone system, with or without color flakes, just as the standard epoxy paint kits are. You also have the option of adding a clear top coat of polyurea for a two coat system. This can allow for a full color flake floor of your choosing to get a real custom look.
Another advantage is that single-part polyurea is available in gallon and quart sizes. This allows you to order only what you need for your square footage to avoid over spending. Most garage floor coating kits only allow for purchases of 250ft² at a time. If you have a 550ft² garage floor for example, you would need to purchase three kits. There is no way you could stretch out two kits for the 550ft² without cosmetic and performance issues.
Concrete preparation is the same with single-part polyurea as it is with any other epoxy coating kit. You need to etch or grind the concrete to create the correct surface profile. This will open up the pores of the concrete at the surface in order for the coating to penetrate and achieve a mechanical bond.
One characteristic of single-part polyurea you need to be aware of is that it is solvent based. There will be some light fumes during application. Most of the smell from the fumes dissipates within a few hours as the solvent evaporates out of the coating. As with any solvent born coating, it’s not uncommon if it takes a few days for the smell to completely diminish, but it will go away in short time.
Polyurea coatings can also be more slippery when wet compared to epoxy. The curing process produces a tightly cross-linked structure that smooths out almost like glass. This is one of the reasons it cleans up so easily and is very difficult to stain. If you live in a wet climate or worry about the floor being slippery, we would suggest adding an anti-slip additive to the final coat.
Additionally, they are not the best choice if you have a concrete surface with numerous hairline cracks and/or surface irregularities either. Though thicker than their epoxy paint counter parts, they still are not thick enough to fill in such surfaces. A high solids or 100% solids epoxy is a superior candidate since they are better at self-leveling with a dry film thickness of 9-10 mils and higher.
Lastly, some single-part polyureas are packaged in clear only and require that you mix in a pigment pack for the color you choose. This is not the same as mixing 2 components together, however. You just pour in the pigment pack and mix with a paint stick. This does not activate the coating, nor does it mean you have to start immediately applying it after you mix in the color packs.
Where to purchase polyurea garage floor coating kits
One of the best advantages to purchasing a single-part polyurea is that they are currently only available from vendors who specialize in concrete coatings. These are the same companies that professional installers buy product from.
Unlike home improvement centers, these vendors are experienced in garage floor coating application and are extremely knowledgeable. They want you to be successful with your project. Customer service is excellent in most cases and they can answer any questions that you have about product and application.
They are also very good at making sure you understand what you are purchasing and if the product you are interested in is the best choice for you or not. We highly recommend contacting these vendors with any questions you may have before making a purchase.
These vendors are not national brand companies with brick and mortar stores that you can walk into. Product is ordered online via their websites and then shipped directly to you. Most of these companies ship for free as well. Though the product doesn’t come in a neatly packaged box with nice artwork and graphics, they can provide everything you need in true kit form for a successful application.
To our knowledge, Legacy Industrial was one of the first vendors to offer a single-part polyurea in a DIY application. Called Nohr-S, we were so impressed with the coating that we did an article about it here.
Sometime afterwards, ArmorPoxy made their SPGX polyurea available to the public as well. One of our readers in Chicago applied it to his garage floor and we did an article about the process here.
The latest to offer a polyurea coating in kit form is Garage Flooring LLC. Customer service is excellent and they would be more than happy to help you out and answer your questions.
you would have to purchase and go through the process of reapplying an average of four water based epoxy paint kits over the life of just one single-part polyurea coating.
Cost per square foot for a single-part polyurea coating averages about twice that of the lowest priced, water based epoxy garage floor kits. RockSolid polycuramine and the solvent based Rust-Oleum EpoxyShield Professional coatings are priced approximately midway between.
1 gallon covers approximately 250ft², same as most epoxy paint kits. SPGX by ArmorPoxy covers 300-400ft² per gallon, but the additional square footage is reflected in their price point.
Though the initial cost of single-part polyurea garage floor coating is higher than the typical epoxy paint kits, they are a much better value when you carry that expense out over the many years of use. For example, you would have to purchase and go through the process of reapplying an average of four water based epoxy paint kits over the life of just one single-part polyurea coating.
Are polyurea garage flooring kits the best of all garage floor coatings?
One important question that people want to know is how single-part polyurea coatings compare to other garage floor coating systems available. Is it better than epoxy? Is it better than polyurethane? Is this the best garage floor coating I can apply?
A single-part polyurea coating garage floor kit and/or system is the best choice for those that want a professional looking, commercial quality coating that is the easiest to install and at a reasonable price point.
They deliver excellent performance and long life for the typical residential garage that will see light duty automotive repair, medium to heavy traffic, inclement weather conditions, and other hobby/home improvement projects that are performed in the garage.
Application is easier than the epoxy paint kits and they will not experience the potential peeling, hot tire lift, color fade, and wear over 2-5 years that is typical of such kits.
However, in terms of ultimate performance and durability, nothing really outshines a hybrid system that consists of an epoxy primer, a high solids epoxy color coat, and one or two coats of a high performance polyurethane or polyurea top coat. We discuss the best garage floor coating systems here.
Final thoughts
Needless to say we are impressed with this product. Hands down, single-part polyurea is the easiest of all coatings to apply while still performing to commercial quality standards. It delivers excellent protection and performance at a very reasonable price point.
The large companies that provide inexpensive epoxy paint garage floor kits have been relying on relatively older epoxy coating formulas for years. We would not be surprised if one of them doesn’t come out with their own version of this polyurea in the near future. It would eliminate many of the complaints about their products.
Until then, the biggest problem that single-part polyurea will face is lack of exposure to the general public. The smaller companies that sell the higher performing garage floor coatings do not have the budget for the type of national advertising that is required.
Though it’s not the cheapest garage floor coating, for the value it’s one of the best DIY garage floor coatings available that you can purchase in kit form.
Just bought a new build townhouse…so the garage is fresh and untouched. Anything I have to do to prep it other than sweep?
Thanks!
Ryan
Hi Ryan. Yes, you need to properly prep the concrete by either acid etching or grinding. This opens up the pores of new concrete and allows the coating to penetrate.
We were planning on doing our basement in the garage epoxy instead of carpet/wood/laminate. Would this be Overkill since it’s a basement, not a garage?
Hi Erica. It’s not necessarily overkill to use a product such as this if you want a flooring that will last for 15 years or more. Just to avoid confusion, single-part polyurea coatings are not epoxy. That said, applying coatings in a basement should be done with due diligence and some caution. Basement floors are known for moisture issues and coatings do not tolerate moisture well. A moisture test during the wettest months of the year should be performed first before attempting to apply a coating.
I know this is different than epoxy, that is why I was asking if this process was overkill since it seems to be a better route but basements don’t usually take the beatings garages do. 🙂
Wouldn’t a garage floor have moisture issues as well, since it is more open to the elements? We live in the Midwest where there’s plenty of moisture in the winter. 😂
No worries, Erica. We just wanted to make sure since you mentioned garage epoxy. The moisture we are referring to comes from the ground under the slab. Most garage floors are what you call “above grade” – sitting on top of the earth, while basements are “below grade” – dug deep into the ground. Moisture content below ground can be much greater. Since concrete slabs are like a sponge and tend to absorb moisture if it’s present, it’s not uncommon for basement slabs to develop moisture issues. That is one of the primary reasons why basements can smell musty. Above ground slabs can develop moisture, but it’s much less common than basements.
Oh for real… why didn’t I think of that?! D’oh! 🤦🏻♀️
Thank you so much for the help! 🖤
Hi Shea. What is the viscosity of a single-part polyurea compared to a high solid epoxy? I am looking to use an airless sprayer (Graco Magnum X7) and I know that it would take a lot of solvent to get a high solid to the right viscosity for a sprayer, so wondering if a single-part polyurea would be a better option. If you believe both options wouldnt work, do you have any recommendations besides a water based epoxy for an airless paint sprayer? Thanks!
Hello Zach. Concrete floor coatings cannot be applied via an airless paint sprayer, nor are they recommended to be applied in such manner by the manufacturers. The amount of proper solvents to thin the coating enough to be sprayed will harm the performance characteristics. In addition it would require multiple spray coats to achieve the same dry film thickness of a single rolled on coat.
That said, there are special polyurea and polyaspartic coatings that are designed to be applied with high pressure sprayers. Graco is one such manufacturer. These type of spray-on coatings are used for tank liners, pool coatings, and truck bed liners for example. They cure in a matter of seconds. Some people have experimented with spraying these type of polyurea coatings on concrete garage floors with some success, but the texture and expense has been an issue so far.
Since you even mentioned adding thinner to 100% solid epoxy I would highly suggest you put the ‘sprayer’ away and hire a professional that knows coatings to help you out bud.
Hi Shea, I just built a pole barn/garage. The concrete floor has a broom finish, not smooth. Is this a good enough texture for the Polyurea to adhere to?
Hi Kenny. A broom finish is not good for a coating and does not substitute for proper concrete prep. Coatings applied to a broom finish typically fail and begin to peel under tires and heavy traffic use. The high ridges of the finish are much weaker and tend to separate from the concrete or the coating. Broom finishes should be prepped with grinding to smooth out the surface and open the pores of the concrete for penetration of the coating.
Shea, makes sense to me, didn’t consider the ridges. Time to grind. Thank you
Hello, I’m in the process of building a 24×30 shop and the floor will be finished smooth with what looks like a floor buffer but has big fan blades instead. Will just chemical etching be enough or will it still have to be ground? Also will the polyurea coating hold up to hydraulic floor jacks, jack stands, etc…
Hello Bruce. It sounds like the floor is being power troweled. This type of surface is generally more dense and smoother than traditional steel troweling by hand. A strong acid etch will usually be sufficient, but it’s important to check various areas of the floor afterwards for porosity since acid etching does not give a consistent finish like grinding does. Yes, a polyurea floor coating system will perform well floor jacks, jack stands, and etc. as long as you aren’t carelessly dragging things around across the surface.
Hello, I’m pouring a concrete floor for a woodworking shop next week. How long should the concrete cure before applying a floor coating? Thanks
Hello Ray. You need to wait 30 days after the pour before you apply a coating.
Hi , I have some old and peeling epoxy that was put on my garage floor . Apparently the moisture got under it. What is the best thing to do at this point?? Have looked into Concrete Polishing but am told I must mop it after salt comes in during Winter. Don’t want to get ripped off again. I’m an older women and need help.Have any suggestions???
Yes, polished concrete is not a good choice for an everyday garage that is located in a climate with snowy winters. We talk about polished concrete here. What type of epoxy was applied originally? Has an actual moisture test been completed to verify moisture from under the slab?
A two part epoxy. No , I don’t think a moisture test was performed. What is the best remedy at this time . ?
I was hoping you would know what kind of epoxy, Sandi. Was it an inexpensive DIY home improvement store epoxy kit such as Rust-Oleum or Quikrete? If so, I would recommend doing a moisture test to determine if you have any and how much. It would require grinding a few spots down to bare concrete to conduct the tests. If it’s not too much moisture I would highly recommend the single-part polyurea. If the moisture is not too high, then you will need to grind the rest of the coating off before applying a new one. If the moisture is too high or you don’t want to do the grinding that is required, you can always cover the entire floor in an interlocking garage floor tiles. These do well on concrete with moisture issues and you would not have to do any concrete prep.
The epoxy was put on by a commercial company. Not sure how much experience they had. It was through Abbey carpet, a flooring company.I am told that a moisture test isn’t needed with the concrete polishing because they will just be Polishing the existing concrete
I’m not sure what you are asking at this point, Sandi. If it’s polished concrete you want, there is no getting around having to mop it during the winter to remove the road salts. If consistent maintenance is not performed during the winter time, the floor will loose its luster fairly quickly and need to be lightly polished again. That is why I linked you to our article on polished concrete for a garage floor. It’s not a good choice if you want to avoid all that. You can lay down a containment mat in the winter to catch these liquids, but it’s not going to preclude maintaining the finish of the floor. If you want to put down a quality floor coating, it’s going to require a moisture test to determine if it can be done since someone said that the old coating came up due to that. The other suggested option is interlocking garage floor tile since this can be laid directly over your current flooring. Moisture is not an issue with interlocking tile and you can custom design it however you like. Just let me know if there is a specific question and I will be glad to help out.
Where can I obtain quality interlocking floor tiles?? Certain brand that is good??? That sounds like it will be a pretty good solution to my problem. Thank you so much
We recommend Garage Flooring LLC. They have a large variety of quality interlocking tiles. Their TruLock Line is one of the best values. They also offer the best shipped price. Don’t hesitate to contact them if you have any questions.
Hi Shea, we have a new garage with a hard troweled surface (lots of swirls and water test doesn’t show water beading). I’m planning to apply the Nohr-S polyurea and I had some questions about prep with the hard trowel. I have read of the inconsistencies and dangers with acid etch so I’d prefer an alternative way to prep the surface. A couple people I’ve talked to indicated I should use a floor buffer with 40-60 grit paper to open up the pores. Would this be acceptable to prep the surface? I’m concerned that using a diamond grinder could mess up the currently level concrete and is excessive for new concrete.
Also, would I need to power wash after the buffing?
Appreciate your thoughts and I appreciate all the useful information on your site. Thanks!
Hi Matt. All concrete needs prep, especially new concrete since the troweling tends to close off more of the pores at the surface. Sanding is not going to be aggressive enough for a commercial coating. It either needs grinding with a 25 grit disc or acid etching. If you are worried about gouging the surface with a grinder then we would recommend using a Diamabrush on a floor maintainer. It’s a concrete prep tool that uses flexible blades. It’s not a concrete removal or leveling tool. You can read our article about grinding with it here. Once you are done, just shop vac the surface well and you are good to go. You don’t want to introduce water at this stage if you can help it.
Hi Shea, thanks for the advice several weeks ago. After talking with Scotty at Legacy, I opted for a single disc Edco grinder (with 18 grit Dyna Serts) with an Edco vacuum from a local rental shop. The Edco grinder worked great and I was able to get the hard troweled surface ground down within a couple of hours. The vacuum clean up took almost as long as the grinding.
One thing I learned was that my 6.5 bag (4000 psi) concrete garage floor caused the primer and polyurea to spread at almost double the coverage rate. I used the extra Nohr-S as an extra clear coat.
Thanks again for having a site with great information that allowed me to consider options and prepare for my coating.
That’s fantastic, Matt. Our goal is to help educate people and steer them in the right direction in order to avoid frustrating mistakes/results. Scotty is a great guy for working with the DIY crowd. Enjoy your new floor!
Hi, great article. Very informative
I am sold on single part polyurea coating. However, I am looking for a metallic look finish like what spartacote offers. Do any of the single part polyurea vendors offer that?
Hello KT. No, single-part polyurea is not the best medium for true metallic coatings. You need a 100% solids epoxy in order for the metallic pigment to flow properly and react with with solvents to get the typical metallic look. In addition, a dark epoxy primer is required to be applied first to provide a solid background color for the pigments.
This site is an amazing source of information. Thank you.
I have a 20×20 ft unattached garage in NW Iowa with a concrete floor. It was built about 10 yrs ago. From the start there were problems with the concrete pitting and having surface deterioration. I think it has to do with moisture. I have put an epoxy coat on it, thinking that might help (it didn’t much), and have patched spots with an epoxy patch, which does generally help. With time, the pitting and surface deterioration has largely stopped, but the floor looks fairly shabby.
My question. What overcoat, if any, would you recommend, and what prep would it require?
Hello Tom. If you have a moisture issue, then a coating is not going to perform well on the concrete. That would explain why the epoxy coating didn’t do well. The first thing you need to do before proceeding is to conduct a moisture test of the concrete. If you don’t have a moisture issue, then the pitting is most likely caused from freeze thaw and salt damage from winter weather. If that is the case, then you will want to thoroughly clean the concrete first and then make the proper repairs for pitting. We then recommend grinding the entire surface to prep for a quality coating. The single-part polyurea that we discuss in this article is an excellent option.
Thank you. That’s what I needed to know.