Considering Painting Your Garage Floor? Here's What to Know

Considering Painting Your Garage Floor? Here’s What to Know

Garage floor painting will cross many homeowners’ minds at some point. With the constant wear the typical garage floor receives, it can soon start to look weathered, dirty and old. For some, painting over this floor might seem like the obvious solution to improve the look of the garage. This article covers the various advantages and disadvantages of painting a garage floor by yourself, as well as the other options you can choose. 

DIY Paint Your Garage Floor

When you’re deciding between DIY vs. professional garage flooring options, you’ll want to look at the pros and cons of attempting to paint the floor yourself. It’s a tall task, so it’s helpful to understand what you’re getting into. 

Advantages 

A DIY garage floor paint project does come with various benefits, including: 

  • Affordability: In most cases, it’s usually pretty cheap to paint your floor on your own. A couple of gallons of paint and a few tools and you should be ready to go. 
  • Cleanliness: Adding a coat of paint to your garage floor can help keep the rest of the area clean. An old concrete garage floor can attract dust and dirt, which could transfer to cars and tools. With a new coat of paint, you can cut down on some of this added dirt and keep your garage looking fresh. The cleaning process itself will be much easier, as well — just grab a mop and run it over the surface a few times to get it sparkling new. 
  • Protection: Garages are a common place for oil spills, chemicals and mold. With the right paint, you can add a layer of protection to your floors, making it much easier to clean up these spills and defend against damage.
  • Aesthetic: Painting your garage floors will also make them look better. You won’t have that old, dirty floor anymore, and instead, you can look at a sleek paint job. With the DIY option, you can make your floor exactly like you want, fit to your exact specifications. It will add a modern, more polished look to your garage that you’ll be proud to look at every time you walk in. 

Disadvantages

Painting your garage floors on your own might seem appealing, but it comes with many hidden challenges that you might not consider at first. Before you start on a project, you should know the cons of DIY garage floors so you can make an informed decision about what you really want to do.

  • Short life span: Paint wears down quickly, especially in the presence of so much wear. With cars constantly coming in and out, your paint can begin to chip and flake in a short time. After you’ve put all the time and effort into painting, you could start to see your job crumble before your eyes. Garage floor sealing can help stop the weathering process to an extent, but the chemicals involved are potentially dangerous and best left to a trained professional. 
  • Potentially harmful: As the paint job starts to break down and crumble, those particles will turn into dust and enter the garage’s air. When you enter, you could inhale these particles, which could harm your health. 
  • Time and money: The DIY options always shared a common disadvantage — time. It will take time to figure out how to paint your garage floor, choose what paint to use and do the actual job. If you enjoy the process, this could be an advantage. However, most people would rather spend this time with friends and family or doing another activity. Additionally, because you’ll likely have to repaint often to prevent wear, you’ll have to spend a decent amount of money on each job. You’ll want to weigh this against the option of hiring a professional service, which would use quality materials to do a job that’s lasting and efficient. 
  • Amateur look: If you’re new to painting floors or haven’t done it very often, your finished product could end up looking differently than you envisioned. Even though you’re the one doing the painting, it might not live up to your expectations, whereas professionals will have the skills and experience to give you the look you want. 
  • Challenging: Many people might think painting a garage floor is easy, but it’s a fairly challenging endeavor. It starts before the painting begins — patching holes and cracks, sanding and ensuring you have a smooth surface to paint or seal. Adding an even coat can be difficult and something you should consider before beginning. 

Consider the Benefits of Polyurea Garage Floor Coating

With all of the challenges of DIY garage floor painting, it’s beneficial to look at other options. Professional services like BlackHawk Garage Door can provide high-quality materials and expert work that offer advantages you won’t find in regular paints. At BlackHawk Garage Door, our polyurea garage floor coating provides many benefits, including durability, longevity and safety. Polyurea floor coatings are also easier to maintain and can ultimately save you time and money. 

  • Durability: Polyurea coatings mend cracked, chipped and uneven surfaces and offer a barrier against chemicals, moisture and pests. In a garage setting, this durability is essential — with the amount of wear your floor will experience, you need a coating you can trust. Polyurea is a highly elastic material, accommodating expansion and contraction so your floor won’t split in cold weather. 
  • Longevity: Because of their durability, polyurea garage coatings will last longer. Instead of paint jobs that will crack and flake over time, polyurea coatings will stay strong for longer, keeping your garage looking nice and keeping you from having to add a new coat. 
  • Safety: Polyurea coatings are USDA-approved 100% antibacterial and antimicrobial, making them excellent for homes, restaurants, hospitals and more. 
  • Maintenance: These coatings are easy to clean and keep dust at bay, so you’ll have to spend less time cleaning. Unlike painted floors which chip and flake and make your floor look weathered, polyurea coatings retain a smooth look that you’ll be proud to display. 
  • Time and money: Polyurea coatings can even save you time and money. Instead of having to make frequent replacements and constantly clean up, you’ll have a durable, lasting floor coating that requires less maintenance. You can stop putting time into your garage floor and spend it on the things that truly matter. 

Reach Out to Our Team of Professionals at BlackHawk Garage Door 

Polyurea coatings have many advantages, and these benefits could start to look very appealing when you consider all the challenges of a DIY garage floor painting project. Save time and money and reach out to our expert team at BlackHawk Garage Door. Contact us today!