The company Market.us recently reported that 15% of issues following the installation of a new floor are due to application problems, and 5% are caused by the preparation used. Most of these are due to the quality of the supplies and tools that you have, and selecting the right or wrong garage floor coating supplier can have a dramatic impact on what you can source, making or breaking your success.
So, what can you do to ensure you have the best chance of finding a supplier you can trust? Below, we offer a supplier selection guide to discuss the most common mistakes that contractors make when they try to find a good supplier and how you can avoid them.
Read on to do all this without sacrificing results with the help of Epoxy Depot Chicago and get precisely what you need every time.
Define Your Must-Have Garage Coating Products and Tools
Before engaging with your local supplier, it is essential to understand precisely what you need from them. As such, ensure that you create a comprehensive list of the products you will need both in the short term and the long term. This list should include:
- Epoxys
- Topcoats
- Primers
- Surface preparation equipment
- Decorative elements
- PPE
When you speak to a supplier, you will also need to ensure that they understand and can supply technical product data sheets and safety data sheets for all chemicals, so that you fully cover yourself in terms of OSHA requirements.
This step is crucial for anyone working with equipment that may require OSHA compliance, given the constant rise in OSHA fines. For example, a single willful violation can now incur penalties of up to $161,323 at the first instance.
Build a Local Garage Floor Coating Supplier Shortlist
Once you know exactly what you need, conduct thorough research to find suitable suppliers online. For example, utilize online community spaces to crowdsource recommendations and ensure that people can offer you positive peer reviews of various locations online.
When you have this initial guidance, cross-reference it with any local business directories you can find to identify suppliers that specialize in the type of supplies you need. While you might be able to visit general hardware stores in a pinch or if you need a little extra, they will not sell in bulk, nor will they offer the prices you can get at a wholesale hardware supplier.
Initial Online Searches
Look up these companies online, check their directory, or give them a call to see if they carry every SKU that you need to perform your role. If they offer less, try to understand the full range of what they do have, in case you need to overlap two or more orders to get your full range of supplies.
When you have this list, then ask around your peers to see if they have had any experience with these suppliers, learning of how well they can supply you last minute, including:
- When responding to last-minute shortages
- As urgent delivery needs
- In response to emergency repairs
The last step you will need to take is to ensure that they are within one hour of you, or at least within that distance of the location where you plan to perform your role. Doing this will minimize the charges that may occur due to freight or if you need to send someone to pick something up. It will also ensure same-day or next-day delivery,even when weather or traffic has slowed or stopped the supply chain.
Check for Essential Supplies
Some parts and supplies are imperative for your needs. They include specific materials and equipment that, without them, you are not likely to be able to provide as good a job as usual. As such, make sure that they can supply you with:
- Quick-curing, high-build polyaspartic systems
- 100% solids epoxy primers
- Anti-slip additives such as aluminum oxide or textured broadcast chips
- UV-stable topcoats due to the greater Midwest sun exposure
It is also likely a good idea to ask if they offer any of these garage flooring options as an eco-friendly option in case you have clients who are especially concerned about air quality. At the same time, ensuring that you follow VOC regulations for OSHA is also imperative.
Essential Prep and Safety Equipment
It is not only the supplies you apply to the floor that you will need. As Smith Law Center recently reported, U.S. workers suffering trips and falls recently accounted for 21.3% of visits to emergency rooms across the country, making them the leading cause of ER visits. You do not want to fall foul of issues related to these, nor do you want to fail to meet any other OSHA requirement, so ensure you have all the necessary equipment available from the supplier as well.
These also include those you will need to prepare the ground itself, including:
- Grinders
- Diamond tooling kits
- Moisture meters calibrated for concrete
- Gloves and respirators
- Safety goggles
You should also inquire as to whether they provide on-site PPE rental or emergency replacement options. These can save you when you run out of equipment halfway through a job, allowing you to replenish at will.
Confirm Supplier Quality and Performance
VA Engineering recently reported the worrying statistic that as many as four out of every five coating failures are directly attributed to poor surface preparation. However, this is not always the fault of the specialist. Often, the equipment bought is simply not up to scratch, and this is not always discovered immediately.
As such, when speaking with the supplier, verify that they have properly tested their equipment. Ask for their most recent third-party slip resistance test results and any records of quality assurance for coatings. You need to do this for every product that you purchase from them to ensure safety compliance.
Also, request:
- Abrasion resistance ratings
- Confirmation of their being an authorized distributor
- Tours of nearby live job sites using their materials
- Warranty claim histories
All of this information can inform you of how well they perform their role as a supplier and whether they resolve issues that do appear quickly and professionally.
Balance Price With Long-Term Value
You want to calculate how well these people are going to work for you in both the short- and long-term, including any potential savings they may offer for any deals they wish to make. Should they offer you a really good offer on your first purchase, remember that this may not last, and there is the possibility that you may need to work with them for a long time moving forward.
If they wish for you to use them as a long-term supplier and sign a contract to that effect, then ensure that the costs will not suddenly increase as soon as your first few deals are complete.
Similarly, when considering renting equipment, examine the cost difference between buying it and keeping it on-site versus renting it. You may find that you have enough time between each use of individual pieces of equipment, making it cheaper for you to rent them and return them later, swapping out different items as needed.
Also, look into volume discounts. If you plan to buy only in small quantities, it may not be worth your while to work with specific suppliers, and you could obtain a better deal from others.
Calculate Long-Term Cost Including Delivery
Remember that you will not only need to buy the supplies, but also get them where they need to go. Include freight charges in any of your calculations, based on the typical distance your jobs are from the best supply center for you.
Be sure to consider that supply limitations may also have knock-on effects. For example, if you cannot obtain your preferred epoxy from a supplier, they may need to provide you with a slower-curing alternative instead. If they do, you may end up paying more to your crew, as they will need to wait for it to cure.
Check for Red Flags
Not all suppliers are built the same. As such, be prepared to walk away if it appears that what they are offering is too good to be true or simply not good enough. For example, be aware of any supplier that:
- Cannot provide you with proof of liability or product liability insurance
- Push concrete coatings that require inconsistent acid etching
- Stock only solvent-heavy primers that trap moisture
- Cannot answer questions about Cook County VOC limits
- Has inconsistent test data or cannot show you recent test reports
All of these should prompt you to be very wary of the supplier.
The Epoxy Depot Chicago Advantage
Now you know precisely which questions to ask when looking for a garage floor coating supplier, you should have a much easier time finding the best one. Still, wouldn’t it be easier just to know who to call?
Epoxy Depot Chicago is likely to have everything you need, as well as the best top-brand supplies that will keep your projects on schedule. So, leverage everything we offer and stop worrying about deadlines or downtime again. Contact us to inquire about our supplies and place your first order today.
