Paul in the garage with his own hands

In this article we will explain how to make the floor in the garage with your own hands, consider the various options (concrete, wooden, self-leveling), as well as give photos and video instructions.

All the various materials that are commonly used to make the floor in a private garage should ultimately meet the following basic criteria:

• High resistance to oils, acids and petroleum products;
• Resistance to mechanical stress and high deformational strength, guaranteeing long service life;
• Good resistance to moisture and fire safety.

Currently, most well-known garage floor coverings meet these criteria, the main of which are the following types:

• concrete floors, considered to be quite durable and suitable for use in the most difficult conditions. The disadvantages of such floors include the formation of dust and the appearance of mud leaks (oil, gasoline, etc.) on their surface;
• the floor of reinforced concrete slabs also has an enviable durability, but will cost you more than a concrete one (since it is impossible to do without the help of workers and special equipment);
• the floor in the form of wooden flooring attracts many with high environmental friendliness and low cost, but it has a very short operational period - only 5 years;
• ceramic tile floors protect from moisture well and are easy to clean, but are very fragile and do not withstand significant deformations;
• bulk (polymeric) floors allow you to get a strong and durable coating, over time, only improve their quality.

Excavation

Before pouring concrete in the garage, consider the following:

• groundwater level characteristic of the area;
• the possibility of spring flooding of the site;
• elevation difference in this place.

The order of the layers at the concrete floor is always the same.

The layers of the concrete floor are the following sequence (bottom to top):

• building gravel;
• sand mixture;
• waterproofing layer;
• insulation of one kind or another;
• protective film;
• concrete layer with reinforcement;
• screed layer.

The overall sequence of excavation works looks something like this:

• leveling and tamping of the gravel working site; and as a waterproofing can be used natural liquid clay;
• all marking operations of the future coverage are “tied” to the garage dimensions using a marking cord tightened for reliability;
• A layer of sand 10 cm thick is poured on top of the compacted gravel layer (0.45 m – 0.8 m).

Concrete floor

Between the substrate and the concrete it is necessary to lay a layer of waterproofing. To do this, take a plastic film (250-300µm) and cover it with the entire floor. Warming flooring in the garage is best done immediately. For these purposes, you can use polystyrene (5-10cm thick), and it should be laid directly on the waterproofing layer.

A standard metal mesh 5 mm in diameter is used to reinforce a concrete pavement, and M-300 concrete is used as the binding base of a concrete mortar. Leveling the floor is best to start from the far wall of the garage towards the entrance gate, moving the leveling rail along the bars laid in concrete (then they should be removed and fill the gaps with mortar).

For a good hardening, the concrete should stand for about 3-4 weeks.

When arranging the finishing tie, a reinforcing mesh is laid on the concrete and special wooden beacons are installed using a level. Then pour the coupler and smooth it with a special steel alignment device.

Wood flooring

To make a wooden floor in a garage, you will need logs of a suitable size, by means of which the load will be evenly distributed over the entire surface of the flooring.

A “rough” concrete floor or small brick posts capable of supporting the weight of a car can be used as a hard base of a wooden floor. Themselves as flooring can be laid in one layer, and make them two-layer.

For the construction of a capital wooden flooring for a garage, a two-layer structure is usually chosen, which includes a “draft” floor on which steam, hydro and thermal insulation materials are laid.

After thorough drying, the logs treated with antiseptic are laid on the base of the flooring in 40 cm steps. The lag fixing points (for this purpose, dowels are used) are arranged in 50 cm steps. or nails.

Ceramic tile

Ceramic tiles are usually placed on the finished concrete pavement and are highly resistant to chemical reagents and moisture. In addition, it is easily washed off the dirt, and it looks quite good.

The disadvantage of ceramic cladding is its increased fragility and the inability to withstand large deformation loads.

Bulk floor

One of the ways to organize the floor in the garage is to make a polymer coating. Self-leveling floors are durable and reliable, they do not pose a health hazard. Differ in ease and a variety of a color palette. They are used for arranging both residential and non-residential premises, including garages.

Before starting work, determine the thickness of the coating. This indicator depends on the expected loads on the flooring and can vary between 0.1–1 cm. The optimal thickness of the self-leveling floor in the garage is 0.2–0.3 cm. In this case, the approximate material consumption for the flooring will be 1.7– 1.9 kg / m². You will also need quartz sand in the amount of the calculation of 0.8–1 kg / m².

О технологии изготовления наливного пола вы можете узнать из этой статьи «Bulk floor».

The only feature of pouring a self-leveling floor in the garage is to make a polymer coating. Since it is planned to store a car in the garage, and this, of course, is associated with increased loads on the floor, the polymer should be strengthened. This is done using quartz sand. In the mixture, ready to fill the floor, you should add quartz sand in a ratio of 1: 1. It is worth considering that the sand must be dry. You can mix the mixture manually for 4–5 minutes or with a drill with a mixer attachment.

If you use a drill, then mix the polymer flooring should be exclusively at low revs. To avoid air bubbles in the mixture, turn on the drill only when the mixer blades are completely immersed in the mixture. Pull the nozzle from the tank, with the polymer is possible only after the rotation of the blades is completely stopped.

Warm floor

It may seem that making a heated floor in the garage is an excess. But this opinion is very subjective. If you are interested in the safety and proper operation of the car, then you will certainly be interested in the possibility of installing a heated floor in the garage, which contributes to this.

Special features

Should take into account some features of the floor in the garage, before making a choice in favor of a system:

• The flooring may be subject to chemical attack.
• The possibility of mechanical damage.
• Increased fire danger.
• High humidity.

As already mentioned in this article, different types of flooring can be used for flooring. But for the installation of a heated floor is best suited concrete floor, followed by finishing, for example, ceramic tiles.

Warm floor обеспечивает эффективный обогрев гаража, благодаря чему риск промерзания автомобиля в зимний период сводится к нулю.

Varieties

In the garage, you can make a warm floor in two ways:

• Water.
• Electric.

The water floor heating system is a closed heated contour of metal-plastic pipes, poured into the screed. The system connects to the boiler. In turn, an electric underfloor heating consists of special cables or heating mats, which are also poured into the floor screed and lined with finishing materials, such as tiles. In this case, since it is about working with electricity, it is important to follow the installation instructions provided by the manufacturer.

For finishing the floor in the garage, ceramic tiles of the fifth class or ceramic granite are used. This finishing material will cope with increased loads.

Before lining the warm floor, the surface should be primed, apply glue and perform tile laying in the usual manner. Grouting can be done in three days. The floor will be ready for use only after several weeks. It all depends on the drying rate of the adhesive.

Underfloor heating system

Like any other system, the warm water floor in the garage has its advantages and disadvantages. Of the benefits we can note the uniformity of warming up the garage, as well as energy savings. However, if you do not have experience in installing a warm water floor, then in the process there may be some difficulties. After all, when installing metal-plastic pipes, it is important to be able to use some tools, for example, a welding machine for soldering. In addition, for the system to work properly, you need to connect a water pump to it, and these are additional financial costs. These disadvantages can be decisive when deciding on the type of underfloor heating to be installed.

Installation

If there is any floor covering in the garage, it should be removed. Then you need to prepare a rough floor. If it is a curve, then it must be leveled; this is done with a tie.

Thermal insulation is laid on the cleaned and leveled floor. The thickness of the heat-insulating layer should exceed 3 cm. The insulation must have a density higher than 35 kg / m. It can be penoplex or polystyrene.

Then you need to put a damper tape around the perimeter of the garage. It is attached to the wall. This is necessary to compensate for thermal expansion of the screed.

The next step is to lay the plastic film on the insulation. Then it can be laid reinforcing mesh, which will subsequently be attached to a floor heating pipe. As fasteners pipes serve plastic clips. The corrugated pipe serves as protection for expansion joints. Then connect the floor heating system to the boiler through the collectors.

Now we need to conduct a hydraulic test of the system. Any malfunctions can be fixed without problems at this stage. In this case, tests are carried out during the day. The pressure in the system during testing should be 3-4 bar.

If no errors were found in the operation of the warm water floor, there are no leaks, you can fill the system with a coupler. The minimum thickness of the screed over the pipes should be 3 cm. In order for the screed to be even, it must be carried along the beacons.

The drying period for the screed is approximately 28 days. In the process of drying screed is strictly prohibited to include a warm floor.

Then the floor can be turned on at the minimum temperature. Add degrees in the heating of water should be gradually and slowly. Finished floor heating can be revetted. One of the durable options - laying ceramic tiles.

Electric floor heating system

This type of heated floor is more simple to install. However, his work will require more energy, in particular, electricity. Of the advantages of such a system, attention is deserved:

• There is no need for additional communications, except for electricity.
• The system does not need maintenance.
• Designed for a long operational period - about 60 years.

A significant drawback of the system is the high cost of electricity. To reduce energy costs will have to spend high-quality insulation not only the floor, but the entire garage.

In general, the technology of laying a warm electric floor in the garage, does not differ from its laying in a residential area. The only thing that can not be used as a heat reflector foil. And in places where the wheels of the car will pass, you can make the floor without heating elements.

You can learn about the features of the installation of a warm electric floor in this article "Electric underfloor heating".

The cost of arranging a heated floor, whether electric or water, will depend on the floor space of the garage and the price of the basic set.

In some cases, garage owners prefer to tile only small portions of the floor, but not the entire structure.

Video

In general, the process of creating a concrete floor is as follows:

To learn how to make a warm floor you can learn from the following video: