You’ve decided to coat your garage floor to protect it from damage and elevate the look of your garage. Great choice! Garage floor coatings have become popular because they extend the life of your garage floor and protect it from wear and tear, weather, and other elements.
Northern Ohio’s weather is highly variable, so you may be wondering when the best time to coat your garage floor will be. The answer primarily depends on the type of flooring (epoxy or polyaspartic polyurea) and the curing processes for each. We’ll go through it and answer your questions so you can plan accordingly!
Epoxy Coating vs. Polyaspartic Coating
Though epoxy is a great choice for coating, but polyaspartic coating is our top choice for garage floors. Here are some of its highlights:
- 4x the durability compared to standard epoxy coatings
- Easy to clean, with no special equipment needed
- Environmentally friendly due to not emitting any harmful VOCs
- Longevity, usually 2-3x longer lasting than epoxy
- Very customizable, from color and patterns to logos
In addition, there are differences between epoxy and polyaspartic in terms of what time of year they can be applied. Let’s get into it!
Weather and Temperature Conditions
Garage floor coatings take time to cure from application to completion. Curing is different from drying, as it is a scientific process that takes input from the surrounding area. Temperature and humidity impact the curing process.
The ideal temperature for epoxy coating installation is between 55 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit. If the weather is cold, the curing process slows. This can make the final product brittle and more prone to cracking. If the weather is hot, it can overaccelerate the curing process, leading to a porous surface. Moreover, high humidity levels can slow the curing process and lead to a less-than-optimal finished product. Rain can also negatively affect the curing of this type of flooring.
In contrast, polyaspartic flooring can be applied almost any time of the year. Whether it’s winter or summer, the weather doesn’t affect the curing process as it does with epoxy.
Cure time
The main reason that polyaspartic coating can be applied in any season is because of its quick cure time. Polyaspartic flooring can be done in a day with the right team and tools. Epoxy coating, on the other hand, can take up to 72 hours to completely harden, rendering your garage floor unusable during that time frame. Not to mention, you have to be mindful of the temperature and humidity when using an epoxy coating.
Best Time of Year to Apply Epoxy Coating
As we mentioned, the optimal temperature for epoxy curing is between 55 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit. For the best results in Cleveland’s climate, it’s ideal to apply an epoxy coating in the spring to early summer or late summer to fall. These seasons offer the ideal temperature and humidity conditions to apply the coating, avoiding the extreme temperatures of winter and summer.
Best Time of Year to Apply Polyaspartic Coating
The best time to install polyaspartic coating is whenever you want or need it! Since this flooring type isn’t subject to the elements, we can apply this at almost any time of the year.
Our Process
Cleveland Concrete Coatings is your top-notch team of friendly, highly-skilled professionals ready to custom-tailor your new garage floor coating to meet your specific needs. We inspect and assess your property and make the required adjustments to the process to ensure you have exactly the right product for your intended use. We clean, prep, install, and perform a thorough inspection once completed because your satisfaction is our top priority.
Now that you know when the best time to install your garage floor coating is, contact us today for a free quote.