Coating Alternatives for Garage Floors
For anyone who is similar to me, you truly appreciate the appearance and layout within your garage. I've continually planned to do something regarding the flooring within my garage and some type of coating is starting to become a trendy choice. There are numerous advantages for making use of garage floor coating. For example, someone that utilizes the garage for working on his car or truck over the weekend might prefer a surface that does not absorb engine oil like a concrete floor will. A carpenter desires a yielding surface for those long hours on his feet. And when the garage is being converted into a recreation room or man cave, something eye-catching is needed.
Durable Epoxy Floor Coatings
These floors are very tough and generate a powerful barrier for the concrete slab. The good thing is that applying it is an excellent DIY task to reduce costs on the install although a number of safeguards should be taken. The floor has to be particularly nice and clean and you also must be certain that water is not seeping up from under the slab or else you will encounter adhesion problems. Also, it is important to put on safety glasses and protective gloves.
Epoxy-type flooring is obtainable in multiple colors and even fleck variations. Lighter colors are the best in work areas on account of the reflection of light. An antimicrobial component is additionally offered. If you do a lot of automotive work, keep in mind that epoxy coating can get a bit slippery when wet so avoid cheap jack stands and get the best jack stands you can afford.
Concrete and Masonary Waterproofing Sealant
Sealers also do a good job of safeguarding the concrete. They operate within a process much like epoxy while not being as good looking. Several manufacturers are a wonderful solution in places that experience repeating tough freezes since they protect from efflorescence and spalling.
It is also rated for both exterior and interior application allowing you to run it directly out the garage and over the driveway. Another solution is a water-based stain to which a sealer can be put on.
Mats and Floor Tiles
One advantage of both of these solutions is they are quite straightforward to install. As you may anticipate, both give a little bit of shock absorption. The mats tend to be more reasonably priced and installation is quite a bit quicker but if your main concerns are good looks and flashy design, then tile is the way to go as mats are certainly more industrial appearing. The tiles may also be known as modular tiles by many brands. The ones aimed toward woodworkers are sometimes known as "anti fatigue tiles".
Ref: http://www.GarageToolAdvisor.com
The fact is, the tile marketplace is huge with a plethora of colors and patterns. One main difference among brands is the manner they hook up yet they all snap with each other somehow. They may be quite expensive but you get what you pay for. Some are manufactured from polypropylene (PVC) plastic which is quite tough.
Vinyl Tile and Carpeting
Those two choices are economical, easy to install, and work nicely for man caves and recreation rooms. The tile is offered with an adhesive backing or can be installed by troweling out a mastic.
Carpet can also be obtained in a tile shape having an adhesive back. For a do-it-yourself task, this specific install technique is less of a challenge than the technique of laying out padding. The only real caveat with carpeting is it is not desirable in excessively humid locations and you definitely shouldn't want to drive your truck over the top of it.
It's easy to see just how many choices there are for flooring. When making your decision look at the designed goal, your finances, and usefulness vs looks.
For anyone who is similar to me, you truly appreciate the appearance and layout within your garage. I've continually planned to do something regarding the flooring within my garage and some type of coating is starting to become a trendy choice. There are numerous advantages for making use of garage floor coating. For example, someone that utilizes the garage for working on his car or truck over the weekend might prefer a surface that does not absorb engine oil like a concrete floor will. A carpenter desires a yielding surface for those long hours on his feet. And when the garage is being converted into a recreation room or man cave, something eye-catching is needed.
Durable Epoxy Floor Coatings
These floors are very tough and generate a powerful barrier for the concrete slab. The good thing is that applying it is an excellent DIY task to reduce costs on the install although a number of safeguards should be taken. The floor has to be particularly nice and clean and you also must be certain that water is not seeping up from under the slab or else you will encounter adhesion problems. Also, it is important to put on safety glasses and protective gloves.
Epoxy-type flooring is obtainable in multiple colors and even fleck variations. Lighter colors are the best in work areas on account of the reflection of light. An antimicrobial component is additionally offered. If you do a lot of automotive work, keep in mind that epoxy coating can get a bit slippery when wet so avoid cheap jack stands and get the best jack stands you can afford.
Concrete and Masonary Waterproofing Sealant
Sealers also do a good job of safeguarding the concrete. They operate within a process much like epoxy while not being as good looking. Several manufacturers are a wonderful solution in places that experience repeating tough freezes since they protect from efflorescence and spalling.
It is also rated for both exterior and interior application allowing you to run it directly out the garage and over the driveway. Another solution is a water-based stain to which a sealer can be put on.
Mats and Floor Tiles
One advantage of both of these solutions is they are quite straightforward to install. As you may anticipate, both give a little bit of shock absorption. The mats tend to be more reasonably priced and installation is quite a bit quicker but if your main concerns are good looks and flashy design, then tile is the way to go as mats are certainly more industrial appearing. The tiles may also be known as modular tiles by many brands. The ones aimed toward woodworkers are sometimes known as "anti fatigue tiles".
Ref: http://www.GarageToolAdvisor.com
The fact is, the tile marketplace is huge with a plethora of colors and patterns. One main difference among brands is the manner they hook up yet they all snap with each other somehow. They may be quite expensive but you get what you pay for. Some are manufactured from polypropylene (PVC) plastic which is quite tough.
Vinyl Tile and Carpeting
Those two choices are economical, easy to install, and work nicely for man caves and recreation rooms. The tile is offered with an adhesive backing or can be installed by troweling out a mastic.
Carpet can also be obtained in a tile shape having an adhesive back. For a do-it-yourself task, this specific install technique is less of a challenge than the technique of laying out padding. The only real caveat with carpeting is it is not desirable in excessively humid locations and you definitely shouldn't want to drive your truck over the top of it.
It's easy to see just how many choices there are for flooring. When making your decision look at the designed goal, your finances, and usefulness vs looks.
Morgan's Man Cave
Say Hello to My Little Friend
The thought of changing the oil in my M3 tends to make me ill. The exact “oil change” component is okay, it’s being forced to deal with the lousy scissor jack that came with my car that’s making me crazy. Earlier in the summer, a buddy of mine let me try out his cool new floor jack (Hein Werner?) and it was painless and super smooth! I'm here, doing my own routine maintenance and repairs and not once have I considered to upgrade to something hydraulic. I know, I know.
And so AFTER all the Black Friday deals, I finally made a decision to get myself a nice Christmas gift. Probably would have been slightly more intelligent to make the decision BEFORE Black Friday but I’m not waiting another year. I’m kind of a research fanatic and seldom do I make a spontaneous decision. I’m a part of an E36 online community and so I made a post looking for recommendations and of the ten replies I received, I’m pretty sure I received ten distinct recommendations. That really didn't work.. One thing I did realize is that there was a consensus that Autozone is junk and that Sears Craftsman is overpriced.
And so the next thing I did was ask Google and just searched for floor jack reviews. There actually weren’t a great deal of websites that did not basically have info copied from the company or authored in an overly salesy tone by somebody whose primary language obviously was not English. Garage Tool Advisor had the exact same Arcan that I tried early as its seconds choice. Their best choice, made by Powerzone, was less expensive though and that’s what I chose.
At first I was a bit concerned it would not exactly be “low profile” enough for my car but turns out it’s just right. The first time I lifted up my ride I did not even need to work on it… I only wanted to try out my brand new toy. I must admit that it’s impressive! You know how often you remember those purchases we afterwards regret and less often the purchases we'd do yet again in a heartbeat? Well, this one was undoubtedly the later. I will nevertheless keep the old jack in the trunk for emergencies because I won’t be lugging around a 60 pound jack in the car, but I look forward to not having to utilize it.
Home Sweet HomeAt last! We're moved into the brand new house. Although we’re still in the same city, our house feels two times as large mostly due to the layout. The wifey got the kitchen she's always wanted and I at last have a media room and also a very large 3 car garage. I realize I have many years before retirement, but we can without a doubt picture ourselves being in this place in the long term. Since our house is situated on almost a full acre, I can at last warrant getting a John Deere riding mower.
So the place certainly is not without its issues but most of them were noted prior to completing the papers. The largest problem by far is the roofing, which will have to be replaced within the next 3 years. Yes, it’s a major cost but the previous owner did not want to deal with it before putting the home up for sale so they bumped down the price of the house by a lot. There’s lots of yard work and cleanup to do on the home along with a couple trees which don’t appear so healthy and will most likely need to be cut down.
The most urgent issue is the hot water heater. While it was mentioned on the house inspection it had been around 12 years old, the water heater had zero concerns back then. Today, I discovered a little leak has developed. According to this website, a typical hot water heater is not really built to last more than 10-20 years therefore I figure making a stop in Home Depot is in order. But first, I would like to see if it is a thing that I can take care of. The hot water tank by itself is a 60 gallon model so it’s big enough for our demands at the moment and there is really no justification to get an upgrade.
I discovered the cause of hot water heater leaks is frequently at the top or bottom of the tank. In case the hot water heater is leaking from the top, it’s in most cases a failed pressure relief valve which apparently is simple to replace (at least according to the Youtube video clips I have seen). Although, if the hot water heater is leaking from the bottom, it could indicate a much more severe issue like a failed tank. In this case, an entire replacement is necessary. I’m going through all of the troubleshooting tips but it really does appear the water is coming somewhere from the top and just dripping to the floor. I’m having a difficult time identifying the precise spot but a buddy of mine who’s a plumber is heading over later in the day to check it out. Fortunately, it’s not a serious leak so we are still able to use hot water for the moment.
I had been considering getting the garage floor epoxy coated so it is in reality good to have this issue addressed right now. Speaking of which, my garage wish list is getting longer by the day. I blame it on the additional space and the fact that a Sears store is only about 5 minutes away. Looks like they will be seeing a lot of me in the future.