Epoxy paint or snap together tiles for the garage??

[Robert Evans]

Don, The only advice that I can give you regarding an epoxy floor that is installed by a contractor is:
Make sure that a vapor emission test is done first without fail, then make sure that whatever brand of epoxy/polyurethane they use, be sure that it is solvent based. Only the primer base can be water based, but the 100% solids epoxy and the polyurethane top coat must be diluted and mixed with a solvent such as MEK or Acetone, depending on the climate that you live in and how quickly the product needs to cure. Water based coatings are not suitable for garage applications and will not resist many of the chemicals found in an automotive environment. The basic rule of thumb with most coatings is that the longer it takes to dry, the more durable it will be. Epoxy's that dry very quickly are either water based or are poor quality. Most solvent based epoxy's and polyurethanes take at least 12-24 hours before you can even walk on them, and about 7 days to fully cure. Some are designed to dry much quicker, but they are more costly and unnecessary for a garage application.

It looks like the first two quotes that you got are for a single color application, while the third looks like it has vinyl chips added. The whole process should take about 5 days, with another 5-7 days cure time before it can be driven on.

Vinyl chip floors are fairly durable for medium duty use, but if you have a heavy duty requirement, then the ceramic/quartz filled floors are best, but they will cost you somewhere around $5.00-up per s/f. Don't confuse ceramic/quartz with a "Granite-look" floor, which is nothing more than vinyl chips added for color. Ceramic/quartz is actually a ceramic aggregate added as a filler with 100% solids epoxy. These are extremely durable and are approved for use in restaurants.

As for pricing on RaceDeck tiles; Due to the fact that new RaceDeck dealers are being added almost weekly, I cannot quote pricing on the internet. We are an exclusive dealer for RaceDeck in the California and Las Vegas areas. There are areas where we cannot sell RaceDeck due to exclusive territories, but feel free to call us at TuffDeck, Inc. toll free at 866-789-5927 PST and we can either direct you to a dealer in your area or give you a quote. We never sell at retail, but do offer a Club Cobra discount.