Prepare and paint my garage floor

[Goldy]

I want to paint my garage floor but it has some engine oil marks and few cracks. Please help how to prepare and paint ASAP

Community manager's note: Check out How to apply epoxy to a garage floor for expert advice.

[Seaton]

Hi Goldy,

I’ve just finished painting my garage floor with two part epoxy and so happy with the results. If you can afford it I’d definitely recommend epoxy over normal paint.

Whatever direction you take You’re going to need to prepare the surface first by degreasing and then probably an acid clean so the paint has a nice clean and oil free surface to stick to. There are plenty of howtos online.

The cracks don’t look that bad but if you’re worried I think you could use some concrete epoxy repair to fill them up before painting.

Gets your self some degreaser a stiff broom and some elbow grease. These a water pooling test you can do to make sure there is no more grease on the floor. Once all degreased then acid wash using a concrete acid wash. Which is basically a weak hydrochloric acid. Follow the instructions on the container. Mine was 10:1 mix with water in a plastic watering can and was poured directly onto the concrete from the watering can and brushed with the stiff broom. The concrete will bubble slightly then stop. After all done wash off with the hose giving a good scrub in the process. You will need to make sure concrete is dry before painting

[Jason]

Hi again @Goldy,

Good to see you back on Workshop, and fantastic to see @Seaton has already shared some wonderful advice.

How did you go with painting your alfresco area last year? I think this is another job where preparation is key. What product are you planning to use this time?

Hope you find this resource helpful - How to apply epoxy to a garage floor. It includes step-by-step instructions and a video featuring @JasonD.  

The very popular Epoxy garage floor project by @maknilsin should also be a big help.

Looking forward to seeing how the project progresses.

Jason