Welding and epoxy floors?

[chriso1]

Hi guys,
I would like some advise here. I have recently applied epoxy floor coating on my garage floors as I was informed it will help in long lasting floors. I have some welding projects coming up and I am planning to do it in our garage. The concern is about the recently applied epoxy and if welding in a epoxy applied floor can cause any issues? Is it perfectly fine to do it or should I take any precautions to avoid any kind of damages? It would be great if someone who actually worked in epoxy coated floors could share their experience. Thanks!

[Olivero]

My shop floor is epoxy.

Depends how your welding and which process, if your TIG welding, no problem, MIG or Stick can and 95% of the time unless you never drop a ball in your welding, will make burn marks.

[Customizer]

I have epoxy (Rustoleum tan with chips) in the shop and the only problem I've had is with Oxy/A cutting --- left some burn marks in the floor.

[Metjunkie]

Hey Customizer,

How's that Rustoleum holding up for you. I've heard more bad than good about the DIY kits you can buy. I haven't done it yet for the same reason the OP is wondering. I do a fair amount of cutting and welding in my garage and I KNOW I'm gonna drop steel, weld BB's, cutting slag and what have you on the floor.

[ryanjones2150]

What is the benefit of painting a concrete shop floor with an epoxy something or other besides aesthetics?

[Bls repair]

Easy clean up of spills and dirt.

[Metjunkie]

A couple factories I worked at had a few areas epoxied and it really helped with the overall brightness of the area. Areas that I thought needed more lighting were actually lit up better with the shiny epoxy. And the older my eyes get, me needs more light.

[Olivero]

Aesthetics is the only reason. They want a high standard of appearance where I work, I tell them I am going to damage it but they still paint it.

[ryanjones2150]

I can see they'd clean up is easier for sure. And being a shop floor, I don't imagine anyone would want to pay for a nice high polish concrete surface. That's the fad inside of houses these days I understand. I've never seen a welding shop floor painted though.

[Olivero]

Oh yeah. Its a beautifull floor. Have red stripes and all this to add some features to it. Boss wants everything to look good. Hey, fine with me. I will mess it up though, tell them time and time again, but they keep wanting it to look good.

As long as I don't have to do the painting, its fine with me.

[Customizer]

Hey Customizer,

How's that Rustoleum holding up for you. I've heard more bad than good about the DIY kits you can buy. I haven't done it yet for the same reason the OP is wondering. I do a fair amount of cutting and welding in my garage and I KNOW I'm gonna drop steel, weld BB's, cutting slag and what have you on the floor.

Some observations on Rustoleum:

(1) Variations in tone across the gallons are OBVIOUS --- so you must pre-mix all the gallons together beforehand -- I had 10 gallons so I used a big container to mix.

(2) Oxy/A cutting sparks/metal definitely burn the surface .

(3) Prep is critical --- I acid etch'd, power washed 3 times before painting (they recommend only once)

(4) Heavy trucks can "pull up" the material if you turn the vehicles sharply in your shop/garage - hasn't happened to me, but I've heard about the problem.

Bottom Line: I'll give it a B+/- for durability. A+ for ease of application

[Metjunkie]

Customizer,

Thanks for the insight. I may still do it at some point. I haven't ruled out floor paint, either. I believe that can be touched up periodically. I do park my Ranger in the garage. I'm concerned about hot tire pickup and living in Arizona it gets blazin' hot in the summer.

[Customizer]

Arizona (I'm a Wildcat -- U of A) may be harder on the material for sure. I think the key is the prep work (I "overdid" it, but I think it's saved the day).

People really don't know how darn right beautiful the Sonoran Desert is --- flowers, plants, rocks, etc.