A floor coating does two things at once: it protects the concrete underneath and it makes the space look finished. A bare garage or shop floor takes a beating — oil, road salt tracked in off Illinois winters, hot tires, dropped tools, chemicals. Over time it stains, dusts, and flakes. A properly installed epoxy or polyaspartic system seals all of that out and leaves you with a hard, glossy, easy-to-clean surface that wipes down instead of soaking in.
We've been coating floors for years across the Metro East for homeowners, hobby shops, and small commercial operations. Because we're a concrete contractor first, we understand the slab we're coating — how it was poured, where it's likely to move, and what has to happen before a coating will actually bond and last.
Epoxy or Polyaspartic — What's the Difference
Both are liquid-applied coatings that cure into a hard, seamless surface. The right one depends on the space and how you use it.
Epoxy is the proven workhorse. It builds a thick, durable base layer that bonds tightly to properly prepared concrete and holds up to heavy use. It's an excellent value for interior garage and shop floors.
Polyaspartic is the newer technology and it solves epoxy's two weak points. It cures fast — most floors are installed in a single day and back in service far sooner — and it's UV-stable, so it won't yellow or chalk in sunlight the way straight epoxy can. That makes it the better choice for spaces that see daylight or sit outdoors, like patios and pool decks, and it can be applied in colder temperatures than epoxy.
On a lot of jobs we use both: an epoxy base coat for build and adhesion, then a polyaspartic top coat for speed, UV resistance, and abrasion protection. We'll tell you straight which system fits your floor and your budget when we come out to look.
Where a Coating Makes Sense
Garage floors. The most common request. A coated garage floor stops the dusting and staining, brightens the whole space, and cleans up with a mop. We can broadcast decorative flakes into the coating for a speckled finish that also hides minor imperfections and adds grip.
Shop, warehouse, and commercial floors. Coatings built for foot and equipment traffic, chemical exposure, and easy cleaning. We schedule commercial work to keep your operation running.
Basements. A sealed, finished basement floor that resists moisture and looks like a living space instead of raw concrete.
Patios and pool decks. With a UV-stable polyaspartic system and a slip-resistant additive, we can coat exterior concrete for a finished look that stands up to sun and weather.
Why the Prep Is Everything
Most coating failures — peeling, bubbling, hot-tire pickup — trace back to bad surface prep, not the coating itself. A coating rolled onto a dirty, sealed, or moisture-heavy slab will let go. This is where being a concrete contractor matters.
We mechanically profile the concrete with a diamond grinder so the coating has real texture to key into, rather than shortcutting it with an acid wash. We repair cracks, spalls, and pits before we coat, so you're not sealing in a problem. And because we poured floors long before we coated them, we know how to read a slab, check for moisture issues, and tell you honestly if a floor needs work before it's ready for a coating.
If the concrete itself is failing, we can handle that too — we're one call for the repair, the pour, or the coating, not three separate companies.
Our Process
1. Free on-site estimate. We come out, look at the floor and the space, talk through how you use it, and measure the square footage. We check the slab's condition and flag anything that needs repair first.
2. Surface prep. We diamond-grind the concrete to the right profile and clean it thoroughly. This is the step that decides whether the coating lasts.
3. Repairs. Cracks, spalls, and pits are filled and leveled so the finished surface is smooth and the coating bonds evenly.
4. Base coat. The epoxy or polyaspartic base is applied to seal and build the surface.
5. Flakes and top coat (optional). If you want a decorative flake finish, we broadcast the chips into the base, then lock everything in with a clear polyaspartic top coat that adds gloss, grip, and abrasion resistance.
6. Cure and return to service. We give you specific guidance on cure times. A polyaspartic system is often walk-ready the same day and vehicle-ready within a day or two — far faster than traditional epoxy.
What to Expect on Cost
Coating cost depends on square footage, the condition of the existing concrete, how much prep and crack repair the floor needs, the system you choose (epoxy, polyaspartic, or a combination), and whether you want a decorative flake finish.
A clean, sound garage floor lands in a different range than a large shop floor that needs grinding and repair before a single drop of coating goes down. We don't quote a flat per-square-foot number sight unseen, because that number ignores what shape the concrete is in — which is the biggest cost variable.
The estimate is free. We come out, look at the floor, and give you a clear written price before any work starts. Call us at 618-280-3200 or reach out through the contact page to set up a time.
Where We Work
We install epoxy and polyaspartic floor coatings across St. Clair, Madison, and Monroe County. A few of the areas we work in regularly:
- O'Fallon, IL - O'Fallon service area
- Belleville, IL - Belleville service area
- Edwardsville, IL - Edwardsville service area
- Collinsville, IL - Collinsville service area
- Waterloo, IL - Waterloo service area
- Columbia, IL - Columbia service area
We also work in Troy, Glen Carbon, Fairview Heights, Swansea, Mascoutah, Highland, and the surrounding towns. If you're not sure whether we cover your area, call us. If we can get there, we will.
See the full service area map for more detail.
Related Services
Garage & Shop Floor Concrete New garage and shop floor slabs poured to the right thickness and reinforcement. If the floor needs replacing before it's coated, we pour it and coat it.
Concrete Slabs & Pads Slabs for sheds, AC units, hot tubs, and equipment pads. Sized and reinforced for the load, poured level.
Concrete Removal & Replacement Full tear-out and replacement in one stop when a floor is too far gone to coat. We demolish, haul off with our own trucks, prep the base, and pour new.
Concrete Pool Deck Slip-resistant and stamped pool decks. Existing decks can be coated with a UV-stable polyaspartic finish.