Brewery Floors

Epoxy has strong adhesive properties, chemical and heat resistance, and toughness. Do it yourself applicators should understand some of the risks of using epoxy products and know how to safely handle and apply these systems. (Refer to individual product instructions.)

The potential health hazards associated with epoxy floor systems vary. Exposure can result in skin and eye irritation, allergic skin reactions, respiratory tract irritation, and/or breathing difficulties. Most of the problems typically occur while applying the epoxy and subject to inhalation of epoxy chemical fumes.

Applicators should take into consideration space ventilation and protective gear when applying an epoxy floor. Some recommendations for handling, mixing, and applying epoxy systems are:

‘Do It Yourself’ Brewery Floor Coating – Part 5 – Product application

Insure the floor is as dry as possible without any puddles of water present. If there is excess water on the substrate, take up excess with a suitable vacuum and wait until dry (as possible) condition exists. Then, after the material is thoroughly mixed, pour the material onto the substrate.

Either use a trowel to push out and level the material evenly or spread with a gauge rake set to the 1/8″ height with cam pins followed by an air release spiked roller tool. (Note cam pins will wear down from dragging on the floor and need replacing as they wear otherwise your floor will end up too thin. Check gauge rake pins at regular intervals and replace or rotate as necessary) Please note that the product has a limited 15-20 minute working time, so best to have helpers assisting doing the mixing and ‘feeding’ the application personnel. If not topcoating, apply nonskid aggregate by hand onto the wet surface to achieve the desired level of texture. The surface could have an uneven texture, color streaks or color differences and an orange peel look which is normal prior to topcoating. Maintain temperatures between 50-90 degree F.

Do not apply to cracked or unsound concrete. Do not feather edge. If product needs a ‘termination point’, score the floor first with the standard (previously described) 1/8″ wide by 1/8″ deep groove into the floor. Tape the outer edge of the groove and remove the tape prior to product fully curing for a clean edge as once cured the tape will be very difficult to remove.

‘Do It Yourself’ Brewery Floor Coating – Part 4 – Repair tips and products

Epoxy floor coatings are measured in ‘mils’ (thousandths of an inch). A medium build epoxy coating system will cure at 7-15 mils. A high build epoxy coating system will dry at 20-35 mils. If you need to ‘level’ just ¼”, that would be 250 mils, so you can see why using an epoxy to make floor repairs or ‘level’ a floor would be impractical and expensive. Broom finish floors and rough surface floors can have surface variations of up to 1/8” (125 mils) and normally cannot be leveled by epoxy only. The term ‘self-leveling’ means that the epoxy will smooth itself out in most cases, at the thickness it is applied at.

Brewery floor repair
This demonstrates the thickness of epoxy floor covering compared to a quarter. In comparison, a typical paint coat is as thin as a piece of paper.

Leveling and patching holes, spalls, and corrosion
These kinds of floors are not easily repaired using an epoxy so use a commercially available cementitious type floor resurfacer. These products are available nationwide at home centers and building material centers and are often referred to as ‘skim coat’ products and come in 50lb cement type bags. A 50lb bag will level only 25 square feet (5’ x 5’) to a depth of 1/4:”, so if you need a lot of leveling, you may need quite a few bags to repair your floor. Use these types of products for salt corroded floors and worn floors where the aggregate (rock) is exposed or the floor has ‘acne’ and is pitted. Allow adequate time, according to manufacturer’s recommendations, for curing prior to applying the epoxy. These types of products are normally installed with a ‘gauge rake’ and then smoothed over with a floor smoother.

‘Do It Yourself’ Brewery Floor Coating – Part 3 – Common floor types

New or unpainted/unsealed concrete: The floor must be properly prepared to accept the coating by one of the previous methods. Note: Newly poured concrete must ‘cure’ first. Moisture in the floor may cause coating failure. New concrete normally has to cure generally at least 30 days. Test any concrete to be coated by (as previously mentioned) taping a 4’ x 4’ sheet of clear plastic on the floor with duct tape. If moisture under the plastic sheet or floor dampness/darkening appears the next day, then do not coat yet. Older concrete with moisture issues can also create problems. If you have a continuing moisture problem then we recommend doing an inexpensive moisture test and using either a standard primer or a moisture barrier primer.

Sealed floor: First determine if the floor is sealed. Dribble water onto a cleaned spot on the floor. If it beads up, like on a waxed floor, then you are dealing with a previously sealed floor. A sealed floor will resist all coatings. The old seal must be removed. Repeat prep steps until water no longer beads up.
If you plan acid etching, expect to have to repeat the process multiple times or at a higher acid concentration. Sanding a sealed floor prior to using acid etch helps to ‘open up’ the floor and allows the acid to penetrate and etch.

If you opt for the mechanical method choose Diamond Floor Buffer Pads designed for prepping sealed floors.

‘Do It Yourself’ Brewery Floor Coating – Part 2 – Surface prep options

Surface prep is the most important step of any coating project. An improperly prepped floor will result in either a failure, or shortened performance life of the floor covering. New or old concrete MUST be prepped before coating. There are two recommended methods for preparing your concrete floor for coating, the acid etching method, the mechanical method, or with a Flash Bonding Primer.

Acid Etching: A good, low cost, way to prep your floors. Acid etching removes any surface lime, which all concrete has, and creates millions of microscopic pores in the surface for effective adhesion. Acid etching is a safe alternative to using muriatic acid etch which can cause skin irritation and adverse reaction on certain people. There are several products on the market specifically designed for etching prep or you can use locally sourced muriatic acid.

Muriatic Acid: Normal mix is 4 parts water to 1 part acid, but you can use less water if your floor is sealed or extremely dirty. Always rinse well with water to neutralize all the acid afterwards. A solution of water and TSP (trisodium phosphate), available at most paint or hardware stores, is also an effective way to neutralize the acid. Regardless, allow plenty of time to fully dry before coating with epoxy (normally overnight works, but it can take longer under wet conditions).

A test can be conducted to determine if the concrete moisture content is controlled to acceptable levels; this can be done by placing a 4’X4’ plastic sheet on the substrate and taping down the edges. If after 24 hours, the substrate is still dry below the plastic sheet, then the substrate is generally considered suitable for coatings. The plastic sheet testing is also a good method to determine if any hydrostatic pressure problems exist that could cause a bonding failure later.

‘Do It Yourself’ Brewery Floor Coating – Part 1 – Introduction

INTRODUCTION:

The craft beer industry has a history of making do with what’s at hand to put that first dream brewery together. Franken-dreams have come true through hard work, ingenuity, and the assembly of equipment never created to produce beer. So it’s not surprising there are those among us who find themselves without the budget required to pay a contractor to install the important coating system required to keep the brewery clean and hygienic. Do It Yourself flooring system kits for brewery environments have been developed, complete with supplies, instructions, and support along the way to fill this need.

Brewery Floors – Maintenance & Repair

Planned Maintenance and Cleaners

If coatings and tiles are applied correctly the Maintenance on a floor should be low.
It’s key to keep an eye on your flooring system for signs of failure or need of required maintenance like you would with any piece of equipment in the brewery.
Check with installers and manufacturers for best cleaning agents and application instructions for the system you’ve chosen.

There are many ways to clean floors, and many chemicals cleaners that can be used properly or improperly. Check with installer and manufacturer for the correct way to clean and if you find out about a different cleaner that you’ve been told works wonders for someone else, check with the manufacturer and/or installer to verify it won’t void whatever warranty you have on your flooring system.

REPAIR – Inspect the damaged flooring area:

Brewery Floors – Flooring materials

Tile: A new aged tile floor is a great option. These are not your typical bathroom tiles. Most tiles in the industry these days are hexagon German tiles (many options) Although expensive to install, tile offers great service life and floor protection. A tile floor, properly installed using epoxy grouting should essentially never wear out, but will require periodic regrouting, especially around floor drain areas. The tile’s grout lines are where you will have issues and there are a lot of grout lines to keep track of. Some tile designs offer an engineered texture or slip resistant pattern cast into the ceramic. Homeowner-grade tiles are a nonstarter because they are light duty, slippery when wet, and can’t hold up to the severe loading, chemicals, and heat of the brewery environment.

High Traffic Areas: Quality coverings properly applied should hold up well under reasonable brewery forklift and other traffic, cheap or substandard covering will not last and will cost you more in the long run due to down time and reapplication costs.

Coating Systems: When laying out a brewery floor plan and calculating square footage, equipment positions, and drainage, don’t forget to figure in chemical resistant coatings for the walls and wood/floors as well.

Brewery Floors – Drainage

Drainage Slope – Sloped Floors should be poured with a minimum slope of at least 1/4 inch per foot drop to the drains. This will assure thorough drainage of the floor. During the design phase, laying out the tanks and equipment placements is recommended to determine the optimum positioning of floor drains and drainage slope, always plan ahead for future expansion and growth.

Floor Drains and Plumbing – When selecting Sewer line materials, it’s recommended you choose a material that’s higher in resistance to both chemicals and heat than required (always plan ahead). Drainage plumbing options are endless, but proper piping or cast iron is the best option. Each has its advantages and disadvantages, and there may be local regulations and codes dictating which are required. Consult a plumber and make sure all safety and code requirements are met. Mistakes are expensive after the fact. A proper floor design will take into account the type, style, and position of the floor drains.

Floor drains come in a variety of shapes and sizes:

New Brewery Floor in an Existing Building

Before making any decisions regarding the layout of your brewery’s new home take a hard look at the current floor’s construction. You’ll have to choose between removing the existing slab and pouring a “topping slab.”

Topping Slab – The benefit of the topping slab option, besides being cheaper and less work, is, when poured over good solid concrete, the topping slab can be formed to slope to your drains without the expense of removing and repouring certain areas of your floor. Prior to installation of the topping slab, Drain line access will have to be cut and installed through the existing slab. When setting those drains remember to allow room around the drain areas. Maximum thickness is ideal, 6-8 inch depth around drains 5-10 inch on each side of drain. The minimum thickness of the concrete topping will vary but will normally be at least 3 inches. Any thinner than that and you risk increased failure rates.

Slab Replacement – Complete removal and re-pouring of major sections, or the entire floor, may be required if the existing concrete is unsound and/or cannot support the weight of the vessels and equipment to be installed. Generally, for either application, a 3,000 psi concrete mix is used for pouring. With new floors, a rebar pattern and footings should be engineered as well to accommodate the weight of the equipment to be installed. In areas with seismic activity (earthquakes), additional engineered specifications may be required.

Brewery Floors Introduction