A practical option to discuss for your slab
GARAGE FLOOR COATINGS KELOWNA
A garage floor is the hardest-working slab in the house. Hot tires, dropped tools, road salt, oil, freeze-thaw cycling through an Okanagan winter. Apex installs the full commercial-grade system, diamond-ground prep, epoxy base, decorative flake broadcast, UV-stable polyaspartic topcoat. The same build we put in shops and showrooms.
- Indicative cost
- $8–$12/sq ft
- Typical installation
- 2 days
- Lifespan
- 15-20+ years
Why Prep Decides Everything
Every failed garage floor we get called to fix has the same root cause: nobody opened the concrete. Acid etching and pressure washing leave the slab too closed for the resin to key into, so the coating sits on top like a sticker and lifts with the first hot tire. We diamond-grind every slab to a CSP 2-3 profile with dust-extracted grinders, then vacuum and tack the surface before a drop of resin goes down.
Crack, Spall and Joint Repair
Before coating, cracks get chased out and filled with a rigid polyurea that cures harder than the concrete around it. Spalled edges and pop-outs are rebuilt with a resin-and-sand mortar and ground flush. Control joints can be filled flush for a seamless look or honoured through the coating if the slab is still moving. We make that call on site, not from a price list.
The Flake Broadcast
While the pigmented epoxy base is still wet, we broadcast vinyl flake to full rejection, meaning we keep throwing chip until the floor will not absorb another flake. That is what gives the finished floor its depth, its texture underfoot, and its ability to hide the dirt a garage actually collects. Partial broadcasts are cheaper and look thin within a year.
The Polyaspartic Topcoat
Two coats of UV-stable polyaspartic lock the flake in and do the real work: hot-tire-pickup resistance, chemical resistance to brake fluid and road salt, and no ambering where sun comes through the open door. It also cures fast enough that you can walk on the floor in 24 hours and park on it in 72.
Working Through an Okanagan Winter
Polyaspartic will cure down to about 0°C, which means heated garages are a year-round job for us. Unheated detached garages we schedule between April and October, or we bring in temporary heat and hold the slab above the product minimum for the full cure window. We will tell you which category you are in during the quote.
System specification
| Surface prep | Diamond grinding to CSP 2-3 |
|---|---|
| Build | 100% solids epoxy base + full flake broadcast |
| Topcoat | UV-stable polyaspartic, 2 coats |
| Total thickness | 25-35 mils |
| Slip resistance | Flake texture; aluminum oxide optional |
| Walk-on / drive-on | 24 hours / 72 hours |
Finishes in this system
Garage Floor Coatings. FAQ
How much does a garage floor coating cost in Kelowna?
A full-flake epoxy system with polyaspartic topcoat runs $8-$12 per square foot installed in the Kelowna area. A standard 2-car garage (about 500 sq ft) is typically $4,000-$6,000, and a single garage (about 250 sq ft) is $2,000-$3,000. Larger shop floors come down toward $7-$9 per square foot.
How long does a garage floor coating take?
Two days for a standard residential garage. Day one is diamond grinding, crack and joint repair, and the pigmented epoxy base coat with flake broadcast. Day two is scraping, vacuuming and two coats of polyaspartic. You can walk on it after 24 hours and park on it after 72 hours.
Is epoxy or polyaspartic better for a garage floor?
Neither on its own. The best systems use both. Epoxy is the base coat because it builds thickness and bonds hard to prepped concrete. Polyaspartic is the topcoat because it is UV-stable, more flexible, and cures fast. A pure epoxy floor ambers in sunlight; a pure polyaspartic floor costs 30-40% more for less build.
Will a garage floor coating peel?
Not when the slab is diamond-ground, moisture-tested and repaired before coating. Peeling comes from three things: acid-etched or unprepped concrete, moisture driving up through a slab with no vapour barrier, and hardware-store roll-on kits that are 40-50% solids. We test for all three before quoting.
Can you coat a garage floor that already has old epoxy on it?
Yes. Old coatings get mechanically removed, diamond grinding for thin failed coatings, shot blasting for thick or stubborn ones, back to bare concrete, then the slab is repaired and coated as new. Removal typically adds $1-$3 per square foot depending on what is down there.