Things To Consider Before You Clean For Garage Floor Paint
Posted: Monday, November 09, 2009
by Anthony Davis
If you have read up on garage floor paint at all, you will know that one thing remains very consistent between the different directions of the various garage floor coatings. The floor has to be extremely clean. Different manufacturers' and experts' opinions vary on if you can paint over existing paint by just cleaning it, or if it needs to be stripped down to the concrete. The purpose of this article is to help you decide if it's time to clean the garage floor for your epoxy garage floor coating. Cleaning unnecessarily is not harmful, but it is not particularly necessary. As always, be sure to check your garage floor epoxy kit's directions for any additional steps.
One of the first things to consider is the age of your concrete garage floor. If new, you have to wait. Putting chemicals on new concrete is not a good idea. Wait at least 30 days before you even think about cleaning, and definitely before applying epoxy garage floor paint.
What's The Weather, Ollie?
If it's gonna rain, humidity will increase, and your epoxy garage floor paint is not going to set correctly. Will a light drizzle on the 23rd hour be a horrible thing? Unlikely, yet why take the chance when you can just look at the forecast?
Temperature Is Important, Too
You should also be aware of the temperature. In some areas, this is particularly bad. Experts suggest that you not put down epoxy garage floor paint when the temperature rises above 90 degrees, or drops below 55 degrees Fahrenheit. 89 degrees is probably okay as long as the floor itself does not feel hot. However, going too low can be bad because you can bet that if it's 55 degrees in the air, then your concrete is cooler, and that could be a problem. Do not push the envelope; there is no point. You will be doing a lot of hard work, so do not do anything that will mess it up before you even start.
So, Are You Ready To Clean?
Do any of the above apply? If so, then you are not ready to begin cleaning. Well, you can, but you will just have to do it again once the problem disappears, so why bother just yet? Oil and grease stains both sweat, so they'll have to be re-cleaned, and garage floors get dusty in record time. That's not considering whatever may fall off of your car. All things considered, after 72 hours of cleaning, your floor is dirty again. However, if the temperature, forecast, and age of the concrete all look good, then it's time to clean some garage floors!
Learn more about garage floor paint, along with various coverings and coatings for your garage floor.
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Top-level comments on this article: (2 total)Sounds like a lot of work to me for something that only lasts for a short time. Welcome to Searchwarp.Linda DThe paint itself will generally last decades. It's the cleaning job that's short lived.
Hi Anthony,Thanks for this article. Rather good timing for me... I just cleaned out my garage, but I didn't have a yard sale. Just wanted to be able to get the car back in for the winter.Welcome to SearchWarpMark
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