Floor painting: a guide for pros

What customers ask, how to win the job, and what to put on your profile.

Offering floor painting

Floor painting is judged on how it holds under tires, chairs and spills, and most early failures come from prep and moisture. Win the job by testing the slab, grinding the surface and naming the system and its cure times in the quote.

What customers ask

  • Will the floor peel or bubble after a season?
  • How long before I can park a car on it?
  • Will the coating hold up to oil, salt and hot tires?
  • Can you fix the cracks, and will they show through the coating?
  • Will the floor be slippery when wet?

How to win the job

  • Test the slab for moisture on the first visit with a plastic sheet or a meter, and write the result and the method into the proposal.
  • Grind a small test area and show the customer the surface profile, the color chip and the sheen before the full floor is done.
  • Name the primer, the coating and the topcoat in the quote, along with the recoat interval and the cure time for each step.
  • Quote the crack and chip repair as its own line, with the repair product and a note on how visible it will be.
  • Explain the slip rating or the texture added to the topcoat, and offer a non-slip additive where the floor gets wet.
  • Schedule the cure time in the proposal, and state how the floor will be closed to traffic while it sets.
  • Protect the walls, the doorways and the drains during the work, and list that in the quote.

What to put on your profile

  • Before and after photos of floors, with the crack repair and the finish visible
  • Close-up photos of the surface profile after grinding, which show the prep quality
  • Photos of a moisture test before coating, showing the method used
  • A list of the floor systems you install and the uses each is rated for

Follow-up that helps the customer

  • A care sheet for the floor, with the cleaning products to use and the recoat interval
  • A check visit after the first few months to look at traffic wear and any new cracks
  • A quote for a second zone, such as a shop bay or a porch, offered only if the customer asks

Licenses and permits

Floor painting commonly does not need a license, but slab repair, moisture barriers and structural cracks may need a permit or qualified contracting. Confirm your business registration and insurance in your state and locality before you take the job.

Questions

Should I warranty a floor coating?

Warranty the prep and the workmanship, and pass through the coating manufacturer's warranty. State the conditions that void it, such as moisture from below or heavy vehicle use the product was not rated for.

What if the slab fails the moisture test?

Stop and tell the customer. A coating over a wet slab will fail. Quote the moisture control method or a different floor system, and do not coat over the problem.

About this guide

This national guide is written and checked by infinibell. Rules and conditions differ by place, so local pros are credited on guides for the cities they serve, not on national ones.

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