Wear-resistant concrete floor paint - how to choose?
Concrete floors made in compliance with the technology and necessarily from a decent material are very durable and resistant to mechanical stress. A logical question arises: then why do we need concrete floor paint and more durable?
It's simple: concrete floors aren't pretty, prone to dirt, and aren't exactly easy to clean, and adequate coverage makes all the difference.
Concrete floors are usually made in garages, basements, laundries, hangars, parking lots and other areas where we pay attention to stability and reliability more than an aesthetic component. But we cannot leave them completely unfinished, if only for the reason that concrete is quite susceptible to all kinds of pollution.
There are several common flooring options. However, the easiest, fastest and cheapest way to protect and at the same time beautify a concrete floor is to coat it with one of the concrete floor paints specially designed for this purpose: acrylic, epoxy, polyurethane, rubber or urethane-alkyd. Some doubt: can concrete be painted with paint? The answer is an unequivocal YES! A decent palette of colors allows you to choose the right option for every taste and preference. What technical specifications should this product have? She must be:
- Wear resistant
- Fire retardant (fire retardant, heat resistant)
- weather resistant
- Without smell
- Water repellent
- chemical resistant
- Quick dry
- washable
Unfortunately there is no universal solution. All currently available proposals to some extent have these properties, but to varying degrees. Therefore, when choosing it is necessary to focus on two main points:
- The purpose of the room (That is, who and how will exploit the floor and with what intensity. It is quite obvious that the paint on concrete for the floor in the garage may be inferior in performance to a similar product used in a public underground parking lot)
- The cost of paint (A high price in itself is not a guarantee of quality, but an unreasonably cheap product is unlikely to achieve the desired result)
In principle, any concrete floor paint is not a cheap product, but today there is a really wide choice. So in order not to make hasty and unreasonably expensive decisions, let's compare the main of their properties.
2. Types of paints for concrete
Acrylic paint for concrete
It is made on the basis of acrylic resin and organic or inorganic pigments. Some manufacturers claim that a single layer is enough to obtain a high-quality coating. However, practice shows that only two-layer application makes it possible to obtain the desired result. Consumption of paint on concrete ranges from 0.1 to 0.2 l / m².
Resistant to short-term exposure to water and non-aggressive chemicals. Acrylic paints are available in a wide range of colors. They can be glossy or matte. Water is used for dilution. The most democratic at the price production from the presented types of coverings. After finishing painting, the floor surface is ready for use in 48 hours.
With little intensive use, acrylic paints for concrete can be used to paint the floor in a private garage or workshop.
Acrylic Floor Paint for Concrete can be recommended for use on small to medium sized surfaces balconies, basements, garages. One small BUT: in the garage, use acrylic paint either in a dry basement or on the 2nd floor, if available. It can be used for the main floor, but it is better to use epoxy or polyurethane paint.
Attention! Paints of this type cannot be used for repainting and renovating coatings that have been finished with polyurethane and epoxy finishes.
It is a two-component, water-thinnable paint. Therefore, before use, it is necessary to mix the two components with a drill with a nozzle until smooth. The surface to be painted must first be primed. To do this, the main composition is diluted with water (10-20%) or primers on the same epoxy base are used. Epoxy paint for concrete consumption per m2: 0.1-0.2 l / m².
Epoxy paint gives the floor a pleasant and neat look, providing reliable protection and durability.
To obtain a high-quality coating, it is applied two coats of paint. The full strength of the floor is reached only after four to five days, but you can walk on it as early as 24 hours after painting. It has excellent abrasion resistance, which is commensurate with the best characteristics of other samples. In terms of price to quality, it is the best choice.
Epoxy-based paint for concrete is widely used in both technical and general premises.
Epoxy paint for concrete and concrete floors gives the coating a high degree of gloss. Recommended for use in large areas in workshops, covered car parks, hangars. In addition, its use is increasingly spreading with. For example, if you do, you can completely change the old tiled floor with this paint. Follow the link and see a photo of the real use of this product for self-repair.
Polyurethane is a polymer that is used as an excellent substitute for rubber, where work is required even in aggressive conditions at temperatures from -60 to +80 degrees Celsius. That is, such coatings are polymer paints for concrete.
This type of enamel paint can be presented in composition as a one-component or two-component product. Previously, it was often stated that this type of paint is applied at a temperature of +5 or -3 and that after application, the polyurethane enamel stops sticking after a few days.
But work on the composition and improvement of its properties does not stop, and as a result, there are now samples at a price of 350 rubles per kilogram that can be used at temperatures from -30, and partial operation is possible a day after applying the second layer.
Polyurethane-based paints for concrete have excellent technical characteristics and are an excellent choice for any objects.
Consumption is between 0.14 and 0.2 l/m². Coloring is made from 2 to 4 times, while the interval is from 4 to 8 hours. Full load on the painted surface is possible no earlier than three days after completion of work. The spread of indicators is due to different technical characteristics of specific manufacturers.
A wide range of colors and a high degree of wear resistance make polyurethane enamels one of the best of their kind.
Polyurethane-based paints for concrete have high chemical, mechanical and general wear resistance and are therefore recommended for use in garages, car parks, car washes, service shops, sports. halls, rooms for birds and animals, as well as in those. swimming pools and for home use.
Rubber paint for concrete
There is actually no rubber in this paint. The basis of a fairly popular decorative material today is acrylate latex, which gives it an enviable strength and at the same time allows you to remain elastic. Additional components such as coalescent, antifreeze, water, as well as some others give the necessary characteristics to the product.Many people think that acrylate latex is something new. In fact, separate and quite successful (those that are still used today) methods for the production of this miracle product were developed back in the USSR. But the widespread use of acrylate latex in the paint industry began relatively recently.
Rubber paint for concrete is suitable not only for interior work. It is successfully used for waterproofing small pools and roofs.
Rubber floor paint for concrete can be used both indoors and outdoors and facilities(for internal, as well as external work, as it is both moisture resistant and water resistant) at temperatures from -50 to +150 degrees Celsius.
In any case, at least two coats are recommended. Rubber floor paint is fast drying: the required waiting time for applying the next coat is from 1 to 4 hours. Service life up to 10 years. Of course, all specific characteristics depend on the manufacturer of the product.
Attention! Rubber-based paint for concrete has a higher consumption compared to other types of similar coatings. The consumption of individual types of products can be up to 0.5 l / m².
The most important component of this product is alkyd resin. Consumption of paint on concrete per 1 m2 is from 0.09 to 0.2 l/m2, which depends on the coating, its pre-treatment and the manufacturer of the product. It is applied to the surface in 2 layers with a brush, a recommended roller, or a special sprayer.
The interval of application of layers is on average 24 hours. Also, 24 hours after applying the second layer, the surface can be partially exploited. Final hardening and achievement of maximum strength occurs not earlier than two or three weeks.
When carrying out work, manufacturers recommend pre-priming with the original product diluted with white spirit. With a high-quality prepared surface, it is possible to apply one layer but with obligatory preliminary priming.
This type of paint has the necessary resistance for indoor use without the use of highly active substances.
Many manufacturers point out the possibility of using the product when carrying out repairs to restore previously painted floors using alkyd and epoxy coatings or certain types of varnish.
Urethane Alkyd Floor Paint easy to clean, enough resistant to common chemicals(as an example: white spirit or medical alcohol), but afraid of highly aggressive solvents. Abrasion resistant. Manufacturers offer a wide color palette of paints. Almost all of them are glossy.
Attention! The overall lifetime of glossy urethane-alkyd paints is 20% longer than other alkyd coatings.
3. Preparing the floor for painting
Before you start painting, you need to prepare the painted surface of the floor. There is nothing complicated about this, however, without following the simple rules, all your further work may go down the drain.
Freshly made floors must be aged for at least 28 days after manufacturing. It is even better if 2-3 months pass, while the preferred room temperature should be about 20 degrees. The moisture content of the concrete floor should be no more than 5%. You can test it with a special moisture meter or, if you don't have one, with a small piece of plastic wrap. Take a piece of film about 25 by 25 cm in size and attach it to the floor with mounting tape.
After a day, remove the film and check the presence or absence of condensate on its surface. The effect of the unpainted concrete will be visible to the naked eye: the film will be damp or even wet, and the concrete underneath is definitely darker than elsewhere on the floor. If you see a clear sign that the floor needs to dry, then the painting work is premature.
If you are going to paint a floor that is already in use, carefully inspect it for cracks, chips, or traces of grease. Any defects should be repaired and stains removed with a clean cloth soaked in solvent. Use a vacuum cleaner to remove any foreign particles from the surface, rinse the entire surface without wetting it too much and after a couple of days you can start painting.
