Spent $300 on a garage floor coating kit and it's already peeling

I put down that epoxy kit about 4 months ago, followed the prep steps to the letter, and it looked great for a while. Now I've got flakes coming up near the door where my tires stop, and a couple spots by my workbench. The company said it was good for 'light automotive use' but I guess that didn't mean my old sedan. I'm pretty sure the concrete wasn't dry enough deep down even after I etched it. Has anyone had luck fixing just sections, or is this a full strip and redo job now?

4 comments

4 Comments

logan5613mo ago

Did you check the concrete for moisture before you started? Those test kits are cheap but they tell you if it's gonna fail.

the_olivia3mo ago

Saw a post where a guy's epoxy bubbled at 5% RH.

park.miles1mo ago

Wait, at 5% RH? That's basically desert dry, what the hell went wrong? @the_olivia you'd think low moisture would be a sure thing but I guess not. Probably the slab wasn't prepped right or he used cheap epoxy that can't handle any movement. Bad mixing or wrong hardener ratio would mess it up on any moisture level too. Sometimes people blame RH when the real issue is just sloppy work.

ruby3103mo ago

Yeah the "cheap but they tell you" part from @logan561 is SO true. It's wild to skip that step. I've seen a floor peel up completely because someone thought it felt dry. Those kits are basic peace of mind. Saving a few bucks upfront costs so much more later. Really feel for anyone dealing with a failed floor after all that work.