Floor Coatings for Food Processing Facilities

Your concrete floors take a beating with the many chemicals and acids hitting your facility’s floor each year. Constant washdowns, standing water, food products, milk, grease, oils, cleaning chemicals, heavy equipment, and foot traffic will quickly wear down unprotected concrete.

We see this particularly in facilities like creameries and orchards, where floors are exposed to aggressive cleaning routines and large volumes of liquids every day. Over time, that exposure will cause the surface of the concrete to chip, flake, pit, and deteriorate.

Fortunately, you can have better looking and more durable concrete floors in your facility with proper coating processes.

Why Food Processing Floors Need More Than Bare Concrete

Concrete is strong, but it is also porous. In a food processing environment, that porosity can become a problem when the floor is repeatedly exposed to moisture, food products, oils, milk, and cleaning chemicals.

Depending on the facility, floors may be exposed to:

• Frequent hot-water washdowns
• Standing water and moisture
• Milk and dairy products - lactic acid attacks
• Fruit juices and organic materials
• Grease and oils
• Cleaning chemicals and sanitizers
• Heavy carts, equipment, and machinery
• Constant foot traffic

Over time, these conditions lead to surface erosion, pitting, chipping, and other forms of concrete deterioration.

Creamery and Dairy Processing Facility Floors

Creameries are particularly tough environments for concrete floors. Creamery floors face a hidden enemy: lactic acid. As milk spills and sits, it breaks down the concrete's cement paste. If left unprotected, your floor will inevitably pit and flake. A proper coating acts as a barrier, preventing milk-based bacteria from settling into porous concrete.

The cleaning process itself can also be hard on concrete. Strong cleaners and sanitizing products are routinely used to remove organic material and maintain sanitary conditions. When these products are repeatedly applied to an unprotected concrete floor, that floor will deteriorate over time.

A coated floor provides a sealed surface that can better withstand routine cleaning while making it easier to wash away milk, food products, and other contaminants.

Apple Orchard and Fruit Processing Facility Floors

Fruit processing operations create another challenging environment for concrete. Orchards and packing facilities may use large vats and tanks for washing apples and other fruit, resulting in significant amounts of water and cleaning products being used around the floor.

These floors can experience:

• Constant water exposure
• Fruit residue and organic material
• Large-volume washdowns
• Cleaning chemicals
• Heavy carts and equipment
• Frequent foot traffic

When this happens day after day, bare concrete will begin to break down. A professional concrete coating will seal the concrete and provide a more durable surface for the facility's cleaning and production routines.

Floor Coatings for Restaurants, Breweries, and Other Food Facilities

The same concerns apply to many other food-related environments. Restaurant kitchens deal with grease, oils, hot water, and aggressive cleaning. Breweries and beverage facilities experience frequent spills, moisture, and washdowns.

In each case, the specific conditions inside the facility should be considered when choosing the appropriate coating and level of surface preparation.

Urethane Slurry for Food Processing Floors

For food processing facilities with already damaged concrete, we often recommend starting with a urethane slurry rather than simply applying epoxy directly to the existing floor.

Urethane slurry can fill pits, imperfections, and areas where the surface of the concrete has already broken down. This makes it particularly useful for older creameries, orchards, restaurants, and processing facilities where the concrete has taken years of abuse.

Once the damaged areas have been repaired, an epoxy coating can be installed over the slurry to create a sealed, easier-to-clean finished floor.

We have installed urethane slurry in many milkhouses, and other dairy/food operations across Pennsylvania.

Proper Concrete Preparation Is Critical

A new coating is only as good as the surface underneath it. If loose concrete, grease, old coatings, or other contaminants remain on the floor, the new coating may not bond properly.

We typically use a shot blaster and concrete grinder to prepare commercial food processing floors, depending on the condition of the existing concrete.

Shot Blasting

Shot blasting removes weak surface material and contaminants while creating the profile needed for the coating to bond to the concrete. It is especially useful for preparing larger commercial floors.

Grinding

A concrete grinder allows us to prepare areas that require more precise work, including edges, joints, drains, and areas where the shot blaster cannot reach.

If the concrete is already severely scaled or open, we may not need to grind the entire floor. The goal is to remove the damaged material and get down to a sound surface before making repairs.

Adding Slip Resistance to Food Processing Floors

Water, milk, fruit residue, grease, and cleaning chemicals can make smooth concrete extremely slippery. For food processing facilities, slip resistance should be an important consideration when selecting a coating.

We can broadcast blasting sand into the urethane slurry to add texture to the finished floor. This provides additional traction while also creating a surface for the epoxy coating to mechanically bond to.

The amount of texture can be adjusted based on how the floor is used and how aggressively it needs to be cleaned.

Easier Cleaning and Sanitation

One of the biggest advantages of coating a food processing floor is creating a sealed surface that is easier to clean.

Bare concrete can absorb moisture and contaminants into its pores. A properly installed coating helps seal the concrete and creates a more consistent surface for routine cleaning and washdowns.

For a creamery dealing with milk and sanitizing chemicals or an orchard washing large quantities of fruit, having a floor that can withstand frequent cleaning is important.

Concrete Coatings for Food Processing Facilities

Every food processing facility has different requirements. A creamery, apple orchard, commercial kitchen, and beverage processing facility may all expose their floors to different combinations of moisture, chemicals, food products, and equipment.

At Elite Floor Coatings, we can evaluate the existing concrete, prepare the surface, repair damaged areas with urethane slurry, and install an epoxy coating designed around the conditions inside your facility.

If your food processing facility has concrete that is chipping, pitting, or showing signs of chemical damage, contact Elite Floor Coatings to schedule an evaluation and learn more about your options.