Why You Should Seal Your Garage Floor

Garage floors are usually constructed of a single concrete slab. Most people are under the illusion that these floors do not require any maintenance because they are so hard. This is false. Concrete can be damaged by a variety of forces and actions impinging on it.

Water is actually the most harmful substance to concrete. You would not believe that water could ever harm this hard material because when you spray a jet of water on the surface, it just bounces off. However, the problem emanates when water seeps into the concrete floor and then solidifies. Water has an intrinsic characteristic of expanding when it freezes, and believe it or not ice water can be very destructive.

If water leaks into the slab through a crack, or even simply by penetrating the surface, and then it freezes, it can be a very effective way for breaking up the concrete. When water changes to ice it expands in volume and this expansion carries a tremendous amount of force. If the water is trapped inside the floor in pockets, the expansion will cause the concrete to break apart by either cracking or peeling. This is in fact the most popular cause of fracture of concrete. The ice continues to work on the structure yearly every time the weather is frozen again and it is possible that even a large block may be cracked into a number of smaller pieces in this way.

A good quality garage floor sealer can prevent this from happening, because it effectively creates a barrier to the water. There are two kinds of concrete sealers which can be applied. A film former is applied to the surface though it does not permeate. This is actually an epoxy based resin that cures in to a hard film and which does not allow the water to penetrate surface of the floor. The second type is a penetrate and as the name suggests, this product actually penetrates the floor surface from one to four millimeters which then keeps out the water. Unlike the film former the penetrate type is more durable because it can not be scratched.

It is absolutely essential to increase the life expectancy of your floor by applying a good garage floor sealer. A garage floor sealing can do wonders for the protection and you can also add an ant-slip topping and color to your concrete floor. Once the sealer is applied, and before it cures completely you can spread industrial grit (sand) or colored paint flecks which will offer unsurpassed traction if the floor gets wet.