URETHANE CEMENTS or EPOXY COATINGS
FLOORING IN A BREWERY
Presented by
Norm Klapper
PEC – Boulder, Colorado
Presentation Outline
 Why coat concrete floors?
 When is the best time to coat?
 Contractor selection
 Concrete preparation
 Essential installation details, thickness
 Urethane cement or epoxy topping?
 Typical installation applications
 Key physical properties of each formulation
 Life cycle comparison and recommendations
 Summary and conclusions
Issues Unique to Breweries
 Wet, humid conditions
 Presence of caustic and chlorine-based CIP and wash down agents
 Thermal shock: cold floors (<50°F) washed with hot, 180 °F water
 Presence of yeast which if trapped in crevices, cracks or under coatings
can easily cause delamination
 Tough food grade standards apply, regulated industry
 Heavy wheeled traffic, impacts from equipment, kegs, fork lifts, pallet
jacks
 Operations usually 24/7, little downtime allowance
 Public viewing or access to brewing areas and need for aesthetics in a
production area
 Health and safety for personnel, slippery conditions
Why Coat Concrete Floors?
 Protection from Chemical Attack
 CIP daily wash down, caustics, chlorine
 Brewery waste products
 Yeast, carbonic acid
 Protection from Mechanical Wear
 Impact
 Wear from Pallets, etc.
 Prevent cracking, abrasion
Why Coat Concrete Floors…..cont.
 Provide Slip Resistance for Safety
 Minimize wet, slippery conditions
 Aesthetics
 Provide an appealing and professional look
 Cleanability & Maximize Service Life
 Monolithic substrate and smooth transitions to drains
Second Street Brewing – Sante Fe
Epoxy with Decorative Quartz
When to Coat?
 New Floors Best





Open area
New Construction – BEST forContractor
No contamination
Floor, drains, etc. not compromised
No equipment legs
 Old Floors
 With existing coating?
 REMOVE ALL – clean warranty
 Without existing coating?
 Use correct preparation techniques
Contractor Selection
 Contractor MUST be certified by the manufacturer of the
coating – suggest you verify
 Contractor must have a proven track record of successful
projects, delivered on time.
 Contractor must offer a JOINT WARRANTY with the
manufacturer which protects the Owner/End-User
 Get References and check them!
Concrete Preparation
 All coatings require competent and
thorough surface preparation
 Mechanical
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Diamond Grinding
Scarifying
Shot Blasting
Crack Chasing
Detailing – Keyways, Drains, etc.
 Profile MUST be equal to an SP5 – SP6
Concrete Preparation
SP5 and SP6 PROFILES
Concrete Preparation….cont.
 All coatings require competent and
thorough surface preparation
 Chemicals are supplements to mechanical techniques
 Acid Etching
 Chlorine or Caustic Sanitizing
 Extensive hot water washing
 Additional Techniques (Optional)
 Flaming (Weed Burners)
 High pressure air / vacuum for standing water removal
Timing of Installation
 Concrete age & moisture content
 28 Day Rule
 Vapor barriers under new slabs - VERY important
 Moisture in Concrete
 Run Calcium Chloride Test
 Plastic Sheet Test – ASTM D4263
 Relative Humidity Meters (RH Meters)
 High early concrete
 Steel trowel finish
 Cure and seal? – NOT recommended
 removed entirely by mechanical prep techniques
HAND TROWELED – EITHER
EPOXY or URETHANE CEMENT
Installation Details – Perimeter Key
Installation Details – Control Joint
Installation Details – Crack Repair
Installation Details – Expansion Joint
Installation Detail – Corner Expan. Joint
Installation Details – Metal Base Plate
Installation Details – Drain
Installation Details – Cove/Exp Joint
Installation Details – Spoon Cove Base
Installation Details – Cant Cove Base
Installation Details – Pipe Protrusion
Installation Details – Bolt Holes
Installation Thickness
 All formulations available in……


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Thin film (3-15 mils)
Double broadcast slurries (1/8” - 125 mils)
¼” troweled – BEST OPTION!
Slope to drain – as thick as needed up to 1” or
more, (1/8” in 10’) – CHECK FLOOR FIRST!
 Self-Leveling formulations – tougher on sloped
floors
 Berms – created using same materials or filler
patch formulations – saves $ but takes longer
 Cove or no cove? Spoon or “cant” type?
Urethane Cements / Epoxy Coatings
 ALL providers of URETHANE CEMENTS have
similar formulations
 ALL have similar:
 Working Time
 Temperature Resistance
 Chemical Resistance
 Bond Strengths to substrates
Urethane Cements / Epoxy Coatings
 In Contrast, EPOXY COATINGS all have great
variations in formulations
 WIDE VARIATION in all characteristics
 Working Time
 Temperature Resistance
 Chemical Resistance
 Bond Strengths to substrates
WHY THE CONTROVERSY?
 Great variations in epoxy formulations and
therefore varied application success
 Many offered non-resin rich, top-coated (grout-coated)
dry systems with high compressive strengths (>1015,000 psi, 2-3x’s concrete!)
 Harder, more brittle materials with less thermal shock
resistance, reduced life spans (1-2 years!)
 Urethane cements “took up the slack” and
offered viable alternatives
 Similar coeff. of thermal expansion to that of concrete,
less likely to delaminate under thermal shock
WHY THE CONTROVERSY….cont
 Early epoxy failures led to:
 Rise in Polyesters, Vinylesters, Methylmethacrylates
(MMA) – all with high odor
 Followed by lower VOC, more resin-rich epoxies, more
impervious to liquids and subsequent failures.
 Newer, high performance epoxy formulas which
maintained resin-rich, LOWER compressive strengths and
greater chemical resistance, thermal shock resistance
 Flexibilized epoxies have been around decades longer
than Urethane Cements and these have had wide success
Flexibilized ¼” Epoxy
COMPARISON of URETHANE & EPOXY TOPPINGS 1
(Assumes 1/4" Thickness, Flexible, Resin Rich Epoxies, Average Values)
PROPERTY
URETHANE
CEMENTS
EPOXY
TOPPINGS
Compressive Strength (psi)
11,000
5,200
Tensile Strength (psi)
1,800
2,030
Tensile Elongation (Filled)
N/A
3%
Bond Strength (psi)
>1000 psi ???
Impact Strength (in-lbs)
120
160
Shore Hardness (D)
85
75
4.75 : 1
5:1
Aggregate/Liquid Ratio
ASSUMPTIONS /
COMMENTS
Formula Dependant
Aggregate Filled
Proper Preparation
Aggregate Filled
By Weight
COMPARISON of URETHANE & EPOXY TOPPINGS 2
(Assumes 1/4" Thickness, Flexible, Resin Rich Epoxies, Average Values)
PROPERTY
URETHANE
CEMENTS
EPOXY
TOPPINGS
ASSUMPTIONS /
COMMENTS
212 °F
180 °F
Normal Operating
Conditions
400 °F (Hot Oil)
200 °F
Brief Excursions
Chemical Resistance
Excellent
Excellent
Acid Resistance
180 °F
140° F
Wear /Abrasion
Resistance
Excellent
Excellent
Service Temperature
Max Temperature
Crack Resistance
Thermal Shock
Moderate
Moderate to Good
Good
Excellent
Broadcasted Aggregate
Epoxy has greater
tensile elongation
COMPARISON of URETHANE & EPOXY TOPPINGS 3
(Assumes 1/4" Thickness, Flexible, Resin Rich Epoxies, Average Values)
PROPERTY
Application Techniques
Working Time
Cure Times
Ease of Installation
Installation Temperatures
Thickness
URETHANE
CEMENTS
EPOXY
TOPPINGS
Hand or Power
Troweled, Slurry
Hand or Power
Troweled, Slurry
10-20 Minutes
30 - 60 minutes
Temp Dependent
4-8 Hours
6-18 Hours
Temp Dependent
Difficult to Moderate Easy to Moderate
55°F - 80°F
38°F - 90°F
1/8" - 3/8"
1/8" - 3/8"
ASSUMPTIONS /
COMMENTS
Troweling more
challenging; Slurry
systems easier
Various Formulations
Any Thickness
COMPARISON of URETHANE & EPOXY TOPPINGS 3
(Assumes 1/4" Thickness, Flexible, Resin Rich Epoxies, Average Values)
PROPERTY
URETHANE
CEMENTS
EPOXY
TOPPINGS
Type
Resin-Rich
Top Coating
Opt. (Req’d for Aesth) Optional
Priming Required
Recommended
No (optional)
Life Cycle
Excellent
Excellent
Aesthetics
Finishes Dull
Finishes Shiny
Both can be top coated
$5.50 - $8.50
Flat or Concrete sloped,
1/4" Topping
Cost / SF (Installed)
Cost / SF (Installed)
$5.50 - $10.00
$8.00 - $15.00
Resin-Rich
ASSUMPTIONS /
COMMENTS
$8.00 - $15.00
5 : 1 By Weight
For Slurries or Aesthetics
Sloping to Drain
(1/8" in 10 Feet)
Similar Installation Techniques
 Mixing – virtually the same
 Troweled – hand or power-troweled
 Screed method – using screed boxes or bars
 Slurry system in one or two lifts
 Uses more resin compared to troweled
 Finished “as-troweled”
 Final coat back-rolled, seeded, top coated or not top
coated
 Neither system requires top coating
 Top coating mostly for aesthetics
Anheuser-Busch
Urethane Cement – Screed Box
Installation Characteristics
 OPEN (WORKING) TIMES
 Urethane Cement – open time, 15 minutes
 Epoxy Topping – open time, 45-60 minutes
 CURE TIMES
 Urethane Cement – cure time, 8 hours (Fixed, not
changeable)
 Epoxy Topping – temperature dependent– cold
cure (6 hours), fast cure (8 hours), regular cure
(14-18 hours)
Final Textures & Colors
 Optional Textures – determined by type
and size of sand media
 Silica Quartz
 Aluminum Oxide
 Grit / Mesh Sizes – from 16 to 30
 Trade off between slip resistance and
cleanability – VERY subjective
 Strongly suggest sample texture offered for
evaluation and approval purposes
 Maintenance and safety concerns need to be
balanced
Recommendations?
 URETHANE CEMENTS
 Higher temperatures >220 degrees F
 Chemicals at higher temperatures
 New construction for open areas due to less open
time for working/application
Recommendations?
 EPOXY TOPPINGS
 Reasonable temperatures – 180 degrees max
 Cost concerns – easier to apply, smaller crews,
with usually somewhat lower installed cost
 Single step – finishes with higher gloss, no top
coat
SUMMARY
 Both urethane cements and epoxy coatings
provide excellent concrete protection and safe
working surfaces
 Urethane Cements are formulated virtually the
same –
 Epoxy Coatings vary greatly
 Epoxy Coatings (resin rich) have greater open
times and are easier to apply – also do NOT
require a top coat to finish with high gloss
 Can be applied in one-step, less time
SUMMARY…..cont.
 Urethane cements usually require a primer coat
while resin rich epoxy coatings do not and therefore
can be applied in ONE-STEP
 Epoxy Toppings have a lower operating temperature
when compared to Urethane Cements
 Epoxy Toppings have greater bond strength to a
wider range of substrates
SUMMARY
Epoxies vs. Urethane Cements
 Both are “flexibilized”, resin rich ¼” and will do the job
 Urethane cements when temps > 212°F or if hot acids hit floor
(>140°F-160°F)
 Epoxies have better damp adhesion
 Epoxies have better adhesion over quarry tile
 “As-Troweled” epoxy better gloss than urethane cement
troweled system
 If aesthetics are vital & downtime not critical – best method for
both is slurry/topcoat
Conclusions
 Choose the right product for the project
 Base your decisions on working conditions, service
conditions, temperature, aesthetics
 Choose suppliers with a proven track record only – in
similar brewing applications
 Choose ONLY reputable contractors, not necessarily based
on lowest price
 Base your decision on technical documentation and not
marketing hype
 Get a solid, clear and unambiguous warranty statement
Highly Decorative Flooring
Epoxy Quartz with Top Coat
Highly Decorative –
Epoxy Quartz with Top Coat
Highly Decorative
Epoxy Quartz with Top Coat
Second Street Brewing – Sante Fe
Second Street Brewing – Sante Fe
Winery Application
Large Scale Winery
Large Scale Winery
High Gloss Urethane
Three Floyds Brewing – Munster, IN
Three Floyds Brewing – Munster, IN
Three Floyds Brewing – Munster, IN
Three Floyds Brewing – Munster, IN
Before/After Coating
Slope to Drain
QUARTZ SAND ADDED FOR
AESTHETICS
Brewing is in my blood……
 Personal history of family involved
in the brewing supplies business….
My Grandfather, Isaac Klapper
Supplied
many of the
local home
brewers in his
day
Circa 1925
Brooklyn, New York
Also known
for his Bootleg
“Bathtub” Gin
which my Dad
used to “run”
URETHANE CEMENTS or EPOXY COATINGS
FLOORING IN A BREWERY
Presented by
Norm Klapper
PEC – Boulder, Colorado
QUESTIONS?