MST Epoxy Floor

MST Epoxy Floor is an epoxy resin based floor coating developed for concrete floors under heavy-duty conditions. In industrial facilities it protects the slab from both mechanical wear and chemical attack, while creating a cleanable, hygienic surface.

What separates epoxy from other paint families is that it cures rather than dries. Alkyd and acrylic paints dry as solvent evaporates; epoxy forms a cross-linked network through a chemical reaction between resin and hardener. The resulting film is far denser, far harder and far more resistant to solvents. That structure is what allows epoxy to withstand forklift traffic, pallet abrasion, and oil and chemical spillage.

Untreated concrete, despite appearances, is a friable and porous surface. It dusts continuously, absorbs oil and chemicals, becomes slippery when wet and gradually crumbles. An epoxy coating seals those pores: dusting stops, spilled liquid stays on the surface instead of soaking into the slab and can be removed with a simple mop. In food, pharmaceutical and storage facilities that is a decisive hygiene difference.

Typical applications include production and assembly lines, warehousing and logistics areas, car parks and service pits, workshops and maintenance hangars, food processing plants, plant rooms and machine halls. It is also used together with line and zone marking to establish internal traffic layouts.

The large majority of epoxy floor failures originate in the substrate, not the coating. Before application the concrete must satisfy three conditions: it must be adequately cured, structurally sound, and free from rising moisture.

Freshly poured concrete must not be coated before it has set and cured; moisture and alkali migrating out of an early-coated slab will lift the epoxy film from beneath. If there is no damp-proof membrane under the slab, capillary moisture from the ground produces the same result — where there is any doubt, carry out a moisture check before application.

The laitance — the weak, glossy cement film on the surface — must be removed. If it is left, the epoxy bonds to the laitance rather than the concrete and lifts together with it. Preparation is mechanical: diamond grinding, milling or abrasive blasting. The same operation creates the surface profile the epoxy needs to key into.

Oil and grease staining must be cleaned off completely before coating; concrete saturated with oil should be cut out and made good with repair mortar where necessary. Cracks and surface voids must be filled with suitable repair material, and dust removed with an industrial vacuum after grinding. Sweeping is not enough; residual fine dust directly reduces adhesion.

An epoxy primer is applied first to absorbent concrete; it seals the pores, evens out topcoat consumption and improves adhesion.

In two-pack systems, resin and hardener must be mixed exactly to the ratio given by the manufacturer. Mixing by eye is the most common epoxy mistake: too little hardener leaves the surface permanently tacky, too much causes brittleness and surface defects. Mix with a low-speed stirrer, scraping the sides and bottom of the container until the blend is homogeneous.

Mixed material has a limited working time (pot life). Once it expires the material heats up in the container and begins to set; never prepare more than can be applied within that window.

Apply by roller, trowel or squeegee in a planned direction and without interruption. Keep a wet edge so that no lap marks remain where work pauses. Ambient and substrate temperature must be within the range stated by the manufacturer; curing stops at low temperatures and pot life shortens at high ones.

Curing is progressive: the surface becomes walkable first, then takes light load, and reaches full chemical resistance last. Forklift traffic and chemical contact must not begin before curing is complete.

The information below describes the general behaviour of epoxy-based floor coatings. Mixing ratio, pot life, film thickness and curing times are product-specific; confirm them from the technical data sheet (TDS).

The cured epoxy film resists mechanical wear, impact and forklift traffic. It withstands oil, grease, fuel and many dilute chemicals, and its non-porous structure prevents spillage reaching the concrete. The surface cleans easily and dusting stops.

Epoxy systems are sensitive to UV light; on floors in permanent sunlight the surface may yellow and lose gloss — an aesthetic change that does not remove the protective function, though a UV-resistant topcoat should be considered for exterior use. Do not apply on floors with a moisture load or no damp-proof membrane, on concrete that has not fully cured, or on surfaces where laitance has not been removed. Floors exposed to continuous high temperature require a different system.

Store both components in closed original containers in a cool, dry place, protected from frost. Mixed material cannot be stored. Ventilate during application and wear a suitable respirator, gloves and goggles; epoxy hardeners are irritant on skin contact.