Four Most Common Concrete Floor Coatings in the U.S.
Concrete floor coatings offer several distinct advantages and design options. While these floor coatings primarily protect the underlying concrete floors, they also serve several functional and aesthetic purposes.
For example, concrete floor coatings can decorate a space, mark traffic lanes, route people, make stained concrete floors look brand new, and even prevent the corrosion of steel reinforcements. In this article, Portamix will look at the four most common concrete floor coatings in the U.S., evaluate their pros and cons, and help you make a more informed decision about which one is right for you.
Epoxy Floor Coatings
Epoxy floor coatings combine an epoxy resin and a polyamine hardener. When these two elements are mixed and poured, they undergo a chemical reaction that encourages them to cure. Once cured, the resulting floor coating is hard, durable, and bonds to most underlayers. Epoxy floor coatings are extremely durable, impact-resistant, and chemical-resistant. Therefore, epoxy flooring is common in industrial facilities, warehouses, labs, and the automotive industry.
Polyurethane Flooring
Polyurethane is a thermosetting polymer that belongs to a chemical compound group called carbamates. While polyurethane flooring looks similar to epoxy flooring, it's more flexible and elastic, making it a great choice for environments that demand shock absorption capabilities or have changing temperatures. These characteristics make polyurethane flooring ideal for car parks, commercial freezers, commercial facilities, and areas with heavy vehicle or pedestrian traffic.
Polyaspartic Flooring
Polyaspartic is a type of polyurea flooring that uses a two-part system of resin and a hardener to complete the curing process. In recent years, polyaspartic flooring has proven itself a worthy alternative to epoxy and polyurethane flooring, especially because it can be used as a complete floor coating and doesn't require a topcoat. By manipulating the polyaspartic esters, you can also customize the application of polyaspartic flooring to control drying time, allowing commercial facilities to get back to operation with little downtime. Polyaspartic flooring is often used in areas with medium to heavy foot traffic.
Acrylic Flooring
Acrylic floor coatings are made with ethyl acrylate, methyl methacrylate, or butyl acrylate and processed with water. The result is a floor coating that's easy to apply and affordable but not as durable as the others listed above. While acrylic lacks the durability of other floor coatings, it offers advantages like fast drying type and minimal labor.
Pouring Concrete Floor Coatings
No matter which concrete floor coating you choose, you'll benefit from the increased durability and longevity of your concrete floors. However, to reap all the benefits of floor coatings, you need specialized knowledge and equipment for the application. Properly mixing and pouring concrete floor coatings to create a smooth layer without bubbles and lumps makes all the difference in how your floor looks and functions. So, connect with the experts at Portamix to ensure you have the professional equipment you need to nail your concrete floor coating the first time.