How and what to cover the concrete floor in the garage.

The garage is not a whim, but a necessary construction for storing a car. It can also serve as a workshop, storeroom for agricultural products and things that are not necessary in the house. In connection with these, the floor in it must be performed according to all the rules in order for it to fulfill its purpose.

General information

A traditional garage floor is bare concrete or concrete floor slabs. Over time, most owners try to change the settled order of things, preferring to lay a new cover on it.

When the garage floor is laid directly on the ground, its layers should be as follows:

1. 100-200 mm tamped gravel or sand.
2. 100 mm "skinny" concrete, having a class B7.5, which should be smoothly rubbed.
3. Waterproofing, for example, you can take for this p / e film, folded in two layers.
4. 50-100 mm of insulation, for which you can use expanded polystyrene plates, the density of which should not be below 30 kg / m³ (for heated garage).
5. 50-150 mm of concrete screed, for the reinforcement of which metal mesh is suitable.

Concrete screed

Advice: since the concrete screed is very often the last layer, to which the main operational loads will subsequently extend, it must be done according to all the rules. The main thing - it should be durable, smooth and smooth.

To do this, you should take a concrete class of at least B20 or even B25. If, after a while, you decide to trim the screed, you can save on repairs and preparation of the base.

When making screeds, always remember about the slope, which should be 1.5-2% (15-20 mm per meter of length). Its direction is towards the gutter or garage door.

Example: if the structure is 5 m in length and a concrete layer is 50 mm near the garage door (minimum thickness), then the opposite wall should have 125 mm.

Do not forget about the compensation gaps.

For example, on the area up to 50 m² they should be provided for:

• along the walls;
• protruding tubes;
• pillars.

Compensation gaps should be made during the laying of the concrete screed. It is also allowed to make cuts on the finished surface when the concrete hardens.

In the gaps should be laid:

• dilatation tape or plastic profiles;
• polystyrene strips with a thickness of 5 mm.

Tip: for making cuts, cutting of reinforced concrete with diamond circles using special tools is used.

Foundation preparation

There is no difference - you start trimming a concrete floor in a newly built garage or operated for quite some time, you have to properly prepare the foundation.

1. To do this, take a grinding machine and remove peeling or weakly containing parts of concrete.

Tip: remove fragments that are badly attached to the base by smashing them with your own hands or using a sandblaster. The latter will also help to obtain a rough surface, which improves the subsequent adhesion of the layers laid on top.

1. It is also recommended to get rid of grease stains that can be erased by special means or scrape off.

1. At the final stage of preparation, sweep and clean the base from dust. Fill all the dents, scratches and cracks with a restorative mass.

Tip: on a weak or uneven substrate, apply a leveling layer with a height of 5-30 mm.

Concrete flooring in the garage

The topcoat should be applied only to the substrate prepared by the above method. Below are a few time-tested ways of finishing. They are designed for new and previously manufactured bases.

The main selection criterion was:

• availability of materials;
• acceptable price;
• ease of doing work.

Advice: if you want to make through channels in the concrete floor, diamond drilling of holes in concrete with special crowns will help you.

Consider ways to finish:

1. Coloring.

The option is particularly suitable for garages, where the temperature does not fall below 0 ° C:

• Apply to a dry and clean substrate a primer designed for this paint or diluted paint. For example, mineral, based on acrylic, alkyd or epoxy resin;
• Use a roller, brush, or spray gun to create, which can be used to create 1,2 or 3 layers.

Remember, to cover the surface in one layer you need about 2-3 hours, while the next layer can be applied only after 24 hours. You can use both glossy and matte paint. The term of work will be 2-3 days, and the car in the garage can be put after 2-7 days.

1. Self-leveling concrete mass. The method of laying the finishing layer, very common when creating a garage floor. It turns out self-leveling mixture after adding dilution with water.

The instruction is usually given on the packaging of the material. It is based on a binder (cement), fillers and various modifiers. It is allowed to apply the finished mass on a concrete base of class B20 or B25, which must first be cleared of dirt to increase adhesion.

It is also important that its surface is rough, and its humidity does not fall below 3%. To do this, the already used concrete screed must be wetted with water, wait until it dries and cover it with a primer, which will increase the adhesion between the base and the new coating, as well as prevent water from drawing too fast.

Apply a primer in two layers about a day before laying the finished mass. You apply material on the dried basis and after laying of the compensation tape along walls. Its layer depends on the unevenness of the base and can be in the range of 2-50 mm.

Tip: a thin layer is allowed to be laid only on a very smooth base.

Then spread the mass evenly over the surface with a long rail and remove air bubbles with a special spiked roller. The result will be a seamless smooth layer. The term of work is 4-5 days, after which you can drive a car into the garage.

1. Tile in the garage turns it into a kind of "elite" design.

Suitable for decoration:

• ceramic;
• small clinker;
• porcelain stoneware.

She must be:

• durable;
• not afraid of abrasion (usually class III-IV);
• frost resistant when used in an unheated garage;
• with low moisture capacity - no more than 3%;
• resistant to bending - from 25 MPa;
• on the Mohs scale - 5-6.

Priming is better to produce with the same company as tile adhesive. After drying the base - apply adhesive mortar, it is better to cover the tile as well. This will increase the adhesion strength between the materials and prevent moisture from falling between them.

In addition, you will avoid cracks due to uneven distribution of the solution. To apply the solution, use a notched trowel.

Laying start from the corner farthest to the exit, not forgetting to leave a gap between the tiles, using plastic crosses. After 2-3 days, fill the joints with grout. Do not forget that for work use a mixture intended for outdoor use. The cycle will take about 5-10 days, and the car can be put in the garage after grouting after 3-14 days.

In addition to the above materials, the floor in the garage can be strengthened with impregnates, which penetrate the concrete base by 2-3 mm and increase its resistance to moisture, strengthen the material, protect against mold and increase resistance to dirt, chemicals and fats. Also used masses based on acrylic, polyurethane, epoxy and polyester resins.

Conclusion

An ordinary concrete floor in a garage can be transformed by trimming it with different materials on top. This will make it possible to preserve intact the base, increasing its service life several times. Different materials are used in this case, including tile and paint (learn here how to fill the floor with concrete in the garage).

The video in this article will help you find additional information on this topic.