DIY Concrete Coating vs Professional Installation

Concrete floors can look sleek, modern, and attractive at first, but over the years, they tend to become dull and stained. Concrete floor coatings are an excellent solution to this problem, transforming worn concrete surfaces so that they become beautiful, durable, and long-lasting. The question, though, is whether you can do this project yourself. A DIY concrete coating will save money, but is it a good choice in the long run? Here, we look at DIY vs professional installation, so that you can have all the facts when you decide which one is right for you.

What is Concrete Coating?

Concrete coatings are an effective option for improving concrete floors. These coatings make the floor more attractive, but their benefits go far beyond simple aesthetics. There are different types of concrete coatings, and they all help make your floor durable, stain-resistant, and better able to resist fading, even in direct sunlight.

DIY Concrete Coating

If you prefer to do home improvement projects yourself, concrete coating is certainly a project you can undertake. First, if there is any previous flooring, it must be removed, or concrete must be poured over it, so that you’ll have an even concrete floor onto which to apply the coating. If it is already an even concrete floor, it will need to be cleaned thoroughly. It also needs to be prepared for the coating, probably with acid etching. Apply the coating, which is a little like painting the floor, and apply the flake coat, if your kit comes with one, followed by a top coating, to seal the layer. Instructions will vary slightly for each type of flooring.

Professional Concrete Coating

When you hire a professional to install concrete coating, you invest more in your flooring, but what you are really paying for is skill and expertise. Using quality products to which homeowners don’t have access, the professionals who are trained to do this can complete the job much more quickly than you can. The finished product is likely to look sleeker and better than a DIY project, simply because the products and tools being used are better.

Key Differences Between DIY and Professional Concrete Coating

The primary difference between doing your floors yourself and hiring a professional is the disparity in equipment and products. The concrete floor coatings used by professionals are more durable and longer lasting than those available to homeowners. What’s more, before a floor is installed, a professional installer will use a floor-built, diamond chipped grinder, which smooths the floor more efficiently than acid etching and cleaning products, allowing for the smooth application of the floor coating product. Then, too, the floor coating installed by professionals will be thicker than any coating available to consumers. Thicker coating means it will last longer and be more attractive than a DIY floor.

Which Option is Right for You?

If you are a diehard DIY enthusiast, installing your own concrete coating may be a viable option. On the other hand, it may be worth it for you to hire a professional to do the job, in which case you may end up with a floor that was installed more quickly than you could have managed, and looks even better than you imagined it would. If you are not sure whether you are ready to take on such a labor-intensive, time-consuming project, it is probably best to have your floors professionally coated.

For Concrete Garage Coating and Other Concrete Floor Coatings, Contact Custom Floor Coating

You can do your concrete floor coating yourself, but why not leave it to the professionals? At Custom Floor Coating, we offer high-quality floor coating for residential and commercial properties in Jacksonville and St Augustine, Florida. Specializing in decorative floor coatings and outdoor resurfacing, we provide quality workmanship and customer service grounded in a company culture committed to innovation, leadership, responsibility, and quality work. Our team of experienced and licensed experts use a time-tested flooring installation technique, in order to provide lasting results, striving to exceed our customers’ expectations, through excellent craftsmanship and skillful collaboration. To learn more about how we can transform the floors in your home or business, contact us through our website and schedule a free consultation.