How Long to Stay Off Epoxy Floor Before You Can Walk on It

There is no competition to epoxy floors when it comes to bearing heavy loads or traffic, different color combinations, and design.

Epoxy floors are highly durable, and you can even drive heavy vehicles on them. If by any chance, you’re wondering how long to stay off of a wet epoxy floor, this article is for you.

Usually, an epoxy floor takes about seven days to dry completely. But several factors can impact this duration.  

In this article, I’ll talk briefly about the time epoxy floor takes to become usable along with some other epoxy floor-related questions.

How Long to Stay Off Epoxy Floor?

Not all epoxy is the same. That’s why different types of epoxy will require different approaches and measures. Usually, people use solvent-borne or water-based epoxy for their garage or compound floor.

No matter which type of epoxy you use, you’ll have to keep in mind a few factors such as temperature, humidity, ventilation, epoxy solid type, etc. On average, epoxy floors take about seven days to dry completely.

However, your garage or compound epoxy floor can become walkable just after 12 to 14 hours. And it can become fully usable within 24 to 48 hours, sometimes might take a bit longer. But as I mentioned earlier, this duration entirely depends on temperature, humidity, and the epoxy type.

For example, if it is hot and humid outside, it’ll take a short time for the epoxy floor to dry completely. But if the temperature is less than 77-degree Fahrenheit and the humidity is less than 55%-60%, it’ll take longer.

Pro Tip on Recoating Epoxy Floor & Moving Equipment Early

If you’re planning to make an epoxy floor in your garage, choose summer. Because in summer, it’s usually hot and humid. It’ll allow the epoxy to dry faster.  

When you finish recoating your epoxy floor and planning to shift equipment to your space, cover the feet of your equipment.

It’ll minimize the damage to your epoxy floor. Because when you move your equipment to your newly epoxy floor before the seven-day mark, there is a high chance that you may damage your epoxy floor.

You might only see a concrete floor outside but keep in mind that a lot is going underneath the epoxy floor’s surface. That’s why don’t drag your equipment on the floor before it dries off. Instead, lift them and put them where you want.

Effect of the Epoxy Product on How Long to Stay Off Epoxy Floor

Apart from the temperature and humidity, the epoxy product itself plays a crucial role in determining how long to stay off the epoxy floor.

Some epoxy products are moisture-cured, which means they’ll require a high humid environment to make the epoxy floor dry faster. That’s why while buying an epoxy product, read the label and product description properly and use it according to your condition.

Speeding Up Epoxy Curing and Walking on Epoxy Floor

As I mentioned above, epoxy curing depends on a few factors such as humidity, temperature, ventilation, etc.

So, if you want to speed up the epoxy curing process, you can create high humidity and temperature condition in your garage or compound. Again, if the epoxy you use requires air to dry quickly, you can open all your garage windows and give enough air supply.

If you’re planning to build an epoxy floor in areas like fridges, business space, or commercial space, you can use fast-drying epoxy. However, this fast-drying epoxy is a bit expensive and sometimes will require heavy manpower to maintain all the procedures.

Drying the epoxy floor may sound easy, but if it’s not appropriately followed, you’ll have to face issues with the floor integrity in the future. Your floor can become vulnerable to heavyweights, and you may have to recoat your floor again.

That’s why before asking anyone how long to stay off your epoxy floor and dry it faster, ask yourself whether you want it or not.

Common Epoxy Floor Questions – FAQ

Conclusion

While using epoxy for your floor, you’ll have to understand the limitations and conditions required for an epoxy floor.

What may work in other areas may not work in your place. That’s why before using epoxy for your floor, do some research and talk with experts. I hope I answered your question regarding how long to stay off the epoxy floor.

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