EMC2
New member
My garage floor was painted many years before I bought the house with a gray paint that actually held up pretty well considering it was probably at least 12 years old. However, in the last few years it had started to suffer from hot tire pick up as shown below.
I read hundreds of posts about different experiences with Epoxy and it seemed clear that if you diamond grind the floor and use a professional product, your results should be pretty solid.
However I was looking for a monochrome floor without the flakes and without the effort, cost and dust associated with grinding. I was also extremely risk averse and didn't want to try my luck with just any paint.
I started researching high temperature automotive paints and stumbled upon a few interesting options like POR 15 and others. The more I researched, the more I realized that there were some really good industrial options out there that had high service temperatures. I also saw a lot of posts where people were asking about using such paints, but there were no real examples of home/DIY users that had tried such products on their garage floor.
I eventually settled on Rust Bullet after reading the specifications and numerous case studies of commercial and industrial concrete applications such as warehouses where trucks and forklifts are used. (Please note that I do not now, nor ever have had any association with this product or company. I simply want to share my experience as I know others have been asking the same question.)
Rust Inhibitor Paint | Rust Protection and Converter Products – Rust Bullet
What caught my attention was that Rust Bullet’s temperature Service range is stated as:
"After curing, all Rust Bullet coatings have a service temperature range of 314°F (157°C) continuous, and can tolerate maximum temperatures between 617°- 662°F (325°-350°C) for up to 72 hour periods."
In theory, this should be more than adequate to protect against hot tire pickup (provided it is applied correctly). I also liked the fact that Rust Bullet did not require any acid etching
The Process:
I stripped off the existing paint using Behr Paint Stripper for concrete.
This product worked well, but you have to coat it on really thick and cover with plastic sheets to keep it from evaporating, and thus giving it more time to work on the paint. I left it on for about 4 hours before using a 3300psi pressure washer to remove.
I had some remaining paint where the plastic sheets overlapped or wrinkled. I went over these spots a second time with the paint stripper, to ensure all paint was removed.
After 2 very thorough pressure washes to remove all the paint, I used a degreaser (Greased Lightning) followed by a soap wash and several rinses.
I then filled the cracks in the floor with concrete sealer.
I allowed the floor to dry for about 12 days at very low humidity conditions with lots of ventilation, around 70 degrees.
I then applied the Rust Bullet paint using a 3/8 inch nap Purdy roller. The paint requires a lot of stirring to mix thoroughly before use. 3 to 5 minutes, and you cannot machine mix or shake.
I used a 3M paint Respirator as advised by Rust Bullet (the fumes are EXTREMELY strong and the respirator is essential).
It is also worth noting that the paint is extremely moisture sensitive, such that even a drop of sweat falling into the can of paint can cause a reaction and negatively affect the paint.
3 gallons of paint was sufficient for two very thorough coats as required to reach the recommended DFT.
Applying the Rust Bullet is very much like painting with a deep color paint; it is very important to maintain a wet edge in order to avoid roller marks. I struggled a little with this on the first coat as I tried to figure out the correct size area to paint at a time.
The metallic look and color of the paint is really nice. A silver gray.
The down side is that any imperfections on the concrete floor surface are exaggerated in certain lighting conditions because of the reflective surface. Is this a major issue? Not for me, as there were only a few small rough patches on my floor, and my priority order list was; durability, longevity and then aesthetics.
If you have a really good finish (no patches, trowel marks, or cracks) on your concrete, this paint will give you an incredibly good looking floor.
I kept the cars out the garage for at least 2 weeks whilst I finished the interior walls and ceiling.
For all the walls I used Behr Porch and Patio paint, to give a water resistant and washable surface. The white and gray sections were covered with 2 coats, but the red required 5 (yes that's FIVE) coats to get perfect. In the end it was well worth it as the color is exactly what I wanted.
Below you can see what the wall looked like after 2 and then 3 coats. I was getting very worried after 3 coats if it would ever turn out right. Fortunately I persisted...
After 2 coats:
After 3 coats:
The cars have now been in and out the garage for a couple of weeks and I've deliberately got the tires pretty hot on the Porsche to test the surface. No problems at all thus far.
The garagejournal forum proved immensely helpful to me during my research in the run up to this project, so I'll be keeping this thread updated over there, as I guess the ultimate test will be once summer comes around, but my confidence is pretty high that the paint is going to hold up. I am really happy with the results and the many late nights were well worth it.
Garage Overhaul Using Rust Bullet for the Floor - The Garage Journal Board
I read hundreds of posts about different experiences with Epoxy and it seemed clear that if you diamond grind the floor and use a professional product, your results should be pretty solid.
However I was looking for a monochrome floor without the flakes and without the effort, cost and dust associated with grinding. I was also extremely risk averse and didn't want to try my luck with just any paint.
I started researching high temperature automotive paints and stumbled upon a few interesting options like POR 15 and others. The more I researched, the more I realized that there were some really good industrial options out there that had high service temperatures. I also saw a lot of posts where people were asking about using such paints, but there were no real examples of home/DIY users that had tried such products on their garage floor.
I eventually settled on Rust Bullet after reading the specifications and numerous case studies of commercial and industrial concrete applications such as warehouses where trucks and forklifts are used. (Please note that I do not now, nor ever have had any association with this product or company. I simply want to share my experience as I know others have been asking the same question.)
Rust Inhibitor Paint | Rust Protection and Converter Products – Rust Bullet
What caught my attention was that Rust Bullet’s temperature Service range is stated as:
"After curing, all Rust Bullet coatings have a service temperature range of 314°F (157°C) continuous, and can tolerate maximum temperatures between 617°- 662°F (325°-350°C) for up to 72 hour periods."
In theory, this should be more than adequate to protect against hot tire pickup (provided it is applied correctly). I also liked the fact that Rust Bullet did not require any acid etching
The Process:
I stripped off the existing paint using Behr Paint Stripper for concrete.
This product worked well, but you have to coat it on really thick and cover with plastic sheets to keep it from evaporating, and thus giving it more time to work on the paint. I left it on for about 4 hours before using a 3300psi pressure washer to remove.
I had some remaining paint where the plastic sheets overlapped or wrinkled. I went over these spots a second time with the paint stripper, to ensure all paint was removed.
After 2 very thorough pressure washes to remove all the paint, I used a degreaser (Greased Lightning) followed by a soap wash and several rinses.
I then filled the cracks in the floor with concrete sealer.
I allowed the floor to dry for about 12 days at very low humidity conditions with lots of ventilation, around 70 degrees.
I then applied the Rust Bullet paint using a 3/8 inch nap Purdy roller. The paint requires a lot of stirring to mix thoroughly before use. 3 to 5 minutes, and you cannot machine mix or shake.
I used a 3M paint Respirator as advised by Rust Bullet (the fumes are EXTREMELY strong and the respirator is essential).
It is also worth noting that the paint is extremely moisture sensitive, such that even a drop of sweat falling into the can of paint can cause a reaction and negatively affect the paint.
3 gallons of paint was sufficient for two very thorough coats as required to reach the recommended DFT.
Applying the Rust Bullet is very much like painting with a deep color paint; it is very important to maintain a wet edge in order to avoid roller marks. I struggled a little with this on the first coat as I tried to figure out the correct size area to paint at a time.
The metallic look and color of the paint is really nice. A silver gray.
The down side is that any imperfections on the concrete floor surface are exaggerated in certain lighting conditions because of the reflective surface. Is this a major issue? Not for me, as there were only a few small rough patches on my floor, and my priority order list was; durability, longevity and then aesthetics.
If you have a really good finish (no patches, trowel marks, or cracks) on your concrete, this paint will give you an incredibly good looking floor.
I kept the cars out the garage for at least 2 weeks whilst I finished the interior walls and ceiling.
For all the walls I used Behr Porch and Patio paint, to give a water resistant and washable surface. The white and gray sections were covered with 2 coats, but the red required 5 (yes that's FIVE) coats to get perfect. In the end it was well worth it as the color is exactly what I wanted.
Below you can see what the wall looked like after 2 and then 3 coats. I was getting very worried after 3 coats if it would ever turn out right. Fortunately I persisted...
After 2 coats:
After 3 coats:
The cars have now been in and out the garage for a couple of weeks and I've deliberately got the tires pretty hot on the Porsche to test the surface. No problems at all thus far.
The garagejournal forum proved immensely helpful to me during my research in the run up to this project, so I'll be keeping this thread updated over there, as I guess the ultimate test will be once summer comes around, but my confidence is pretty high that the paint is going to hold up. I am really happy with the results and the many late nights were well worth it.
Garage Overhaul Using Rust Bullet for the Floor - The Garage Journal Board
