If you’re planning to install an epoxy floor coating in your Upstate New York garage, the success of that floor depends on how the concrete is prepared beforehand. Cold winters, seasonal temperature swings, and moisture vapor all take a toll on garage slabs. When prep work is rushed or incomplete, even a high-quality coating can fail far sooner than expected. Here are the three concrete preparation steps that make or break an epoxy floor coating.
Step 1: Repair Cracks With Materials That Can Handle Movement
Concrete cracking is unavoidable. Whether a slab is relatively new or decades old, expansion and contraction will occur, especially in Upstate New York’s climate.
Because concrete moves, cracks should never be repaired with rigid patching materials. Before installing any garage floor coating, cracks must be repaired using a flexible elastomeric filler. This allows the repair to move with the slab, helping mitigate inevitable shifting instead of transferring stress into the finished coating.
Step 2: Diamond Grinding for Proper Epoxy Floor Coating Adhesion
Sweeping, degreasing, or acid etching alone does not properly prepare concrete. Professional installers rely on diamond grinding to create the correct concrete surface profile for epoxy floors.
Grinding opens the pores of the concrete, removes surface contaminants, and exposes sound material beneath. This mechanical preparation allows the epoxy to bond securely to the slab, significantly reducing the risk of peeling or delamination over time.
Step 3: Moisture Mitigation That Protects the Floor Below the Surface
All concrete contains moisture. Before applying any floor coating, installers should test moisture levels of the concrete using calibrated meters. When concrete moisture readings are elevated, a moisture-mitigating epoxy primer should be applied as the base coat. This is essential to ensure protection against any future moisture-related issues (the thick epoxy primer acts as a moisture vapor barrier).
Because moisture-mitigating epoxies are slow curing (relative to polyurea-polyaspartics), this is one reason professionally installed systems often require a 2-day installation rather than a rushed 1-day approach. Moisture mitigation protects the garage floor where most failures begin, below the surface.
See Your Epoxy Floor Coating Before Installation Day
If you’re considering an epoxy floor coating for your Upstate New York garage, proper concrete preparation should always come first. Garage Floor Coating of New York specializes in professional crack repair, diamond grinding, and moisture-mitigating systems designed for long-term performance.
You can also explore the Live Coatings Visualizer to see how different epoxy floor coating options could look in your actual garage before moving forward. Contact us to schedule a consultation and take the next step toward a garage floor built to last.