You can sure learn some great things when you take a walk through your own neighborhood. Recently, while out walking, I saw a neighbor making an interesting improvement. He was painting his garage floor. Not with just any paint. He was using a kit especially made for garage floors. Beautiful garages have become a "must-have" in higher end homes here in South Orange County, California. Since our homes typically don't have basements or attics, our garages become a primary place to store everything from toys to kitchen overflow. Until now, I always thought that garages with those organized garages with gleaming floors had to cost a bundle.
I couldn't help asking this neighbor my usual million questions about what he was doing, how much it cost in time and money and how difficult this job was. Fortunately, he ccheerfully shared his wisdom with me. He explained that he'd picked up a couple of kits at the hardware store for about $70 each. He told me it was actually easier than painting a room in your house. The kit came complete with a degreaser. He used a putty knife/scraper for the paint spots, then the degreaser in the kit and hosed it down and waited for the surface to dry before beginning to apply the coating.
When I saw him, he'd been busy at his project for a few hours and had already completed about 75% of his two car garage. The process was "paint" a bit, then sprinkle with the little jar of flakes included in the kit - he said the trick was to hold the sprinkles up high to let them "float" down onto the damp surface until you got the pattern and coverage that looks good to you. Then, he picked up his roller again and "painted" an area, then started sprinkling again! He said it was really a very easy job.
Wow! What a beautiful difference a few hours and about $150 can make. An upscale garage floor for a budget price!
A few tips:
- You'll be surprised to see that most of the materials you'll need (except for the garage floor surfacing kit) are probably lurking in your garage already...Hey, you'll need to clean it out to resurface the floor anyway. Here's a list of some of the things you'll need to gather for the project:
Garage floor coating - About $70 for a single car garage (includes degreaser) available at your favorite hardware store- Paint tray & roller (4' extension pole will save you knees)
- Disposable Paint Brush-the cheapest you can find for cutting in
- Scrub Brush
- Scraper, Putty Knife and/or Utility Knife
- Sandpaper
- Duct Tape (What would any project be without this marvel of modern science?)
- Knee Pads - Optional
- You may want to move everything from one side of the garage to the other and do one side of the garage at a time. It takes 48 hours of drying time before you use the floor. It might be a two-weekend project.
- This would be a great project for neighbors - help a neighbor with their garage and get some help with yours!
The directions and a video will come with your garage floor resurfacing kit, but it might be nice for you to see how really easy this project is in advance. DIYNetwork.com has an interesting video and step-by-step directions.
So often, I see folks make improvements to spruce up their homes just before they put it on the market. Then, they wonder why they didn't make the improvement sooner so they could enjoy it themselves. This is a low budget improvement that you can enjoy for many years while you live in your home. And, it may not be the one thing causes your home to sell, but it will show pride of ownership and attention to detail that makes your home stand out to a prospective buyer.
If you are thinking this might be the right time to sell your Orange County home or condo or just need to talk with someone who can give you some straight answers ~ I'd be pleased to give you information without obligation. If you are not looking for information on the Orange County, California home market, I am able to assist you by introducing you to someone in your area who will provide excellent service through my national and international affiliation with Certified Residential Specialists®.
Marlene Bridges, REALTOR®
800 777-1775
Orange County Real Estate Website
Orange County Seniors Lifestyles Blog
SRES - Seniors Real Estate Specialist®
CRS-Certified Residential Specialist®
President - Laguna Hills/Laguna Woods Chamber of Commerce 2007-2009
President Elect Southern California Chapter of Certified Residential Specialists® 2008-2009
Marlene is a highly experienced and respected South Orange County CA REALTOR® specializing in residential Real Estate and the sale of Homes and Condos in South Orange County, California and Saddleback Valley cities of: Laguna Woods, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Beach, Rancho Santa Margarita, Lake Forest, Dana Point, San Juan Capistrano, San Clemente, Aliso Viejo, Mission Viejo.
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Hi Marlene, This is awesome! I now have a something new to put on my husband's Honey-Do list. :-)