When specifying industrial floors, how much attention do you give to the choice of the right colour of the epoxy floor? The colour is one of those often overlooked factors that could end up having a significant impact on the success of your flooring project. Here are some factors to watch out for when selecting the right epoxy floor colour.
Always try to understand the client’s business activities and how the colour could affect his or her operations. Flour mills like beige colours as they want to hide the flour, Car parks like medium greys as they want to hide the tire marks and Meat processing factories … well they always ask me for red-based colours as they want to hide the … blood 🙂
Poorly lit areas like basements or buildings with a few windows may need a light colour to help lighten up the place. A light colour can easily make the space look brighter and larger, and in the process you will help your client save up on lighting costs. If I need to specify a light colour I absolutely adore the RAL 9018 (Papyrus white) as it is not as drab as light grey and it usually blends in very nicely with other colours. (see pic below)
I have seen the exact same colour from the same batch look very different when applied in different environments. For example white tungsten lights can create a very different effect on the floor compared to yellow light. Other important factors are how the colours of the walls have been painted and how the walls reflect on the floor. You also need to consider furniture, shadows and other objects that will fill up the area. Even the time of the day, and how much natural sunlight comes in through the windows will affect your floor! Occasionally you will meet people that will fret over hours on which exact shade of grey is best. Try to explain to them that in the grand scheme of things this is not that important since the appearance of their floor will be affected by many other factors beyond their control.
White floors may look cool and sexy and architects absolutely love specifying them. However they can be an absolute nightmare to maintain as they need continuous cleaning. Over time they will yellow and they can get scratches that will easily pick up dirt. The effect is similar to wearing white trousers every day. Your trousers will get dirty very quickly! If you are going to go ahead with a white floor always remember to cost in a wear resistant top-coat.
Dark colours tend to create beautiful mirror effects (see picture above) but dust and dirt can be very visible with such floors. If your facility is affected by high amounts of dust and dirt in the atmosphere (especially in dry climates) you may want to think twice before specifying such colours. Have a look at the picture below and see what happens if a few people bring in dust on a dark floor.
In case you are wondering what are my favourite all time colours for epoxy floors? You can never go wrong with the RAL 7040 (Window Grey) as it achieves a great looking balanced industrial look.
The Papyrus white 9018, as I mention above is great if you need a light floor. Finally if you want to be a bit more edgy with your choice of colours you may want to try shades of blue like the Sky Blue 5015 depicted below.
If you are looking for a rather uncommon epoxy floor colour that most companies don’t manufacture please reach out to me! Our company may be able to help.
Final Note: Most floor coatings manufacturers specify their colour according the RAL system. For a full look at the RAL colour palette click here, although colours appearing on computer or mobile screens can seem quite different than in real life)
Akis Apostolopoulos
Latest posts by Akis Apostolopoulos (see all)
- How to Remove Epoxy from Concrete - January 14, 2022
- Car Park Flooring: Choosing the Right Product - January 4, 2022
- What is Polyurethane Flooring: An Introduction - October 20, 2021