Jamie Sandford was the Owner and Chief Editor of Home Flooring Pros. After 12 years’ experience in screen and stage set construction, followed by a further 15 years working in the home renovation and remodeling business, he now writes and curates online home improvement advice.
Editorial note: Homefront (defined in the Disclosure below) may earn a commission from affiliate partner links featured on our site. This commission does not influence our editors’ opinions or evaluations.
When you are always trying to save a buck, you want to know where your money is going. I is it cheaper to pay someone to epoxy the garage or would ie better to do it ourselves?
Epoxy garage floor cost is $2.50 to $9.00 per square foot. The average epoxy flooring cost is $6.55 per square foot or about $3,050 for a two-car garage. This cost includes acid etching of the concrete, two coats of material and decorative flakes.
The headline rate of $2.50 to $9.00 per sq/ft is a wide range that represents the lowest and highest prices you can expect to pay. Additional coats and repairs contribute to a higher cost. If this amount already seems above your budget then there are some cheaper garage floor paint options, although you won’t get nearly the same durability and longevity.
The average total cost ranges from $9 to $20 per square foot.
The average total cost for carpet ranges from $5.67 to over $21 per square foot, depending on the quality.
The average total cost for laminate flooring is between $3 to $13 per square foot.
Cost factors and their affect on price are explained below. They’ll give you a clear idea of your garage floor epoxy cost based on the details of your project.
The cost of a diy epoxy garage floor is about 60 cents to $2.85 per square foot based on materials used and number of coats applied. The materials are often sold in kits that include epoxy, a clear coat and decorative flakes.
Concrete must be acid etched for epoxy adhesion. Old floors should be degreased and cleaned too. The materials and tools required for these jobs cost $40 to $75.
To learn more about concrete visit our concrete flooring guide where you can learn about buying concrete, installation, prices and cleaning.
All concrete, even freshly poured material, must be acid-etched prior to applying primer or epoxy.
Additional cost will be determined by the coats and materials used:
Only an epoxy base coat is required, but it will last just 2-5 years depending on how heavily you use your garage.
For best protection and longevity, at least two coats of epoxy or a base coat and a clear coat are recommended.
The heavier your garage is used, the more it makes sense to add two coats of epoxy and a clear coat. The metal flakes are attractive and help conceal concrete floor imperfections such as repaired cracks. Now let’s move to epoxy garage flooring cost specifics.
Some epoxy manufacturers recommend a primer coat. Applying it is quick, and the primer is usually ready for epoxy in less than two hours.
This involves acid etching and one coat of epoxy. It is an affordable way to spruce up an old garage floor, but the coating won’t last long.
After acid-etching, two coats of two-part epoxy are applied. Allowing the first coat to cure for 24 to 48 hours is required.
Flakes are either vinyl or mica. Vinyl flakes are available in many colors and blends. Mica flakes have a metallic appearance and range from silver to gold to dark brown. Flakes can be added in light to heavy amounts based on the look you prefer.
Clearcoat adds stain protection to the epoxy and prolongs its good looks and wear. With just one coat, you might feel the flakes if you run your hand over the surface. A second coat will usually make the floor very smooth.
Double that cost if a second coat is added.
Grit can be added to the final coat of epoxy or clear topcoat to help prevent slips and falls. Grits used include sand, aluminum oxide and polymeric grit. The polymer type is clear, so best if you don’t want the floor’s color to be affected. But it’s also the costliest.
If you have a garage floor that is clean and in perfect condition, none of these will apply. One or more of these costs are necessary when getting an imperfect floor ready for epoxy.
Concrete that isn’t fresh must be degreased and cleaned.
Cracks wider than about 1/8” must be filled, or they will show through the epoxy flooring. An acrylic or polyurethane caulk is forced into the crack and tooled smooth with a putty knife. Crack filler costs about $14 per 30oz tube. A cheap caulk gun is $5 and putty knife is $3.
Here’s what pros charge to fill cracks as part of an epoxy job.
If you squeegee your garage floor, and there are low spots where water remains, they should be filled. Otherwise, dirty or salty water ponding on epoxy might eventually discolor it. These aren’t sunken areas, but areas where the concrete finisher left behind an imperfectly level surface.
The concrete must be primed ($14/quart) first. Low spots are filled with self-leveling compound underlayment ($35/bag). One bag should be enough for the low spots in a two-car garage.
For a pro job:
If there are just a few spots, an epoxy installer might charge a minimum fee of $75 to $125 for the time it takes to mix and pour the self-leveling material and wait for it to cure.
When the floor has so many low spots, pits and surface cracks that it makes sense to cover it all in self-leveling material, cost drops to $3.50-$4.25 per square foot.
It’s not uncommon for concrete to settle or for erosion to occur beneath it. The result can be a cracked, sunken area that must be raised before applying epoxy.
A process called mud jacking or slab jacking is the standard repair. A mixture of grout and water is forced beneath the slab using hydraulics to raise the slab level with the surrounding material.
We’ve put the costs into a table for your convenience.
Shopping around for cost is the best way to save money on any flooring type, and garage epoxy is no different. Let the companies know you’re getting several estimates. This will encourage them to give you their lowest cost.
Subtracting DIY material costs from professional epoxy floor costs listed at the beginning, we see that pros charge $1.90 to $6.15 per square foot. Cost is based on the materials and process discussed above and the amount of pure profit the company is trying to make.
The average net profit for epoxy jobs is 15 to 20 percent of the total. The rest goes to material and equipment costs, insurance, travel time and fuel and other overhead.
When epoxy floor contractors give estimates, they generally take one of two approaches:
This is why it makes sense to get multiple garage floor epoxy estimates.
High estimates: If the company has an exceptional reputation for quality work and customer service, you might get what you pay for. Otherwise, it’s not worth paying the higher cost.
Low costs: Estimates that are significantly below the others often mean the company plans to use inferior materials, doesn’t pay fair wages, is a startup looking for jobs or has a bad reputation. Most lowball estimates are not good deals.
Before you hire a company, compare the services provided and the number and type of coats to be applied. This will ensure you’re comparing “apples to apples.”
Also check each company’s reputation online. The goal is to get the quality of floor you expect, installed by a reputable company at a fair cost.
Editorial note: The name “Homefront” refers to the alliance between USA TODAY and Home Solutions that publishes review, comparison, and informational articles designed to help USA TODAY readers make smarter purchasing and investment decisions about their home. Under the alliance, Homefront provides and publishes research and articles about home service and home improvement topics.
Homefront has an affiliate disclosure policy. The opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the Homefront editorial staff alone (see About Homefront). Homefront adheres to strict editorial integrity standards. The information is believed to be accurate as of the publish date, but always check the provider’s website for the most current information.
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