Garage Floor Covering
Interlocking Tile, Mats, Epoxy, Paint and Sealers

"Today, garage flooring comes in just about every color, texture,
and pattern you can think of."

Gladiator GarageWorks Charcoal Floor Tiles

With so many garage floor covering options, you are no longer limited to just gray concrete. Modern homeowners can certainly stick with bare concrete, but there are a host of other choices.

Form plus function is the name of the game, from interlocking garage floor tile to garage mats and various types of coatings, from sealers to paints and epoxies.

Today, garage floor covering comes in just about every color, texture, and pattern you can think of. Attractive garage floor covering can protect, preserve and beautify concrete while increasing the value of your home. If you decide to sell, an attractive garage floor makes your home more appealing to potential buyers.

Besides making your garage more attractive, modern garage flooring solutions also make it easier to clean, locking out moisture that can lead to cracks, not to mention dangerous molds.

What is the Best Garage Floor Covering?

Each type of flooring has unique advantages and disadvantages, so the "best" option really depends on your needs as a homeowner. Interlocking garage floor tile and garage floor mats are excellent choices for garage workshops, since they provide anti-slip protection.

Epoxy floor coverings and sealants are very durable, so they are great for garage floors that get a lot of wear. Garage floor paint is the most cost-effective option for a garage that doesn't get a lot of use and just needs a quick touch-up.

Keep your own criteria in mind as you read about the following garage floor covering options:

Garage Floor Tile

Garage Floor Tiles

Garage floor tile covers your garage with non-slip, easy-to-clean, protective squares that fit together easily. You can have this type of garage floor covering installed by a professional or do it yourself. Because many different shades are available, using tiles is a great way to design a custom garage floor.

For example, you could use a checkered, black and white pattern to recreate the look of a racing flag. Or, you could design a unique pattern using your favorite colors. Since the tiles are all individual pieces, you can fit them around oddly shaped areas easily, although it will obviously not be as exact as painting.

Garage floor tile is durable, but if some tiles do get damaged it's an easy fix. Instead of replacing the entire floor, you just need to replace the damaged tiles.

If you use your garage as a workshop, non-slip tile can help prevent falls. Plus, your feet will thank you for the extra cushioning.

For garages with a floor drain, most tile products offer drain tiles. They match the other tiles but allow water to pass through into the floor drain.

On the negative side, garage floor tile is one of the more expensive garage floor covering options. Costs start at $2.00 to $2.50 per square foot and go up from there.

Garage Floor Mats

Garage Floor Mats

As the name implies, garage floor mats are a thick covering, often made of vinyl, that you roll out to cover your garage floor. Like garage floor tile, a good garage floor mat is attractive, durable, and protects your floor from moisture and damage. It also protects your feet from slipping while giving them some cushioning.

Garage floor mats tend to be less expensive and quicker to install than garage floor tiles. Most manufacturers offer a variety of sizes to fit your need.

Some people use them to only cover a portion of the garage floor as a parking pad while others prefer wall-to-wall coverage. For larger sized garages, you simply put two or more mats together. For oddly shaped areas, you can custom cut the mat yourself.

A garage floor mat can be a good option if your garage floor is damaged, but you don't want to deal with the expense of resurfacing it. You can roll a mat over just about any garage floor, unless it is badly cracked.

A garage floor mat is easy to clean in most situations. Lighter weight mats can simply be removed from the garage, hosed down outside, and replaced. If you have tool chests, garage cabinets, appliances or a workbench on top of the mat, removal obviously becomes more difficult.

Repairs can be more difficult than for tiles. Instead of just removing and replacing one damaged tile, you generally have to create a patch to match the damged area. If that doesn't work, you may need to replace the entire mat. On the bright side, removing garage floor mats is quick and simple.

Epoxy Garage Floor Covering

Rustoleum Garage Floor Epoxy

Garage floor epoxy is a durable, thick paint-like product applied directly over concrete flooring. For simple, 1 part epoxy (more like garage floor paint), which is widely available to consumers, you have to carefully clean and treat your garage floor first, then paint it on, preferably in two coats.

The next, more common option is 2 part epoxy. Although there are a number of brands and varieties of 2 part products, they are basically a high quality paint (1 part) with a chemical hardening agent added (the 2nd part). Once the hardener is added, the paint starts to harden and you only have about 2 hours of "pot life" to apply it to the garage floor. The major advantage to 2 part epoxy is durability.

If you have heard the term "100% solids epoxy," that is the higher-end epoxy garage floor covering product typically installed by professionals. The 100% reference relates to what percentage of solids are left after drying. It is more expensive than 2 part epoxy kits you find in home improvement stores, but the end result is typically thicker, longer-lasting coverage. As with all garage floor coatings, the garage floor must be thoroughly cleaned before application. Preparation is the key to a satisfactory installation.

With its glossy sheen, epoxy garage flooring is certainly aesthetically pleasing. Epoxy flooring is also customizable. You can paint patterns on the floor in different colors or make shapes with stencils.

Epoxy is very durable and looks great for years. A strong epoxy layer will protect the concrete underneath. Plus, it's easy to clean with a mop or soft bristle scrub brush, just like any other smooth, hard surface. Be sure to check your product for anti-slip properties. Epoxy floors can be quite slippery if anti-slip additives or top coats are not used. Most products offer this as part of their kit or as an option.

Although garage floor epoxy can be applied by yourself, keep in mind that it's at least a full day's project. It is actually best to plan for a weekend or two days of your vacation to properly prepare and apply a quality epoxy finish. After prep work, you have to apply each coat separately, with one coat taking about 5 or 6 hours to dry (up to 12 hours, depending on the brand and type). The second coat or "top coat" is applied after the first coat is dry.

A 2 part epoxy garage floor covering product cures faster than 1 part products and regular garage paint due to the chemical activator. You can generally park cars on your newly coated floor within 72 hours. After all the time and effort you put into preparation and application, you need to be patient and let the product cure before subjecting it to traffic. Be sure to read the instructions for your particular product since they all vary slightly on application methods and curing time.

NOTE: Sunlight can fade an epoxy floor covering, although adding a layer of polyurethane garage floor sealant neutralizes this issue.

Garage Floor Paint - A Basic Garage Floor Covering

Garage Floor Paint

An inexpensive garage floor covering option is to just cover your garage floor with one or two coats of paint. Most hardware stores sell paint designed for your garage. It's easy, fairly quick and is typically customizable.

For example, you could paint a miniature road inside your garage, complete with white lines at the sides and double yellow lines in the center. Your imagination is the only limit.

Basic garage floor paint will provide some protection and make your garage floor much easier to clean than before. However, if you want a protective coating that will last more than 1 to 3 years, you may want to select a different garage flooring option. Regular paint is just a thin, mostly aesthetic coating over porous cement and it doesn't provide significant anti-slip protection or cushioning for your feet.

Although a painted garage floor is certainly attractive when fresh, you will have to repaint it frequently to keep that fresh look. This, of course, depends on the amount of foot and car traffic, whether you pull a floor jack across the floor, etc. With basic garage floor paint, heavy use leads to the need for regular maintenance.

As with all garage floor coatings, preparation is just as important with paint as with sealers, epoxy, etc. The more time you spend properly preparing your floor the better your finish will be. Read these tips for painting garage floors to learn more.

Garage Floor Sealer - An Alternative to Garage Floor Covering

Quikrete Concrete Sealer

Epoxy is actually just one of many garage floor sealers homeowners can choose from. There are also penetrating sealants, which are sprayed directly on your concrete floor. Penetrating sealants soak into the pores of the concrete and harden, forming a solid block that keeps moisture out.

Sealers protect your garage floor and make it easier to clean without making it slippery. However, they don't do much to change the look of the concrete since they are clear. If you are looking for a product to change or customize the look of your garage floor, a standard garage floor sealer may not be your best bet.

The next choice would be a film forming sealant, which forms a protective layer over the concrete rather than filling the pores. Epoxy fits in this category along with polyurethane and acrylic options.

Polyurethane is very durable, glossy, and stays looking fresh for years. However, you usually need to use an epoxy primer first to get the polyurethane to bond to the concrete. Consequently, polyurethane is typically used to protect epoxy flooring or to create special effects, such as a speckled look, over epoxy flooring. Polyurethane is also the most expensive garage floor sealant.

Acrylic garage floor sealer is the least expensive of the film forming sealants. It is similar to paint and can also be applied directly to concrete. Acrylic offers different levels of shine, depending on your preferences. Acrylic isn't as durable as epoxy or polyurethane, however, so expect to redo it every few years.

NOTE: All film forming sealants make your floor slippery when wet, so using anti-skid coatings or additives is definitely recommended. If you are looking for a product to cushion your garage floor, this is not a good choice.

Conclusion

The best garage floor covering depends on your personal tastes and specific wants, needs, desires, etc. Step one in making the best choice for you and your garage floor is to ask yourself why you want something other than plain concrete.

From basic sealants to custom epoxy garage flooring and rubber garage floor mats to patterned garage floor tiles, your choices are almost limitless. Ask "Why?" first before getting to "What?" Then consider your budget, whether you want to do the job yourself or have it done professionally, and if you are looking for a temporary or permanent solution.

For many people, the garage is the first thing they see before leaving for work and the last thing they see before entering their home. Shouldn't being in your garage make you feel happy, comfortable, and proud? Your garage floor is a great place to start.

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