Epoxy flooring services
Garage Floor Coating in Huntington, NY
Free quotes for garage floor coating in Huntington, NY.
A garage floor coating is a liquid resin that hardens into a film on the concrete slab, and which type suits a Huntington garage is decided by the slab's moisture reading, the temperature on the day, how the garage is used and how soon the car has to come back. Two-part epoxy, polyaspartic and polyurea are mixed from two components and cure by chemical reaction. One-part "epoxy" floor paint and acrylic floor paint dry as their carrier evaporates and leave a much thinner film. Sealers, penetrating or film-forming, are a third family. New York State adds a limit of its own: 6 NYCRR Part 205 caps the solvent (VOC) content of a floor coating at 100 grams per liter. This page sets each type beside its maker's own data sheet. We install more than one system, so nothing here argues for a brand.
Typical published range
$4 to $12 per sq ft coated, $2 to $4 painted, $1 to $3 sealed; national (HomeGuide, Dec 24, 2024)
Coating a garage floor costs $4 to $12 per square foot for materials and installation in HomeGuide's national survey (its garage floor coating cost page, dated December 24, 2024): $4 to $10 for epoxy, $5 to $10 for polyurea and $5 to $12 for polyaspartic. The same HomeGuide page lists garage floor painting at $2 to $4 and garage floor sealing at $1 to $3 per square foot, and prints $1,600 to $4,800 for a 20x20 two-car garage of 400 square feet. HomeGuide puts labor at about 50% to 70% of the total. No survey publishes a Huntington, Suffolk County or Long Island price, and none of these figures is our price. The full price tables set the surveys side by side.
Data sheets separate these products by film: volume solids is the share of the wet coating that stays on the floor as film, and thickness is measured in mils, thousandths of an inch. Rust-Oleum's technical data ROC-109 (revision 030325) lists its one-part epoxy floor paint as a modified acrylic at 32.6-32.8 percent solids by volume and 1.0 to 1.5 mils dry per coat on smooth concrete. Its technical data ESH-06 (revision 120617) lists a two-part solvent-based epoxy at 69.1-72.1 percent solids by volume and 3.5 to 5.0 mils dry per coat. Citadel's technical data CDL-11 (revision 022521) lists the Polyurea-350 base coat at 98 percent solids and a recommended dry film of 5 to 20 mils, and CDL-15 (revision 092220) lists the ET-80 polyaspartic at 80 percent solids and 6 to 12 mils dry per coat.
We test the slab for moisture before we choose a system, because data sheets set their limits by test: Laticrete's data sheet DS-864-0822 for the polyaspartic Spartacote Flex SB says the relative humidity of the slab must not exceed 75% as tested per ASTM F2170, and the comparison table on Citadel's "Our Coating Technology" page marks both epoxy and its polyurea base coat "Not intended for MVT resistance/damp concrete application" (MVT is moisture vapor transmission). We grind the slab with diamond tooling instead of acid etching it, because a Sherwin-Williams article says etching tends to produce a CSP-1 to CSP-2 profile, "suitable only for very thin systems"; CSP, concrete surface profile, is the roughness that lets a coating grip. We repair cracks and holes first, because coatings, in Sherwin-Williams' words, "do not hide imperfections in the substrate".
Return to service depends on the product and the temperature. At 70 to 80 degrees F and 50 percent relative humidity, Rust-Oleum's ESH-06 gives its two-part epoxy 16 hours to light foot traffic and 4 days to vehicle traffic; Citadel's CDL-11 gives its polyurea base coat 2 to 4 hours to light traffic and 24 hours to full traffic. ROC-109 sets 5 days before full cure and vehicle traffic for the one-part paint. Between coats, a Sherwin-Williams article gives multi-layer epoxy a window of 4 to 24 hours; at 70 to 80 degrees F CDL-11 gives the polyurea 2 to 12 hours, and Laticrete's sheet gives Spartacote Flex SB a minimum of 1 to 2 hours. We check the air and slab temperature and the dew point before we mix, because ESH-06 and CDL-11 both require a surface at least 5 degrees F above the dew point, the temperature at which moisture condenses.
For a written quote we need the size of the floor, what is on it now (bare concrete, a sealer, paint or an old kit coating), how many cars park on it, how soon they must come back, and a visit to test the slab. Our written contract gives the start and completion dates and the cost of labor and materials, as Suffolk County Code section 563-21 requires, and names the coating products, as New York's General Business Law section 771 requires.
What the floor shows before you choose a coating
The Census Bureau's 2020-2024 American Community Survey puts the median year built of housing in the Town of Huntington at 1963; a garage slab poured with a house built that year has decades of use to show. Each sign below is something you can see or already know, and each points to a type of product or a step, not a brand.
- Paint or a kit coating has lifted or stained where the tires rest, the failure called hot-tire pickup; the sheets that warn about it are quoted below.
- Epoxy near the garage door has darkened or yellowed where daylight reaches it; Sika's Sikafloor-264 data sheet (September 2026) says its epoxy will discolor over time in sunlight, which points to a UV-stable topcoat.
- The surface is flaking just inside the door; NRMCA's CIP 2 defines scaling as flaking from cycles of freezing and thawing and says deicing chemicals make it worse, so repairs come before any coating.
- The garage cannot stay empty for days, which points to a polyurea and polyaspartic system: at 70 to 80 degrees F, Citadel's CDL-11 lists 24 hours to full traffic against 4 days to vehicle traffic on Rust-Oleum's ESH-06 epoxy sheet.
- You want the slab left as bare concrete but shedding water: Prosoco's Siloxane PD data sheet says surfaces treated with its silane/siloxane repellent still breathe.
Hot tires and sunlight: what each data sheet says
Thin acrylic films are the ones their own makers steer away from hot tires, and epoxy is the resin its own makers say may yellow. Hot-tire pickup is the marking or lifting of a film under tires that have just been driven. Euclid Chemical's technical bulletin CP-22 names the cause as plasticizer migration: plasticizers in tire rubber soften and leach out when the tires heat up. It says most discoloration occurs on acrylic cure-and-seal products, because acrylic polymers have minimal crosslinking, and that epoxy and urethane coatings are much more crosslinked and therefore less likely to tire mark.
Sherwin-Williams' sheet for the acrylic ArmorSeal Tread-Plex (revised October 1, 2025) says "Not recommended for areas subject to hot tire pickup". Laticrete's data sheet DS-864-0822 lists "Resistant to hot-tire pickup" among the advantages of the polyaspartic Spartacote Flex SB. Even so, Tennant's maintenance guide (June 2017) says plasticizer tire stains in a coating cannot be removed, only recoated. On sunlight, Sherwin-Williams' ArmorSeal 1000 HS data sheet (revised August 10, 2021) says epoxy coatings may darken or yellow, and Citadel's comparison table answers "UV Resistance" with "No" for epoxy and "Yes" for polyaspartic, one of the reasons Citadel gives for a polyaspartic top coat over an epoxy base.
Acid etching against grinding: the profile each leaves
Acid etching leaves the lightest profile on the ICRI scale, and the makers' documents say that profile suits only very thin films. ICRI Guideline 310.2R names its concrete surface profiles after the methods that typically produce them: CSP 1 is captioned acid-etched, CSP 2 grinding and CSP 3 light shotblast. A Sherwin-Williams article titled "Acid Etching Is No Longer Recommended as a Concrete Prep Method" says acid cannot remove curing compounds, and Sika's surface preparation guide says "Sika does not recommend acid etching". Wolverine Coatings' bulletin says etching normally yields CSP 1; its table accepts CSP 1 to 3 under films up to 10 mils and asks for CSP 3 to 5 under films of 10 to 40 mils.
By that table an etched floor is in range for the thin products and short of it for the high-build ones. The system documents name mechanical methods: Laticrete's installation guideline TDS 439 for a polyaspartic quartz broadcast floor recommends CSP-2 by grinding with diamond heads, Sika's guide asks for CSP-3 to CSP-5 by shot blasting or equivalent mechanical means, and Sherwin-Williams' Form G-1 (revised 02/26) puts its flake broadcast systems at CSP 5. How we install an epoxy floor follows the grinding step by step and takes up the kit question.
The New York VOC rule for floor coatings
New York State caps the solvent content of a floor coating at 100 grams of VOC per liter under 6 NYCRR Part 205, a rule of its Department of Environmental Conservation; VOC stands for volatile organic compounds. The table in 6 NYCRR 205.3 sets floor coatings at 250 grams per liter until the end of 2020, then 100 grams per liter from the start of 2021, and 6 NYCRR 205.2 defines a floor coating as an opaque coating "labeled and formulated for application to flooring", with garage floors among its examples. The same table sets concrete and masonry sealers at 100 grams per liter and reactive penetrating sealers at 350. The rule reaches "any person who applies or solicits the application of any architectural coating", the installer as well as the seller, and a U.S.
EPA notice of August 11, 2022 reports that it "is being enforced as of July 1, 2022". Laticrete's DS-864-0822 lists the solvent-based Spartacote Flex SB at under 450 grams per liter, and its DS-86.6-0126 lists the low-VOC Flex Pure at under 100 grams per liter. Which category a product falls in is the State's decision, not ours.
Epoxy system, polyurea system, floor paint or sealer
We install more than one system. Each option gives the product, what its sheet and the surveys print, and the garage it suits. Prices are national figures from HomeGuide's December 24, 2024 page unless another date is given. If a coating may not be the answer, garage flooring options compares coatings with interlocking tiles and roll-out mats.
Two-part epoxy, polyaspartic topcoat
A two-part epoxy base coat with a vinyl flake broadcast under a clear polyaspartic topcoat. Citadel's comparison table gives epoxy 20 to 60 minutes of working time, 36 to 48 hours to full return to service and an application temperature above 50 degrees F. HomeGuide lists epoxy at $4 to $10 per square foot. It suits an owner who can leave the garage empty for the longer cure; the epoxy flake system by garage size has its own page.
Polyurea base, polyaspartic topcoat
A polyurea garage floor coating under a polyaspartic topcoat. Citadel's CDL-11 gives its Polyurea-350 base coat 24 hours to full traffic at 70 to 80 degrees F; CDL-10 (revision 062520) gives the RG-80X topcoat 24 hours to vehicle traffic. Both list a pot life, the time a mixed batch stays usable, of 20 to 25 minutes, and a Sherwin-Williams article notes that polyurea has excellent elongation but in general lower adhesion than epoxy. HomeGuide lists polyurea at $5 to $10 and polyaspartic at $5 to $12 per square foot. It suits a garage that cannot stay empty for days; polyaspartic and polyurea in depth is a separate page.
One-part garage floor paint
A single-component acrylic or acrylic-epoxy paint. Sherwin-Williams' ArmorSeal Tread-Plex sheet says the acrylic is "Not recommended for areas subject to hot tire pickup", and Behr's product page says an annual touch-up may be required in areas subject to tire traffic. HomeGuide's page on painting a garage floor, dated November 21, 2024, gives $2 to $4 per square foot and says a painted floor lasts 1 to 5 years on average, the survey's own figure. It suits a small budget and a floor that sees more feet than tires.
Penetrating garage floor sealer
A silane or siloxane water repellent that soaks into the concrete instead of forming a film. Prosoco's data sheet for Sure Klean Weather Seal Siloxane PD says treated surfaces breathe, estimates service life at more than 10 years and warns that it "Will not keep water out of cracks, defects or open joints." A clear film-forming sealer is a different product: H&C's ClariShield sheet says "Not recommended for garage floors". HomeGuide lists garage floor sealing at $1 to $3 per square foot. It suits a sound slab you want left as bare concrete.
Questions
Garage Floor Coating FAQs
What is the best coating to put on a garage floor?
No single coating is right for every garage; each type suits a different floor and schedule. Two-part epoxy suits an owner who can wait: Citadel's comparison table lists 36 to 48 hours to full return to service, and HomeGuide's December 24, 2024 page prices it at $4 to $10 per square foot, nationally. Polyurea and polyaspartic suit a garage needed back sooner: 24 hours by Citadel's table, at $5 to $10 and $5 to $12 respectively in the same survey. One-part floor paint suits a small budget, $2 to $4 there, within the tire limits its own sheets state. A penetrating sealer suits a sound slab left bare.
Is it worth getting your garage floor coated?
It is worth it where cars park every day and less clearly so in a garage used for storage: a coating costs more than paint or a sealer and, in HomeGuide's table, can last longer. That national comparison, dated December 24, 2024, lists sealing at $1 to $3 per square foot, lasting 1 to 3 years for acrylic sealers; painting at $2 to $4, lasting 1 to 5 years; and coating at $4 to $12, lasting 3 to 20 or more years depending on the type. Those lifespans are the survey's statements; our sources hold no independent figure.
What is it called when you paint a garage floor?
It is called garage floor painting when the product is a one-part paint and floor coating when it is a two-part resin. Rust-Oleum's own guide says garage floor paint is typically an acrylic paint and is "sometimes referred to as a one-part garage floor coating". A Stonhard article draws the line by how the film forms: epoxy paints dry as their solvents evaporate, while epoxy coatings cure by chemical reaction. New York's rule, 6 NYCRR 205.2, defines a "floor coating" as an opaque coating labeled and formulated for flooring, and names garage floors.
Can a garage floor be coated in winter in Huntington?
It depends on the coating, because each data sheet sets its own temperature range. Rust-Oleum's ROC-109 requires 50 to 90 degrees F for its one-part floor paint, and ESH-06 requires 55 to 90 degrees F for its two-part epoxy. Citadel's CDL-10 allows its polyaspartic topcoat at 30 to 90 degrees F and CDL-11 its polyurea base coat at 0 to 90 degrees F; both warn that cold can slow the cure. NOAA's 1991-2020 normals for Centerport give January a normal high of 37.9 degrees F and an average of 4.5 January days that reach 50 degrees F. Those are outdoor air temperatures, not slab temperatures, so we measure the slab itself.
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