Epoxy Flooring in Cedar Falls, IA

Epoxy flooring in Cedar Falls splits into two kinds of job. One is a garage in a newer subdivision, where the slab is smooth and only a few winters old. The other is a 1960s or 1970s home whose garage floor has spent fifty years taking salt. Point2Homes' summary of ACS estimates shows both in large numbers: 2,724 Cedar Falls homes were built in the 1970s, the biggest single decade, and 2,286 more went up between 2010 and 2019.

New slabs need patience

Fresh concrete keeps giving off water for weeks after it is poured. Coat it too soon and that vapor gets trapped under the resin, which can cause bubbles or loss of bond. If your home was finished in the last year or so, we will test the floor before we schedule. If it is still too wet, we will tell you when to call back.

A newer slab also tends to have a hard, glassy troweled finish. Resin does not grip that well. We diamond grind it to an open profile so the base coat can soak in. Many newer houses here also have wide three-stall garages, so we plan control joints and layout before the first coat goes down.

Fifty-year-old garages

The 1970s homes bring different work. By now the first few feet inside the door may be scaled from road salt, and old sealers or paint may be half worn off. These floors usually need crack repair and spall filling before they can take a coating. They are good candidates for a full flake system, which hides the patched areas once it is finished.

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Building near the river

The June 2008 flood pushed the Cedar River at Cedar Falls to 101.8 feet, against a flood stage of 88 feet and above the 1999 record of 99.2 feet. After it, the city adopted a floodplain ordinance in 2010 that goes beyond FEMA's minimum. According to the American Planning Association's case study, the 500-year floodplain is now the locally regulated boundary. Structures inside it must sit one foot above the 500-year flood elevation, and larger detached accessory buildings must be raised to the 500-year level.

That matters if you are building a detached garage or shop near the river. The floor height has to be settled with the city before the slab is poured. Once it is in and cured, we can coat it with a shop-grade system. Ask the city about elevation first. Then call us about the finish.

Student rentals and owner homes

Cedar Falls is a university town, and about 36% of its occupied homes are rented. Landlords near campus often ask for basement and garage coatings that clean up fast at move-out. Owner-occupants tend to want flake colors and a polyaspartic topcoat that resists yellowing in a garage that faces the afternoon sun.

Picking colors for a big garage

In a three-stall garage the floor is a large surface, and the color choice shows. A medium gray or tan flake blend hides salt film and dust between cleanings. Very dark blends show white salt residue in winter. Very light ones show tire marks. We bring chip samples to the estimate so you can see them on your own slab, in your own light.

What to clear before we arrive

We need the floor empty, with cars, bins and anything on the floor moved out. Wall-mounted storage can usually stay up. Tell us about floor drains, a sump or a radiant heat loop in the slab, since each one changes how we grind and coat around it.