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Garage Enhancements Ltd celebrates 14 years in the home improvement business this September . A magnificent achievement for any company. Today a company strives on progressive innovation, a strong reputation for repeatable quality and most important, response and service.
Click to see gallery of images
Adding value to our customers has been and will continue to be our major focus and lifeline. Today with the economic environment surging ahead leaving some new home buyers behind. The future is somewhat uncertain. Real estate thrusts forward and the sales frenzy continues into our 3rd Qtr. of 2021.
Differentiate yourself from your neighbour is ultimately your distinctive advantage when considering keeping or selling your home. Garage utilization has always been difficult and at times the last horizon of concern for the homeowner. As prices increase both for ownership and rent, there’s never been a more needed time to get organized with household storage.
Garage Enhancements Ltd is an expert at creating new usable space, finding innovative storage options through adding Gladiator garage cabinets, overhead storage racks, strong wall covering with Gladiator slat wall with a large variety of hooks, baskets, and shelves. We continually search for new products such as laser parking assist wall mounts to help our customers lifestyle get a little bit easier each visit. Suppliers such as Mapei, Sika, Sherwin Williams are our staple for consistent high quality and our continuous on the job employee training ensures our outstanding quality.
Aging cracked or spalled garage concrete floors are corrected to compliment the storage look leaving a dust/allergy free concrete floor you are proud to own inside and out of your home.
Garage Enhancements Ltd offers a variety of options and material to protect the concrete wherever it may be. Garage floor, basement, patio, home office, business, or industrial factories. If its damaged or worn concrete, we can improve the look and functions to fulfill your requirements. Polished concrete, epoxy concrete coatings, coloured dye ,creative concrete staining, re-sloping, and correction of garage floor for drainage improvements, waterproofing, membranes, electrical, painting and lastly, junk removal. The perfect time to clear out unwanted items when Garage Enhancements starts your garage renovations and will help with the disposal.
This brings my blog to a close. Are we a one-day floor company ?
Absolutely NOT, and we would not be celebrating 14 years this September if we had limited ourselves to quick turnarounds vs fulfilling our customers needs continuously.
Garage Enhancements “ known for superior Quality . Remembered for outstanding service. “
Call for a free Consultation with our sales team.
519-220-9714 |
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Consumers, architects, contractors, building landlords, maintenance people and many other professional groups over the years have been drawn to the finish, versatility and long-term cost saving of beautiful polished concrete.
Situation: We have a beautiful custom-built home with in floor heat throughout. The builder, architects, and designers are looking for a beautifully finished floor, low maintenance, excellent heat transfer to the surface of the concrete at a competitive and reasonable price.
Problem: Not all the surface areas are being used for the same condition of living. We may have the main floor, family rooms, kitchen, bathrooms, utility, bedrooms, storage, workshop, mudroom and perhaps a playroom. Are they all used with the same environment and condition? Grease in the kitchen? Urine in the washrooms, sump pumps in the utility rooms, salt in the mudroom and with paints in the workrooms.
Implication: The wear and tear on each area will be different depending on traffic and uses. Urine in the polished washroom floor is a disaster waiting to happen beside toilets and standing urinals. The acidity from the urine splash will decay through the densifier and the concrete itself over time. Grease from cooking with permanently stain polished and densified concrete and salt spillage from your water softener will also damage your polish in the utility room. Stained and colored floors added to the polish process will also suffer the same negative effect if subject to the above environment.
Need: Communication from the designers, general contractors, architects, and your polish contractor must be profusely honest on the reality of what to expect over the years of use in each room. Some areas will and need to be recommended for additional protection of a sealer to avoid stain penetration and acidic erosion.
Clear Coatings to protect these vulnerable areas of Polished Concrete.
Protecting polished concrete is achieved in two ways.
Ground and coated surface with a polyaspartic chemical resistant clear coat will resist urine acidity oven grease, salts, red wines, and other intrusive household chemicals and foods.
True polished concrete with a smooth slip resistant option offers an excellent heat transfer for in floor heating elements. Excellent wear and easy to maintain with a weekly/monthly maintenance process to keep its beauty.
With a little maintenance, both finishes your floor will last for many years of enjoyment and comfort.
Be aware of what you're getting and never be afraid to ask questions. We have been in business for 13 years and built relationships through outstanding quality and remarkable service.
Lawrence Clark
Garage Enhancements Ltd
Known for Superior Quality.
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Discovered in the early 1930’s epoxy has been developed continually to meet new challenges for the ever-changing world we live in.
From higher strengths to more malleable internals to waterproofing and heat retention the development is ongoing. Luckily for the average garage epoxy requirement our selections are much more narrowed and defined based on our requirements.
Often over the year, we receive requests for an estimate through our website. Some requests offer all the pertinent info on the customer's requirements such as who, what, where and when followed with a contact number and perhaps a few special requests or good consumer questions.
Others ask for just a price and offer only a return email. This is very difficult to give a reliable price per square foot. Garage applications can be done with a few different types of epoxy ranging from the popular home improvement stores that offer more residential material lending to a do it yourself version for easy installation. To a commercial grade epoxy creating a more substantial build in thickness and much higher wear properties. Commercial epoxy can be water based, part solids from 70% up to a 100 % solid epoxy leaving the latter epoxy giving the thickest layers possible with a single roll down the application.
Do I get a primer that is part of the installation? This is the most important part of any installation for the epoxy product. Most premature features are caused by delamination (peeling) off the substrate (concrete floor). These are caused by moisture intrusion, poor saturation of the epoxy material, dirt, grease, and several other contaminants not removed from the concrete floor before installment.
Is your epoxy physical properties the same as your competitors? This can be the unknown, especially when asking strictly for a generic square footage price. Epoxies can have various properties all beneficial to the task at hand. And now the newest one-day install is Polyaspartic coatings. These products are introduced to the concrete industry for the main reason of quick drying back into service and UV sunlight stability. The one-day process is still a concern when looking at soaking times into the properly prepared concrete floor. If a Polyasparitic solid product is used as a primer, it dries quickly and shortens the soaking penetrating time into the concrete. Depth of saturation is very important for the delamination and pull strength of your coating.
What is your thickness requirement? These are pertinent questions to be asked on any estimate as thickness translates to wear. Not bond, BUT friction and compressive wear. Thickness is also the red flag when a consumer is browsing for the price. Coating films can be functional from 3mils up to 30mils and much more. If your walking once a week on a floor, do you need the same product thickness as you would when driving your car in and out several times daily with tires full of winter conditions? (salt and sand). How about forklift traffic and carrying heavy duty loads over your floor 24 hours a day? Therefore, you need to be a little more forth giving with your information when filling out any quote request. Reputable coating companies know coatings and can help you determine what you require, perhaps not the cheapest…. BUT what you need for your application.
There are many more unknowns to your application, and these are just a few that you need to be answered before you make the final decision on your selected contractor.
In closing, ask away. Garage Enhancements Ltd has been around for well over a decade installing residential, industrial, medical and food grade floors in south Western Ontario.
“Know what you're paying for and get what you need!”
Lawrence Clark 519-220-0714 President of Garage Enhancements.
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Garage Enhancements Ltd was hired to put some much needed tender care to this 40 year old swimming pool walkway and try and bring it back to life.
Our client was very open to new ideas that would fill a lot of pitting and scaling from years of wear, heavy power washing and natural concrete decay over time.
Garage Enhancements installed an overlayment product from Elite-Crete products with a simple trowel finish for anti slip results.
You would never guess this pool top is 40 years old after we completed the transformation ..
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Come check us out at the Fergus Lions Club Home and Leisure Show on May 8 - 10 from 5:30 - 9:30 pm. Admission is Free with a donation to the Food Bank!
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Garage Enhancements Ltd. was specified to transform an old LCBO in Oakville, Ontario into a New York style loft to be used as a high end showroom.
The floor was covered in tile and carpet glue, riddled with holes cracks and crumbling in areas.
Garage Enhancements was more than happy to take this seemingly impossible challenge .
After days of grinding starting with a 40 grit diamond cutter progressing up to a 1500 resin, several bags of patching material and some tremendous efforts from great employees we could see the brilliant results start shining through .
“Polished Concrete , simply a brilliant alternative “. Let Garage Enhancements Ltd show you how. Contact us today.
Have a look at the before and after shots.
BEFORE
AFTER
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“Buyer Beware"
Garage Enhancements received a call a few weeks ago from a customer suffering from buyer remorse.
Our Client bought there first house in Waterloo (30 year old home) and got a surprise they weren’t planning on .
After a day of heavy snow fall. The customer pulled into there garage to keep the car protected from the harsh winter elements. Waking the next morning they discovered the snow melt from the car in the garage didn’t stay in the garage!
The ceiling in their finished basement was saturated and the melted salt water seeped through the concrete floor in the garage ruining the hardwood basement floor. Garage Enhancements corrected this unfortunate situation with a waterproof membrane system from BASF.
After grinding, filling the cracks and installing radius coves around the full garage, a two coat system was installed.
No more leaks for the NOW happy customer.
   
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Pouring the Best Concrete Garage Floor
You garage floor has to support heavy vehicles, and withstand harmful chemicals like de-icers, gasoline, and motor oil on a daily basis. It also has to endure heat/thaw conditions, which means that the concrete is constantly expanding and shrinking. This can result in cracking, flaking, and ultimately the deterioration of your concrete floor. To help protect your garage floor it's very important that you install it properly.
519-220-9714 There are several different things that you want to consider when pouring your concrete floor:
Start with a Good Base
A good base is an important pre-condition for pouring a new concrete garage floor. It must be able to: support 125 pounds of pressure per square foot
If the base soil doesn't provide consistent support the concrete will settle unevenly, which will lead to bending and cracking. To avoid this you need to make sure that all of the soil has been compacted. The best way to compact the soil is to remove the topsoil and replace it with at least 4 inches of compactible, irregularly shaped gravel. This will let water escape, helps spread the load over the soil, and will keep your concrete thickness equal.
Use a Vapor Barrier Moisture in the ground will eventually rise up into the concrete slabs and condense underneath anything that is on top of the concrete (i.e. storage boxes, cars, etc.). You will be able to tell that this is happening if you have dark spots in your concrete. Not only is this not aesthetically pleasing, but it can result in delamination of your floor's coating and slab "sweating", which is when moisture accumulates on top of of the concrete slab increasing its slipperiness and making it dangerous. Vapor barriers are a cheap way of preventing this from happening.
Source: http://www.wrmeadows.com/perminator-underslab-vapor-barrier-retarder/
Don't Add Water!
Sometimes it might be tempting to add water to the concrete mix because it will seem dry and stiff. Do not give into this temptation, because the more water there is in the mix the weaker the concrete will be. In colder climates it's extremely important that concrete is strong to prevent it from cracking and breaking. If your cement mix is truly too dry to mix or pour, consider using super-plasticizers instead of water. Adding these to your mix will push the cement grains apart, making it flow more easily.
Air-Entrained Concrete
Using air-entrained concrete is essential if you live in a climate that experiences freezing temperatures. Air-entrained concrete is created by adding a soaplike admixture that froths and produces billions of microscopic air bubbles. These bubbles are extremely important in preventing your concrete from cracking and flaking in extreme temperatures. Essentially, these air bubbles relieve pressure in the concrete by providing chambers for water to expand in when it freezes, as opposed to expanding in the concrete, thus causing cracking and flaking. If you don't know how to do this yourself be sure to use a trusted concrete producer who will adjust your mix accordingly.
Isolate Each Slab of Concrete
As previously mentioned, concrete slabs continue to expand and contract with changes in temperature, which can make them prone to cracking and flaking. To help avoid this from happening it's important that you use isolation joints around the perimeter of each concrete slab. This helps the concrete move independently and prevents cracking.
Don't Rush the Process
If your concrete dries too quickly it will crack and shrink, and might curl upward at the edges. To prevent this from happening you can spray a membrane-forming curing compound on the surface of the concrete. This membrane will trap moisture in the concrete, preventing it from drying out quickly. You can also use poly sheeting or curing blankets that also trap the moisture in the concrete but don't interfere with adhesion like curing compounds can.
Source: http://www.concreteconstruction.net//concrete-slabs-and-floors/better-garage-floors.aspx?utm_source=newsletter&utm_content=jump&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=CCIU_112613&day=2013-11-26 |
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How To Fix a Damaged Concrete Garage Floor
When your garage floor is damaged it’s extremely important that you take into account the entire extent of the damage. Evaluating the seriousness of the damage to your garage floor will ultimately determine whether you need to get an entire new concrete floor or if you can get away with using an epoxy overlay to fix the problems.
If you have cracks in your concrete you need to determine whether the cracks indicate foundational issues or if they are just surface imperfections. There are two types of cracks that will help you determine the issues in your concrete floor: Hairline (also known as Spider-Web) Most common kind of crack in concrete Major (also known as Real) More than one-eight inch wide
Getting a New Garage Floor
If the cracks in your floor meet the description of the Major crack, chances are that you'll need to replace your garage floor. This process can be long and expensive and must be accompanied by a professional evaluation from an expert in foundations and structures.Installing a new garage floor includes: Ripping up your entire garage foundation and laying down a brand new floor This essentially means starting from scratch Replacing specific concrete slabs that are shifting This will work but it won’t guarantee that all of your floor problems will go away Replacing a garage floor is an extreme and expensive process but sometimes it’s necessary, especially when you consider the fact that simply covering up the problem could end up costing you more money in the future.
Getting an Epoxy Coating
If the cracks in your floor meet the description of a Hairline crack and there aren’t foundational issues, an epoxy overlay may be the best option for your renovation. This type of concrete coating can offer the best balance of economy and quality that will not only transform your garage aesthetically but is also a tough, long-lasting coating that is extremely practical. Some of the most notable benefits of an epoxy overlay are: Moisture and Stain-Resistant Impact and abrasion resistant, which will prevent further damage in the future Resurfacing Qualities This is the best reason for using an epoxy overlay to improve your cracked concrete floor Easy to Clean Only requires soap and water to clean The process of installing an epoxy coating is as follows: First we have to evaluate your garage floor to get an idea of how much prep work has to be done to get it ready to be coated
Clearly, this is a long an arduous process that would take you days on your own. Garage Enhancements will cut that time in half and guarantee that every step is carried out with professional techniques and practices that will transform your garage into your dream workspace. If you’re not convinced, take a look at another one of our before and after pictures from a renovation that included an epoxy floor coating:
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Garage Enhancements Team 4 June 20, 2019 |
