This is for my newly constructed pole barn. The flooring is bare concrete that I would like to stain or coat. The section of the barn this is for is going to be a golf simulator room. I'm not parking any cars or vehicles so I'm not worried about tires peeling the coating. Just something that looks nice and will provide waterproofing/stain protection.

Anyone have any success with a product that is fairly easy to apply and won't break the bank? Thanks in advance!

Prep is everything, you'd want to check and see if there is a cure time to the concrete that needs to happen before a product can be installed.

Temp plays a big role too in proper adhesion as does prep of the surface.

Instead of a coating I went with a concrete stain, you acid etch the floor, let it dry then apply the stain with a 2 gallon pump sprayer, you can do it as dark or light as you like, Lowes and Home Depot sell their corporate brand stains. Best part is it's not going to peel or flake.



https://blog.onfloor.com/best-concrete-stain

Acid dye stain and moisture cure urethane, talk to the folks that make these for recommendations on proper application to new concrete.

Go see a paint store (not Sherwin Williams) and see what they can offer you.

Several years back when I was working on our new shop/warehouse I was spending a lot of time researching. There's another forum out there like Sigforum but for guys who build garages:

https://www.garagejournal.com/...s-new/posts/1963218/

There was a company named Legacy Coatings that everybody raved about, and I ended up using their products based on their feedback. At the time the owner even communicated with me to answer questions and help me make a decision on which product I was going to use.

https://www.legacyindustrial.co/

They specialize in all things that coat concrete floors.

Great tips! Appreciate it!

It's a temperature controlled room and the cement has been cured for a month.

I have not personally used this but something to consider. https://e2u.com/

After looking at the above websites, I'm leaning toward an acetone stain. Has anyone here tried it and if so what was your experience?

quote:

Originally posted by G-Man:

the cement has been cured for a month.

I dont think 30 days is long enough for concrete to cure well enough to put a coating over it.

I'm no expert but my daughter is. She sells specialty flooring (glued down) to hospitals for use in OR's and ER's. The EPA rules about VOC's have made adhesives and coatings less effective. You need longer cure times than you used to. I think she would say 60-90 days minimum.

concrete stain of some sort. make sure surface prep is done per manufactures instructions, each are a little different

I prefer concrete stain over anything else because it will wear from top down opposed to failing from bottom up (peeling.... big hassle to fix)

Thanks ranger! I'm going to wait 60 days.

I went with epoxy on my garage, about 12 years ago. DIY kit from Home Depot.
Epoxy has come a long way since then. Designs, colors… the one thing I’ll recommend is using extra “grit” - silica sand.
YOURE GOING TO NEED IT!
It gets slippery-er than an ice rink when it gets cold!
I tripled up on the packages, yes it was a pain in the butt to stir, but well worth it!

You can also look into a professional painter that does epoxy coating. It may be worth it.

quote:

Originally posted by G-Man:
After looking at the above websites, I'm leaning toward an acetone stain. Has anyone here tried it and if so what was your experience?

Acetone works better than water based sealers on older concrete since it penetrates a little better, but my understanding is that water based sealer is fine if the concrete isn't old. Like anything else in the world that's painted, coated, or sealed, prep is 99% of the work.

Update: I went with Valspar semitransparent stain from Lowe's. It turned out great I think and wasn't too expensive.



And here is the new barn this room is in: