Ask Dr. Frankenbrew

9/8/23

This is about floors. I have seen more posts on different forums about floors than almost anything else. So here’s one more.

Question: Dear Dr. Frankenbrew,

Have you had a LONG technical discussion on concrete floor "top coats" such as BIG BOX STORE DIY epoxy vs. "contractor installed urethane, epoxy or those expensive bombproof tiles"?  

Since the top coat can and will be a significant percentage of cost per square foot of a buildout I would welcome you share where money is properly spent. is it possible to go cheap then upgrade later?? Thanks

Answer:

Well first off I personally know who wrote this, and it’s funny he of all would call me Dr. Frankenbrew, because he was my assistant brewer in 1995 when we made the video Frankenbrew, and to this day a close friend. Other than not having a pony tail that goes to his belt, he still looks the same, while I am the portrait of Dorian Gray.

To be clear, no one is going to like my answer. I have never found a good floor that I could afford that would also hold up to the chemicals and impacts of heavy equipment.

There was one exception however, when I built a brewery in Colorado Springs and had a wood floor to deal with. I used a lining, similar to what you would use in a pool. It held up really well, and never leaked onto the room below the brewhouse. I wish I could remember what it was. (I expect to get a lot of input on this topic!).

For the rest, I poured a concrete floor, then used a clear sealer on it. The chemicals would eat the sealer in time but as it was clear you didn’t notice. With nothing on the floor to protect the concrete however those same chemicals will start to eat at the concrete and make it unstable, rough and open to harboring all sorts of evil living things that can infect your beer.

I bought the sealer at Home Depot. There are lots of decent concrete sealers out there. It would be good to put it on a maintenance schedule to re-apply a new coat at least once a year. Use your GM book. Remember me talking about that useful tool? It’s a book with 31 dividers and a clean page in between each one. So depending on what the date is, for example the 10th, you would open that page up and it would say, “January, schedule re-application of floor sealer”. That’s your reminder.

Some of those paints that are used for garages would work too. First you have to prep the floor with muriatic acid (lots of ventilation and masks). Then you apply multiple coats of whatever light color you choose. When the paint starts to show wear, that is your indicator for another coat.

There is also good old brown kitchen tile, but you still have to seal it, especially the grout. The problem with that is if you, I mean when you drop a keg, the tile will break and what a hassle to fix.

Just Google this and there are about one gazillion flooring options. If you are starting out with limited dinero, you can do it the way I have and when you are rich and want to really make your brewery pretty, look up one of the excellent options that are on the market specifically for breweries. Will they last? Probably, but I’d love to hear others experiences.

Now you see why I just sealed simple concrete?

Tell me what innovative flooring you use and I’ll share it next week.