Answers To All Your Questions About Epoxy Flakes

People often ask me what are epoxy flakes and why are they used. Epoxy flakes are for all intents and purposes just paint. They come in different sizes with the largest being 1 inch and the smallest being 1/32inch.  By far the most common size is 1/4 inch.  They are used for decoration, Slip resistance, and to hide imperfections.

Those pretty little color flakes are most often applied to an epoxy garage floor.  People refer to them by several different names such as flecks, chips, speckles, and sprinkles but as for me I’ve always called them flakes.  Calling them flakes makes the most sense.  After all, they certainly look and feel flakey.

Yes the word fleck is in the dictionary as “a very small patch of color or light” but it’s not a word you hear very often, so I’m checking “flecks” off the list.  As for chips, chips are something I like to munch on, and speckles and sprinkles were something I used to put on my 3rd grade artwork so neither of those work for me.  Besides, the manufacturer calls them flakes, so I’m definitely sticking with Flakes.  Now that we cleared that up what exactly are those flakes, why do we use them in epoxy floors, and what purpose do they serve.

The flakes are not a set shape like square or round but random in shape to provide better aesthetics.  They are UV stable but the longevity of the color is heavily dependent upon the UV stability and quality of the finish coating system which should always be Polyaspartic.

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Epoxy Color Flakes Serve Three Purposes

1.) Epoxy color flakes for decoration

Considering they are available in infinite color combinations architects, designers, contractors, business owners, and homeowners alike, have taken flake floor systems way beyond the residential garage.  Epoxy Color Flakes are now being used in: Automotive Facilities, Bowling Alleys, Catering Facilities, Churches, Class Rooms, Commercial Kitchens, Common Areas, Daycares, Dining area, Doctors Offices, Garage Floors, Grocery Stores, Hallways, Homes, Hospitals, Kitchens, Laboratories, Laundromats, Medical buildings, Offices, Patios, Pool Decks, Reception Areas, Rental Property, Restaurants, Restrooms, Retail Stores, Schools, Showrooms, Warehouses

2.) Epoxy color flakes for slip resistance

Old school epoxy flake floors came in 2 colors.  Brown with black and brown with more black.  You picked a color and the flakes would be completely submerged in Epoxy creating a glass like finish on top.  The problem was it only took a couple of drops of water to make that glassy smooth Epoxy flake floor more slippery than a sheet of ice.  So in the rainy season, especially in Florida, people would pull into their garage, the floor would be all wet, they would take a step, and slip and fall.  

Todays flake floor systems have been completely redesigned to be highly slip resistant against water weather your barefoot or wearing sneakers, high heels, or dress shoes.  Just keep in mind that WD40 or tire shine will make your slip resistant epoxy floor just as slippery as any other hard surface sprayed with the same.  

3.) Epoxy color flakes can hide imperfections in the concrete

These are not your DIY enamel paint flake floor kits that come with 5 pounds of flakes. With our installation process we put down 100 pounds of flakes for every 400 square feet of flooring. We pick up roughly half that amount in the process, leaving your floor with about 50 pounds of flakes. So your average 400 square foot 2 car garage has approximately 50 pounds of flakes on a finished floor. With that amount of flakes on the floor, color flakes don’t hide major imperfections but they can cover up many minor imperfections that comparably priced non flaked epoxy floors don’t cover up.

Color Flakes come in many colors

We carry 15 different colors in stock with the 15 most popular colors displayed on our website. For a small upcharge we can custom order any of 150 different colors from Amber to Zinc. This vast array of Color Flakes can be custom blended to any formulation of colors our valued clientele can dream up. The color combinations are infinite. Flakes are even available in neon colors like orange, green, yellow, pink, and blue, as well as glow in the dark colors. Neon flakes are more costly than standard flakes and glow in the dark flakes are downright expensive, but they are available.

Flakes are most often seen sandwiched between an Epoxy or Polyaspartic base and a Polyaspartic finish coat but they are also compatible with Epoxies, MMA, Polyaspartic, Polyureas, Polyurethane, and Urethane as well as solvent and water based coatings. With 15 different colors in stock we’re sure to have a color you’ll love.

Flake floors are extremely durable

A residential garage is no challenge whatsoever for a properly installed flake floor. Notice we said “properly installed”. So many of our competitors are installing light duty cookie cutter type flooring systems that are decorative but not durable. They don’t prep the concrete properly and they cut corners by skipping steps and using inexpensive inferior products and worse yet, diluting them.

At AmerEpoxy our Epoxy Flake Floors are built to last and they are beautiful. Our Epoxy Flake Floors will stand up to many abuses. From typical homeowner use to automotive maintenance facilities, laundromats, and warehousing, we tailor our floors to fit your wants and needs. Don’t settle for those cookie cutter, start at 8 and done in time for lunch epoxy floor companies. They are just rolling on the DIY big box store enamel paint kits that peel off in a week. We get called in to replace their floors all the time. Do it right the first time. Contact AmerEpoxy today. We install Orlando’s Finest Epoxy Flake Floors.

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