Metallic epoxy floor installation
The layers, the pour, the manipulation and the problems that show up afterwards.
Class type
Metallic epoxy training
A metallic epoxy floor is made by hand while the coat is still wet, in the 20 to 40 minutes it stays workable. Videos show you how it’s done; metallic epoxy floor training is where you pour one, work it and learn when to stop.
Why hands-on
Why metallic epoxy is learned on the slab
Four things decide how a metallic floor turns out, and all of them happen inside the working time of each batch.
Manipulation
The metallic coat goes down at 30–48 mils with a notched squeegee and is back-rolled, then worked with rollers, trowels or other tools to build the look. The effect keeps changing as the pigment flows and settles during cure, so part of the skill is knowing when to stop.
Outgassing
A slab that is warming pushes air up through a thick coat as bubbles and pinholes. A thin, tight primer and coating while the slab cools prevent it; a class shows you what that timing looks like on a real floor. See outgassing.
Consistency
An even film gives an even effect. Re-rolling pigmented epoxy after it has sat for 15 minutes or more shifts the color, and so does mixing kits from different batches, so every kit’s batch number gets checked before the first pour.
Light and finish
A glossy floor shows every roller mark and tie-in once the lights are on. Work lights aimed low across the floor catch them while they can still be fixed, and the top coat has to go on thin and even.
The system
What goes into a metallic epoxy floor
A metallic floor is a solid-color epoxy floor with one extra, much thicker layer: clear epoxy carrying metallic pigment.
| Layer | What it is | Wet film | Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prepared concrete | Ground or shotblasted to CSP 3 or more | — | — |
| Primer | Clear 100%-solids epoxy | 3–8 mils | 200–533 sq ft/gal |
| Base color | Pigmented 100%-solids epoxy, usually black, gray or white | 8–12 mils | 134–160 sq ft/gal |
| Metallic coat | Slow-cure clear epoxy with 32 oz of metallic pigment per 3 gallons | 30–48 mils | 33.4–53.5 sq ft/gal |
| Top coat | Clear, UV-resistant coat that takes the wear | 3–5 mils | 320–535 sq ft/gal |
Figures from one complete professional system; follow the system guide for the products you buy.
Each coat has to reach its recoat time before the next: typically about 6 hours for the primer, 8 for a standard-cure base and 14 for the slow-cure metallic coat, and each has to be recoated within 24 hours. That’s three days or more after prep, so in a short class, ask whether you’ll take a floor all the way through or work on boards.
The full process, with what goes wrong and what drives the price, is in metallic epoxy floor installation.
Metallic epoxy
Hand-worked pigment over a solid base color.
What to expect from a good class
What metallic epoxy floor training should cover
On the floor
- Prep and moisture testing, because a glossy metallic finish shows every flaw in the slab.
- A thin, tight primer, with the coats timed to a cooling slab.
- Mixing in order: the clear base, then the pigment, then the activator, and never more than you can spread in about 20 minutes.
- Spreading to a measured thickness with a notched squeegee and spiked shoes, then back-rolling.
- Building effects with rollers, trowels and the trainer’s own techniques.
- A top coat rolled thin and even, never back into material that is starting to tack up.
Off the floor
- Base colors under the pigment, and sample boards to show customers.
- Troubleshooting: roller marks, color shifts, bubbles, orange peel and yellowing.
- Slip resistance: where a smooth, glossy floor needs an anti-slip additive.
- Pricing: the metallic coat alone takes about $1.36–2.18 of material per sq ft, against $0.27–0.40 for a flake base coat, plus an extra day or more on site.
The question that matters most: will you pour and work a metallic coat yourself, on a floor or a board, or watch the trainer do it? Both teach something. Only one puts the feel of it in your hands.
Compare
Metallic epoxy classes in the US
17 providers in 18 states run hands-on classes that list metallic systems. We list them so you can compare; it isn’t an endorsement or a partnership.
| Provider | Where | Length | Published price | What the class covers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| One Stop Epoxy | Orlando, FL | 2 days | $495 | Materials and lunch included; each student builds a full flake floor and a metallic floor; covers pricing jobs and material costs |
| ResinForce (CleanPro Supply) | Cincinnati, OH; Rochester and Buffalo, NY; Indianapolis, IN; Jacksonville, FL | 2 days | $500 ($400 each for 2 or more) | Travelling class: prep, grinding and shot blasting, metallic, flake, quartz and grind-and-seal systems; meals included |
| Epoxy Depot | Supplier stores in FL (Jacksonville, Tampa), TX (Fort Worth), OH (Bowling Green), NC (Charlotte, Raleigh/Durham), TN (Nashville), IL (Joliet, the Chicago-area store), PA (Lebanon), MD (Baltimore), SC (Duncan) and more | 2–3 days (Intro to Epoxy) | About $750 where posted; varies by store | Intro class covers surface prep, crack filling, flake, solid and metallic; Advanced Metallics follows it |
| Deco-Crete Supply | Columbus, OH | 2 days | $849.99 ($100 off early-bird) | Metallic epoxy, broadcast floors, acetone dyes and solid-color stains; 10% product discount during class |
| The Concrete Protector | Lima, OH | 2 days | $499 deposit, returned as store credit | Decorative coatings (metallic marble, wood and stone looks), grinders, sales and bidding |
| Xtreme Polishing Systems (Polished Concrete University) | Pompano Beach and Orlando, FL; Euless (Dallas–Fort Worth), TX; Los Angeles, CA; Las Vegas, NV; Oklahoma City, OK; Cedar Rapids, IA; Milwaukee, WI | 5 days (3 days in Los Angeles and Oklahoma City) | $1,750 for 5 days; $1,350 for 3 days; 15% off extra attendees | Prep, concrete testing, cove base, metallic, flake, quartz; a 5-day class in Spanish in Pompano Beach; a 2-day Stardek pool-deck class ($900) |
| XPS New York City (FlooringClasses.com) | Garfield, NJ | 3 days, monthly | $1,500 | Moisture testing, prep, epoxy and polyaspartic, flake and metallic, bidding and lead generation |
| Epoxy Classes NY | Johnstown, NY | 3 days (Friday to Sunday) | $1,400 ($700 deposit) | Prep and grinding, metallic, flake and quartz, business and marketing; interest-free financing offered |
| U.S. Resin Supply | Los Angeles, Anaheim, Sacramento, San Jose and Visalia, CA; Las Vegas, NV; Montgomery, IL; Fort Lauderdale, FL | 2 days (Intro to Epoxy); shorter system classes | $499–999 for the 2-day intro | Supplier stores; materials and lunch included; dates are posted city by city |
| Concrete & Coatings School | Garland, TX | 5 days | Not published (application required) | Advanced class for working installers: polished concrete, metallic epoxy, decorative concrete, stains, prep and repairs |
| FloorRescue Academy | Dallas, TX (plus travelling classes) | 3–4 days | Not published | Prep, repairs, metallic epoxy, polyaspartic and flake floors, polished and sealed concrete |
| New Era Epoxy Academy | Spring (Houston) and Austin, TX | 4 days | $1,899, materials included | Moisture testing and barriers, repairs, primers, metallic and flake, job pricing; taught in English and Spanish |
| Concrete Floor Shop | Houston, TX | 1 day | $200, lunch included | Flake and metallic epoxy class for installers and contractors only |
| Action Epoxy Training | Fort Worth, TX | 1 day | $250, paid at the door | Garage flake systems, metallic, prep and crack repair, estimating and bidding |
| Versatile Building Products | Lewisville (Dallas area), TX | 1 day, first Saturday monthly | $99 | Prep and patching, flake in three sizes, metallic and brindle flake, with the maker's epoxy and polyaspartic |
| Paradise Concrete Solutions | Location set per class | 1 day | $200 | Contractors only; prep, crack repair, grinding, and flake, quartz and metallic sample boards |
| Blessed By Chris Academy | Atlanta, GA | 4 days | See provider | Run by an Atlanta coating company: installation, metallic epoxy, pricing and marketing |
Dates and prices change, so confirm with the provider before you book. Every class in every state is in the class finder.
Two things to check in each listing: whether every student builds a metallic floor or works on sample boards, and whether metallic is the main subject or one system among several. Advanced metallic classes may expect you to have taken the provider’s intro class, or to be working in the trade already.
Epoxy Business School
How metallic fits our training
The Epoxy Playbook comes first. The Epoxy Playbook is recorded hands-on installation training: full installations on video that you can pause and replay as often as you need, plus the business side. It’s required before the hands-on class.
Then two days on the slab with a partner trainer. You install a full-broadcast flake floor yourself, and on day two the trainer demonstrates how a metallic floor is poured and worked. The outline is in the two-day class standard.
If metallic is what you plan to sell, practice on boards or a sample floor before your first paid one, and price your first metallic jobs knowing they’ll take you longer.
Classes aren’t scheduled yet. Tell us your state and we’ll text you when one opens near you.
Read before your class
Metallic floor guides
Why epoxy floors fail
Bubbles, delamination, yellowing and the prep mistakes behind them.
Epoxy cure time, temperature and humidity
Pot life, recoat windows and the dew point rule, from real data sheets.
Concrete moisture testing
Calcium chloride and in-slab RH tests, and the limits coatings set.
Epoxy flooring supplies
The products in a coating system and the suppliers that sell them.
Coverage calculator
Gallons and kits for each layer, from the area and film thickness.
Questions
Metallic epoxy training: frequently asked questions
Can you learn metallic epoxy from videos?
Videos are the right start, because you can watch the full installation and replay the hard parts as often as you need. But the look is made by hand while the epoxy is wet, so you also have to do it: on boards or a sample floor first, then on a real slab.
How long does metallic epoxy training take?
The classes on this page run one to five days, and an advanced metallic class can follow a provider’s intro class. A metallic floor takes three days or more after prep, so in a short class, ask whether you’ll work a full floor, a sample board or a demonstration.
How much does metallic epoxy training cost?
Published prices for the classes on this page run from $99 for a one-day class to $1,899 for a four-day course. Add travel, lodging and time off work, and compare how much metallic you’ll pour yourself, not just the price.
Do I need epoxy experience before a metallic class?
Not always. Some classes start at bare concrete and need no experience; advanced metallic classes may follow the provider’s intro class or be meant for working installers. The class page says which.
Why do metallic floors cost more than flake floors?
More material, more time and more skill. The metallic coat covers 33–54 sq ft per gallon against 134–200 for a flake base coat, the install takes three days or more after prep, and the result depends on the installer’s hand.
Does the Epoxy Business School class include metallic?
Yes, as a demonstration: on day two the trainer shows how a metallic floor is poured and worked, while you install a full-broadcast flake floor yourself. Before class, The Epoxy Playbook’s recorded installations let you watch each step and replay it as often as you need.
When will Epoxy Business School classes start?
Classes open state by state. None is scheduled yet. Leave your state and number on the class waitlist and we'll text you when one opens near you.
Watch every step before you do it
The Epoxy Playbook: full installations recorded start to finish, which you can replay as often as you need, plus pricing, quoting and selling the job.