Tommy Mac Discussions Forums Fix-it Forum: Home Improvement & Do It Yourself Repair Forum help,how do I clean up my messed up epoxy floor??

Viewing 2 reply threads
  • Author
    Posts
    • #50079
      tooldude56
      Participant

      I have a totaly messed up epoxy floor in my shop.I have tried every thing including MEK and lacquer thinner,but nothing seems to phase it,I have tried scraping it up and that works on some of it,but not on most of it.Maybee I out to tell you a bit of the history with this floor:A few years ago,I decided that I wanted a painted floor in my hobby machine shop,so I went to my local Sherwin Williams store and inquired as to my options.the paint that we came up with was the popular tile clad epoxy paint,I was told that since the floor was not new,I would need to acize the floor to etch it or rough it up a little,before painting.I emptied approx. 3/4 of the shop and put it in storage leaving only a portion of the floor that I would leave unpainted,as I we be using that area for welding.I carefuly cleaned and etched the floor with many gallons of muratic acid,then very thouroly rinse the whole area many times.Then I waited approx. a week with the heat running around the clock,thinking,now I will have the perfect floor,right?,WRONG………….I picked up the paint from the Sherwin Williams store and heded for home.I was very anxious to get a couple of coats on this floor and get my shop back together.I rolled the first coat on and everything went great and in the morning it was dry and looked very nice,but surely did need a second coat.So I stated mixing the paint for the second coated and when I opened the first gallon of catylist or hardener,it did’bt look right.The hasrdener that I used on the first coat was clear and thin like water,but this batch looked like honey and was thick like syrup.I imediatly called the manager at the store,since he was the person that put my order together.I described my concerns to him and he was quick to respond,dont worry about it,it’s the same stuff with a different name,I ran out of the other hardener,but this will work just fine.I reluctently said OK and went back to my project,after all he’s the expert and should know what he is talking about.RIGHT?? Well I was wrong.I nervously mixed the paint exactly as he had instructed me to do and the paint went on fine.The next morning I went to the shop to check the paint and it was just as wet as when I applied it.I called the manager Chris at Sherwin Williams with my concerns and he told me,it will be fine,give ia another day or two,so I did and the paint was still wet.This went on for over 2 weeks and the paint was still wet.Fianaly the manager Chris admitted to me that He had screwed up,but would repaint it personaly.I said OK,what else could I do??The trick was going to be getting the undried product up,So new could be applied.He asured me that He could get it cleaned up and even offered to apply Sherwin Williams latest and greatest new high build finish that was a considerably more expensive paint.I thought every thing was going to be OK now,Boy was I wrong….He worked on removing the wet paint for a couple of weeks and was’nt making much headway,but then one weekend I had to go out of town and returning on Monday,I realized that my floor was all painted and looked great.WOW this mess is finaly over with….I was wrong again.I had questioned Chris about getting the undried paint up,before appling the new and He said Yup we got it all up this weekend and painted it Sunday.I waited for a week before attempting to move any machinery back in to the shop and was very careful doing so.I did not bring in a forklift until the second week.Then as I was filling tooling cabinets and sitting on a stool that had rubber casters,I noticed that the floor was all torn up.Upon close inspection,I noticed the there were several polaces on the floor that werre blisted and loose.then I lifted one of the blisters and underneath there was the still wet unhardened green tile clad paint.The more time that passed,the worse the floor looked.It began looking like a patchwork quilt,because the undried tileclad paint was green and the new paint was grey.The next time that I went to this store to talk about this problem,I was told that The former manager Chris no longer was an employee there.NOW WHAT DO I DO??? So I emailed Sherwin Williams coperate explaining my problem,hoping that they could at the very least help me figure out a way to clean up this mess,But they refused to even acknowledge me and would not return an email.I know that they received the email because I received a receipt.I had a lot of faith in Sherwin Williams and their products,until this.

    • #258041
      Unregistered-Leo
      Guest

      I’d talk to an attorney. S-W needs to remedy your problem.

      You’ll probably need to consult with a chemist to determine what to use. MEK is nasty stuff. Methylene Chloride is nastier but I wouldn’t mess with any harsh chemicals until you talked with an attorney.

    • #258125
      hy
      Participant

      It sounds like you really have been given a difficult time by your supplier who is a distributor of our PEEL AWAY products. We have a PEEL AWAY 7 product that will probably do the removal of the coatings that you applied and give you back your original surface. Testing has to be done to make sure we can get it removed for you. I suggest you call our office at 800-245-1191 and ask for Hy Dubin and lets discuss your scenario. We can possibly have one of our sales/tech people meet with you and help in doing test areas deopending on your location. If PEEL AWAY 7 does not do it then our PEEL AWAY 2 product will certainly do the removal for you. We await your call.

Viewing 2 reply threads
  • You must be logged in to reply to this topic.