Avoid DIY Projects

Why You Should Avoid DIY Epoxy Flooring Projects

We understand why you would want to renovate and resurface your concrete floor. It looks old and brittle with sections of it completely damaged. You know that it’s time to take action, and you are looking into different alternatives and solutions. You should always avoid undergoing DIY projects, especially the home epoxy flooring kits that they sell at retail stores.

We can’t understate how important it is to hire a professional installer when it comes to epoxy flooring. DIY projects simply are not going to get the job done. We want to go over some of the drawbacks of installing epoxy floor coatings without professional help:

Quality of Materials

Cheap DIY kits usually consist of low-quality materials that fail to produce proper adhesion. Even with the professional home epoxy kits that are more costly, you will still notice a major deficiency in terms of the materials. Nothing will compare to professional-grade epoxy from a qualified technician. DIY kits are often missing components as well, which will complicate the installation even more.

Floor Preparations

Epoxy floor installations require a lot of prep-work, which DIYers tend to overlook. The preparations are usually the most crucial aspect of any epoxy flooring system. The DIY kits don’t come with the proper equipment or tools to profile your concrete flooring.

There are methods that allow you to undergo the proper floor preparations even if you are a DIYer. The best way to tell is by spilling small amounts of water in different areas of your floor. When the concrete turns dark, then you have successfully exposed the porous material of the concrete. This indicates that you properly prepared your floor to receive the epoxy coatings.

DIY kits often come with acids that you use to smoothen your floor and eliminate any defects before the installation. However, these materials are never as effective as using a diamond wheel grinder or shot blasting machine to prepare your floor. Again, you are much better off hiring a professional in this regard.

Epoxy Floor Applications

DIY kits are only effective when it comes to how you apply the epoxy coating over your concrete floor. The mixtures are often very thin in terms of their consistency, so you will have to use a traditional paint roller to apply them. Epoxy can make a huge mess if you are not careful or precise. This is another reason why it will benefit you to hire a professional. They can handle everything with incredible ease and efficiency.

Many professional installers have access to special equipment and applicators that you need for thicker epoxy mixtures. This includes squeegees and trowels that will help you spread the proper thickness across your entire floor. DIY kits are very limited in terms of the epoxy mixtures and aggregates that you apply.

Longevity

The more expensive DIY kits will last roughly 10 years at most (if you are taking proper care of your floor), but a professional-grade epoxy will easily last up to 30 years. The low-quality DIY kits will max out at 2-3 years, which means that they are simply not worth buying. They simply don’t offer enough longevity.

Epoxy contractors are going to install your brand new flooring system with incredibly high-grade materials. Why take a chance on shoddy DIY kits when epoxy flooring services are available to you at an affordable and consumer-friendly price?

Install a Brand New Flooring System?

Is it actually viable to install epoxy flooring through DIY methods? Most professionals will tell you that it’s simply not worth attempting. If you do decide to go the DIY route, then remember that it’s not the best option in terms of quality and performance.

Hiring a professional epoxy installer ensures that your brand new flooring system will be more durable, damage-resistant, and more viable for long-term use. If you need help getting started, then feel free to give us a call. We provide flooring services throughout the city of Sacramento!