For many years, Lakeside Painting has seen an ever-increasing demand for help with the maintenance of concrete floors. Most customers call wanting to install epoxy or urethane coatings on their floors, or stain, dye, seal and/or polish them. If it&#;s a garage, retail or food service area, warehouse, airport hangar, machine shop or manufacturing facility, Lakeside can help. By answering the following questions, we can better help you determine which of the various solutions we offer is best suited for you or your company&#;s specific needs. Indeed, there are wide ranges of solutions for vast array of flooring issues or problems.
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One of the first questions I ask is: What are you hoping to achieve with the treatment of your concrete floor surface?
Other questions follow from there.
Is it an aesthetic issue (do you want to make it look better, brighter, colorful, trendy), or do you want to protect it and make it last longer, or both? Is there an existing coating on the floor; is it failing requiring removal or adhering properly needing only to be prepped and re-coated? Do you want to make it easier to clean or safer, less slippery when wet, or rid the floor of trip hazards such as transition issues, snags, gaps, exposed edges, potholes and the like? Maybe your concrete is old, cracked, and worn and you want to stop the deterioration and save the inevitable cost of replacement&#;to resurface it and protect it from the elements, environment, and the wear and tear it is subjected to on a daily basis. The list is long and the solutions can be just as long.
Other important questions I ask include: how do you plan to clean and maintain the floor after the treatment is determined and implemented? Is your intention to hand-mop it or use power scrubbers/vacuums? Will the floor be cleaned daily, weekly, or once a month? What will the floor be subjected to in its everyday use: salt, caustics, acids, cutting fluids, oils, water, harsh cleaning solvents? What type of traffic will the floor be subjected to? Will there be vehicles like cars, planes, fork trucks or steel wheels carts traveling over the floor, or will it be a pedestrian traffic only? Will the floor be wet or oily at times, and are spills, leaks, over-spray or tracking an issue? All of these are important questions to ask in the selection of your floor's treatment.
Also consider &#;out-of-service-time&#; and &#;odors, fumes and/or dust disturbance." Out-of-service-time is the time you or your company will be without the use of the floor. You can allow us full control of the area, which helps us determine which treatment is best suited for your floor. Epoxy and urethane coatings depending on the size and severity of patching, and typically require 3 to 5 days to be back in service. Using Polyaspartic coatings, we can turn over smaller areas in as little as 10 to 12 hours. Polishing is somewhere in the middle; however, absolute control of the area is not typically as critical.
Odor, fumes, and/or dust are important issues as they can disturb personnel in and around the work area or contaminate delicate instruments, tools, and product. If proper ventilation procedures are not possible, such as in the center of a large facility, we can build containment areas, and use HEPA air scrubbers with charcoal filters to evacuate and clean the air of toxins and/or dust. We also work nights, weekends and shutdowns to help facilitate completion of important high-use areas.
If you have any other questions about concrete floor systems, and how Lakeside Painting can help you get the results you want, give us a call.
When it is time to renew your facility&#;s floor (or if your floor is brand new), epoxy resin coatings are an outstanding choice. They provide a long lasting, aesthetically pleasing surface which will enhance the looks, safety and maintenance of your floor. Here are the right questions to ask of your warehouse painting contractor as you explore your options.
1. How long will it take for the coatings to set?
Epoxy coatings are manufactured with a variety of set times, ranging from slow to fast. The length of set time will affect how long your job takes, how expensive it is, even durability. You should know the set time being recommended and why that is the right choice.
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2. How thick will the coating be applied?
Again there is a wide range of coating thicknesses, depending upon the product and application. They can be as thin as 2-3 mils and as thick as 40-50 mils. The thickness needed is dependent upon several factors such as type and condition of the substrate, the kinds of usage the floor will receive, budget costs and more. Generally, thicker coatings will be more expensive. Be sure to explore the options since they will affect the final cost.
3. What is the VOC content of the coating?
Volatile Organic Compounds content generally refers to the solvents contained in a coating, which will evaporate into the atmosphere as the coating cures. If possible, specify a coating which contains 100% solids. This will virtually eliminate toxicity (no solvents are released) and will help protect employees and customers alike from indoor air pollution. These coatings are also ideal for food plants or food preparation areas. Unless there is a compelling reason for using solvent based resins, most contractors will not use them because they are highly regulated by the EPA.
4. What is the slip resistance of your flooring?
Indoor areas generally don&#;t need as much slip resistance as outdoor areas such as loading docks or ramps. If needed, you can increase the non-slip properties of a floor coating by adding aggregates. There are many options available, but generally they aren&#;t needed for normal traffic. Be sure and have a conversation with your contractor if you have concerns about slip resistance.
5. How much gloss or sheen can you expect?
Floor coatings can add reflection to your facility floors, which will help increase the effectiveness of your lighting. This can help make your facility safer and more aesthetically appealing. There may be reasons you don&#;t wish to add a great deal of gloss, so you need to let your commercial painting company know that.
6. What is the resistance of the coating to abrasions and impact?
If your facility is a working facility, then your floors will get banged up. They will be subject to scratching and abrasions more so than floors in more decorative areas. Make sure that your epoxy resin coating will provide you with the hardness you need so that your flooring will hold up over time.
You probably aren&#;t a coatings expert, so you don&#;t know the answers to these questions. However, at least now, you know the questions to ask. Be sure and confirm that the company you are considering doing business with has the answers.
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