If you have a smaller two car garage or a one car garage, the challenge is then multiplied because you need to find the perfect solution to fit your space that will still allow you to park the car inside the garage as well as allow for storage space.

If you are looking for garage storage ideas for a one car garage here is a look at some different options to consider:

Overhead Garage Storage Units: because your garage is for one car, garage cabinets, the most popular choice for storage are not likely going to fit on the side walls with a car parked inside. The best way to get additional storage in that case is with overhead storage units. These units will come in many different sizes, from as small as 2′ x 2′ or as large as 4′ x 8′ and they will allow you to store many different types of items. Some storage units will come with accessories on the outside of them that will to hand items like bikes, ladders fishing poles, or other items that have a lot of length to them.

Overhead units can also be adjusted in height which means they can be placed directly above the tracks of the garage door or in the space between the back wall of the garage and where the tracks end. This will allow you to have several units hanging from the ceiling to give you a nice bit of storage space.

Pegboards: one of the keys for storage in a one car garage is finding flatter items that can be placed on a wall. A great idea for storage is a pegboard that will allow you to hang multiple tools in the same place. This will help to keep your tools in good condition and clean instead of laying on shelves or in a box somewhere and they will always be easy to find so you don’t waste time searching for them around the garage.

Garage shelving: while cabinets might not fit on the garage walls, shelving should because you can place it at a higher level than the car more easily and underneath the overhead units. One option for material would be for wire rack shelving. While most people think of that type of shelving for being used inside closets in the home, it can also be used in the garage. Having the wires can allow you to hang longer tools from underneath using the gaps in the wires so you end up with storage on the top and bottom of the unit.

If you have bicycles that need storing or ladders, consider using S-hooks which will allow you to get those items up in the air and off the ground so it is more safe to walk around in the space. S-hooks will allow you to hang bikes upside down suspended from the ceiling so they can be easily taken down when needed.

Before you go through the process tough, you will want to do a test to see if the garage floor has been sealed already. An easy way to do this is by putting a small amount of water on the flooring to see it will bead up, much like water does on a newly waxed car. If it does, then the floor has been sealed in the past. If you have a new home that you have just moved into you will want to wait at least a month before doing garage floor sealing.

Once you have determined that it is okay to use a concrete sealer for garage floor, you can then begin the steps to prepare the flooring for the process.  It is very important to do a good thorough cleaning of the floor in order to make sure the garage floor sealer goes on good.

Using a stiff broom and vacuum, clean out all of the dust and dirt from the floor. If there are any stains on the floor or oil, make sure to remove that as well. Apply a cleaner to the floor and use a scrub brush to clean the entire floor and then follow up with a power washer to hose down the area.

After letting the floor dry, go back through with caulk for concrete repair and fill in any gaps or cracks in the concrete and let the caulk dry.

Sealing a Garage Floor

Many types of sealants can stain so before getting started you will want to tape off any parts of the walls or moldings which could be impacted by the sealer for garage floor. You can then start to apply the concrete garage floor sealer using a brush for the edges and a long handled roller for the inside parts of the floor. After putting on the first coat of sealant, you will need to wait for approximately two hours before applying the second coat. It will take roughly five full fays for the floor to cure. You will not want to park the car inside the garage until the full five days have elapsed.

Garage Sealer Maintenance

Eventually the garage floor sealer will begin to break down over time. You will be able to tell this is happening when the floor appears dull or it has an uneven look to it. At that time, you will need to simply follow the steps above and repeat the process to give the garage floor a refreshed look.

Over the years, your garage floor gets a lot of abuse from dust, dirt, the wear and tear from the cars going in and out as well as from automotive liquids and foot traffic. Instead of spending a lot of time and money down the road it is crucial that you have protection from the first day you start using your garage. Garage floor mats offer that type of coverage.

The Benefits of Garage Floor Mats

• They are very easy to install, you just roll out the mat and it stays in place
• They are very easy to clean by just using soap and water
• Mats with a ribbed design easily contain spills and leaks
• A variety of colors and custom widths

In addition to protecting your garage floor from damage, the garage floor parking mats provide additional cushion for your feet when you are walking around in the garage as well.

Features of Garage Floor Car Mats

Most companies will offer several different colors for their rubber garage floor mats as well as several different thicknesses to choose from for the mats. In addition, the mats are resistant to items such as oil, gasoline, anitfreeze, battery acid among other liquids that you will typically find in a garage.

Installing Garage Floor Protector Mats

The first step is make sure the garage floor is thoroughly cleaned, so you will want to use a stiff broom, a vacuum and a power washer to get all of the dirt, dust and any loose items out of the way.  The installation for the roll out garage floor mats is very easy because as the name applies, they simply roll out with the need to use any type of adhesives and the mats will not curl up at the ends. Any bubbles of air that are in the mat can be pushed out from underneath with a stiff broom.

If you have a large area of the garage floor that you are trying to cover with garage floor rubber mats, you can put mats together at the seams using doubler sided tape.

Garage Floor Containment Mats

People that are looking for garage floor snow mats can use containment mats to help keep their flooring protected from snow and other elements. These mats are for use only under vehicles and should not be used as the more traditional garage floor mat. These containment mats help to keep snow, water and mud controlled on the mat and prevents the liquid from escaping onto the garage floor.

In addition to using these garage floor mats for snow under cars, you can also use them for items such as snowmobiles, snowblowers, motorcycles or golf carts.

Preventing water from reaching the garage floor is very important as it could cause damage to garage storage cabinets, the garage walls or cause someone to slip and fall in the garage leading to injury. The garage floor mats also will catch the road salt to keep it from doing damage to the concrete floors of the garage.

Here is a closer look at some different options for garage floor tile and what each of them offer in terms of a flooring solution.

1. Interlocking Garage Floor Tiles – these tiles are a popular choice because they are easy to put down and do not require additional tools or adhesives to have them installed. Most companies offer a wide range of colors which makes it easy to create patterns or borders of different colors to give a unique look and feel to your garage space.

PVC garage floor tiles are popular in this category because they hold up to heavy traffic and they stay in place. Having interlocking PVC garage floor tiles means you don’t have to worry about doing maintenance on your garage floor paint or garage floor stain sealer.

2. Ceramic Garage Floor Tiles – if you are looking for beauty over function, then you could install garage floor ceramic tile. This tile is best used if you are using the garage as a multi-functional space. Look for something that is commercial grade with a rough finish so the floor will not be slippery. The downside to having ceramic tile for garage floor is that is something heavy falls from garage shelving or out of a garage cabinet, the tile can crack.

3. Porcelain Garage Floor Tiles – if you are concerned about ceramic tile holding up well, then another choice is to go with porcelain floor tiles. These tiles have a higher PSI rating, but the cost is going to run much higher and the preparation works that needs to be done before installation has to be perfect.

4. Vinyl Garage Floor Tiles – if cost is your biggest concern and you are not concerned as much with the look of the flooring, another option is to install garage floor vinyl tile. The installation will take you longer than if you went with the interlocking garage floor tiles since you will need to apply adhesive to lay the vinyl tiles down or use peel and stick garage floor tile. You also need to consider how long you plan to remain in your house because over time the vinyl tile can eventually yellow over time and the areas of the tile where the tires sit can become stained over the years as well.

Installing garage floor tiles makes for a nice professional look in the garage and can help to increase the value of your home as well whenever it comes time for selling it. You need to weigh the time for installation, how long the floor will last as well as the cost of garage floor tiles when you compare tiles vs. garage floor paint vs. garage floor stain.

Types of Interlocking Garage Floor Tile

1. Modutile Interlocking Garage Floor Tiles – these types of tiles come in a diamond pattern which makes for slip resistant surface. Each box of tiles contains 30 tiles which measure 12 inches x 12 inches x .5 inches so one box will give you 30 square feet of coverage. The tiles are easy to install thanks to an interlocking loop-to-peg system, so there are no additional tools required to install them or any type of adhesive that needs to be used.

Cleaning the tiles is easy for any type of grease, gas or oil spots. A sponge mop with water or a mild type of degreaser will do the trick. The modular garage floor tiles come in several different colors, such as black, red, brown, beige, blue and yellow as well as additional colors.

2. Interlocking PVC Garage Floor Tiles – one of the keys when looking at interlocking garage floor tiles is finding a product that can handle any type of moisture that happens to get underneath the tiles. The Norsk PVC flooring tiles handle this by allowing the moisture to flow out from under the tiles allowing it to evaporate which keeps the floor dry underneath.The Norsk flooring comes with six interlocking tiles per box which will provide coverage for almost 14 square feet of flooring space.

The Benefits of Garage Floor Tiles Interlocking

There are a few benefits for having garage interlocking floor tiles such as the ability to have them easily installed without using additional tools or adhesive products. If one of the tiles happens to get damaged, they are very easy to replace by simply snapping out the bad tile and replacing it with a new one. The wide variety of colors also allows you to create different patterns or borders on the floor to create a unique look. If you decide after six months you want a different look or pattern, you can easily change the appearance of the garage floor interlocking tiles.

Much like if you are painting a garage floor, the first step is to make sure the garage floor is cleaned completely. This can be done with a stiff broom, a vacuum to get up all of the loose particles that are stuck around the edges and corners of the garage and then going through with a power washer to remove any hard to remove buildup that is still sitting on the garage floor.

How to Stain Garage Floor

Before you begin staining the garage floor, make sure that the area you are working in has a lot of ventilation and that you are wearing the proper protective clothing as well as glove and eye protection. Once the floor has been cleaned, you can apply the garage floor stain’s first coat using a long handled paint roller. If you are looking for a darker stained concrete floor, you will want to apply more stain to the floor. Test out a small corner in the back of the garage first and test it until you are comfortable with how it looks before you move on to stain the entire area.

Once the first coat has been applied, you will want to wait 12 hours before coming back and staining garage floor again. After the second coat has finished, you will want to wait another 12 hours before coming back and using a soft cloth to remove any sticky spots that remain on the floor.

After the sticky spots have been removed, you can then apply the garage floor stain sealer using a new long handled paint roller. Once the sealer has finished being applied you will then need to wait another 24 hours before walking or driving on the newly stained garage floor.

That means you will need to find a place where you can park your car for a minimum of 48 hours while you work on applying the stain to the garage flooring.

Also keep in mind that there is maintenance that will need to be done for stained garage floors. The sealer will need to be reapplied every one to two years depending on the product and traffic in your garage to keep it looking nice and protected.

Garage Floor Stain vs Paint

If you are unsure whether you should stain the garage floor or have it painted, a general rule of thumb is that stained concrete floors is more for an aesthetic look  while painting the garage floor is for a garage floor where durability is more important.

Garage Floor Stain Design

Because of the more eye pleasing look that a stained floor provides, many people will opt to put a design on the floor of the garage to give it a more professional look. You can use blue masking tape to lay out a design on the floor and then apply the garage floor stain with spray bottles to give you an artistic look to the garage flooring.

If you have have bought a new house and are looking into painting the garage floor, or if the garage floor paint that you applied several years ago is peeling, what you do not want to do is simply use new garage floor paint to go over the peeling paint that is already there.

How to Remove Paint From Garage Floor

The first thing you will need to do is to remove the old garage floor paint if the paint is peeling in a lot of places. One option is to rent a floor buffer with several abrasive pads to remove the paint from the garage floor or a cement floor grinder. If you have a two car garage the process may take several hours and you will want to be careful as you are going through the process of the garage floor paint removal not to damage the garage flooring.

Another option would be to try chemical strippers as these are typically the most common method. If you know what the brand of paint is and the type of paint, that will help you in choosing the right type of paint stripper. If you know the brand of paint, you can contact the manufacturer of the product to ask for recommendations for removing it from the garage floor.

If you go the route of the chemical strippers, be sure to take precautions such as having lots of ventilation in the space you are working in. You will also want to protect your skin and your eyes with the proper protection as well.

If the paint is peeling in only a couple of places, it may be best to just do a touch up job in those places as removing all of the paint from the entire garage depending on the square feet of your garage could be quite the task.

Garage Floor Paint Preparation

Once you have removed all of the paint from the garage floor, you can then start the preparations for painting the garage floor. You will also need to determine what type of garage floor paint you are going to use. If you are looking for the best garage floor paint to buy, it will depend on what type of surface you have for the garage floor as well as what types of colors or look you want for the flooring.

Garage Floor Paint Options

Some options for painting your garage floor include going with a non slip garage floor paint or a non-skid garage floor paint. You can also look at buying garage floor paint with decorative chips in it, flakes or going with a glossy finish. If you are unsure of what look might be best in your space, ask someone at your local hardware store as they should be able tp provide you with some good garage floor paint advice.

1. Cleaning the Garage Floor

Before you will be able to use the garage floor paint, the floor will need to get a thorough cleaning, first by sweeping out the area and then going back and scrubbing the floor. If you have some really dirty spots on the floor, you may want to use a power washer to get those out. Any stains on the garage floor you will want to remove as well.

2. Fill in the Gaps and Cracks

After you have finished cleaning the garage floor and it has dried out, you can then fill in any gaps or cracks that are in the garage floor. For small cracks, you can use a concrete repair compound. For bigger cracks or gaps, you will need to use concrete patch.

3. Open the Pores of the Floor

In order for the paint to be better absorbed into the garage flooring, you are going to want to open the concrete surface pores. If you place a small amount of water on the flooring of the garage and it it soaked up quickly, you can likely skip this step in the process. If the water takes a while to be absorbed by the concrete surface, then you will need to apply a concrete etcher.

When using the etcher, be sure to follow the instructions on the bottle very carefully. You are going to want to wear gloves and protection for your eyes during this process and make sure that the space you are working in has plenty of ventilation.

After applying the product, you are going to let the floor dry for 24 hours before painting the garage floor. If you find that the floor is not drying fast enough, you may want to place some fans in certain areas to help increase the drying time.

4. Put Down a Garage Floor Primer

If you want the paint for the garage floor to last for many years, you are going to want to apply a garage floor paint primer. After finishing with the primer, the floor should be allowed to dry for 8 to 10 hours before applying the first coat of garage floor paint.

5. The Best Way to Paint Garage Floor

In order to make sure the garage floor looks the best and that the paint that is applied lasts for a long period of time, you are going to want to give the garage floor two coats of paint at the most. The garage floor drying time for the first coat of paint is typically around 24 hours. You can then check out the floor to see if you think a second coat of paint is required. After you have finished with the painting, you are going to want to wait for 5 to 7 days before pulling your car back into the garage.

Once the garage floor painting has been completed, you are going have to do some upkeep to each to make sure that the quality look lasts for a long period of time. Be sure to keep the garage floor cleaned from time to time as well as remove any types of stains or oil from the floor as soon as you see it so if you need to paint the floor again in a few years, you will not have to spend the extra time with preparations.

These garage floor painting tips should help you finish off a beautiful looking garage that combined with good garage storage solutions that will not only make your neighbors envious of your space but it can also help to improve the value of your home as well.