Plain gray or peeling garage floor? We grind it clean, pour a metallic floor and top it with a clear coat suited to the space.
Metallic epoxy flooring in Castro Valley is a poured floor of pigmented resin, laid in sections over ground concrete. It's moved with rollers, squeegees and a light solvent mist until the metal pigment swirls into a pattern no other floor will have.
Most people who ask about it have a garage, basement or shop floor that's plain gray, stained or peeling, and they want it to look finished. The price is mostly set by the slab you already have. It turns on how much old paint or sealer has to come off, how many cracks and joints need filling, what the moisture check shows, the size of the space and which clear topcoat you choose.
The schedule turns on the same things. A slab that needs heavy grinding or a moisture barrier takes longer to prepare, and each coat has to cure before the next one goes down, so your topcoat choice changes how soon you get the space back. I look at the slab in person and put the price and the prep in writing, so you know both before we start.
The pattern gets the attention, but a few things under and around the pour decide whether it stays put. I check each of these before I'll recommend a metallic floor for your space.
A slab can feel bone dry to the touch and still hold enough moisture to lift a coating within months, so we don't judge it by hand. One maker's metallic system requires a moisture barrier under slabs poured straight on the ground, because seasonal ground moisture can push vapor up no matter what earlier tests showed.
Saw-cut joints are the straight cut lines in a slab, and they can be filled and coated over so the pattern runs across them. I'll be plain with you about the risk, though. The coating may crack over time if the slab shrinks or moves a lot, and filler can't stop the concrete underneath from moving.
Slab temperature and airflow in the room both affect how the metallic pattern settles, so a cold slab or a draft from an open door can show up in the finish. We close up the space and keep the room steady while the resin is wet, and that's a fair question to ask any installer you're considering.
Here's who does what, from your first call to the final walk-through. I handle the estimate myself, so you'll know the price and the prep before any grinding starts.
Call (510) 931-7868 or fill out the form with the rough size of the space and whether it's a garage. We reply to set up a time for me to come out and see the floor.
I check the slab for cracks, moisture and old coatings and ask how you'll use the space, because that decides the topcoat. You then get a written estimate that spells out the price and the prep.
Once you're ready, our crew grinds and cleans the floor, fills what needs filling and puts down the system we agreed on. We keep the dust and the mess to the work area, because this is your home.
Before we leave, I walk the finished floor with you and tell you what to keep off it while the topcoat cures. We clean up after ourselves, so the space is ready for you once it has cured.
A metallic floor shows every flaw, because there are no color chips to hide a patch, a ridge or a stain, so the base has to be smooth and clean before anything is poured. Diamond grinding is the minimum prep for this kind of floor, and any old paint, sealer or coating comes off completely. If your floor is painted or sealed now, please plan on full removal first.
The clear top layer matters as much as the pour, so we'll help you pick one that fits how much sun the space gets. A garage with the door open all afternoon needs something different from a basement that never sees daylight. If the floor takes hot spills, heavy carts or wash-downs, urethane cement flooring usually wears better. If you'd rather keep bare concrete with no coating, polished concrete flooring is worth a look.
One guide recommends a polyaspartic topcoat for any space with UV exposure, and that includes every garage. It's the one I lean toward for a garage or a room with big, sunny windows.
Polyurethane costs less, but the same guide says it cures slower and resists scuffs slightly less. It can make sense indoors, away from the sun, when you don't need the space back quickly.
We reply within one business day to set up a visit, and the on-site estimate is free, with no obligation. I come out and look over the slab and the space with you. You then get the price and the prep in writing.
(510) 931-7868Castro Valley is one of the county's unincorporated areas, so building permits here come from Alameda County through its office for those areas. If your project needs a permit, I'll tell you at the estimate. We'll file it with the county for you, or walk you through it if you'd rather file it yourself.
A California epoxy cost guide says acid etching looks cheaper than diamond grinding, but those coatings fail within 2 to 3 years, and that's why we grind. The same guide lists 15 to 25 years for metallic floors with a polyaspartic topcoat. We're based in Castro Valley and do the same work in Hayward, San Leandro and many other cities around it, where plenty of the garages we see have been painted at some point.
I got into this trade by grinding and coating my own garage floor and reading every product sheet I could find. We've been in business since 2017, 9 years now. I do the estimates myself and stay on the job with our crew from the first pass of prep to the final walk-through, so the person who looked at your slab is the one watching it get poured.
We're licensed and insured. Our promise is satisfaction guaranteed on every job. If your slab needs more work than you hoped, I'll tell you so rather than coat it and hope for the best. To get started, please call (510) 931-7868 or send us the form.
If your floor sees hot liquids, steam cleaning or heavy daily traffic, urethane cement gives up the swirl pattern for a surface built to take hard use.
If you like the look of concrete itself, polishing grinds and refines the slab you already have, with no coating on top to peel or wear through.
We're based in Castro Valley and install metallic epoxy floors in Hayward, San Leandro, Oakland, Dublin, Pleasanton and many other cities around it. Find your city below to see the work we do there.
Across the US, a metallic epoxy installation with grinding, moisture testing, primer and a clear topcoat usually costs about $8 to $15 per square foot. That's a national figure, not our price. Your floor's number depends on its prep and topcoat, and I'll put it in writing after I see the slab. When you compare quotes, check that each one includes those same steps.
One guide says the floor is walkable 4 to 6 hours after the polyaspartic topcoat goes down and drivable in 24 to 48 hours. The same guide puts a standard garage with that topcoat at 2 to 3 days of work, so plan to park outside for a few days.
It likely will, since one guide says an epoxy clear coat on a garage yellows within one summer. That's why we steer garages toward the topcoats described above. One maker of metallic systems also highly recommends a urethane topcoat to help prevent scratching.
Alameda County issues building permits in Castro Valley, because it's one of the county's unincorporated areas. If your floor project needs one, I'll say so at the estimate, and we can file it for you.
Clear everything off the floor, including shelves and anything stored along the walls, so we can grind right up to the edges. Please tell us about any paint or sealer, since it all comes off before coating. Plan to keep cars and foot traffic out until the topcoat has cured.
Call (510) 931-7868 or send the form with the rough square footage, whether it's a garage and any paint or sealer on it, so I can plan the right prep before I arrive.
