Garage floors by a Handyman

Garage floors are often the most neglected parts of any house. People may purchase expensive marble tiles for their kitchen or have their walls painted with water-resistant paints, but for the garage floor, it is still the age old concrete that gets the preference. This is not a right thing to do. Garage floors get exposed to various corrosive substances, such as, antifreeze used in car coolant tanks and radiators, battery acids, salt, grease, and motor oil. On prolonged exposure, these can eat through concrete, often severely damaging the floor. Putting up dry walls in a garage is a good thing to do, but some form of some garage flooring is also required.

Garage floors can be protected in a variety of ways. These can be coated with epoxy and vinyl. Sure, it’s laborious, but the longevity and superior protection it can provide to the floor makes it all worth it. This process is also not very expensive, and hence, a very good option for most homeowners.



Floor tiles are also good for protecting garage floors from chemical corrosion. Garage floors can be tiled more easily than room floors. Peel and stick tiles of special kinds are marketed specifically for applying on garage floors. These tiles are laminated to make them immune to corrosive effects of all kinds. Simply sticking the tiles (which come with adhesive already applied on the backside) on the floor will protect it from corrosion of all kinds for a long time to come. The tiles are made of various substances, such as, rubber, vinyl, etc. These come in various patterns, like coin, ribbed or diamond. Laying a layer of these tiles can take anything between one to two days, making it the ideal weekend project. The process requires very little equipments. A measuring tape, a utility knife (to cut any overlapping tiles to shape) and a pair of kneepads are all that are needed to carry out the process. Also, the tiles are cheap, and can be laid during any season. These do not expand or get chipped easily, and can withstand weights of even very heavy vehicles.



Tiling the garage floors also has another important benefit. This can greatly increase the market value of the home. If the owner chooses to sell the house in future, the tiled garage floor will improve both the appeal of the house to prospective buyers and its market value. Garage flooring is thus a great way of boosting both the longevity of the floor and the value of the house where it is done.

Go Home