Coving meets health code for floors.

Most health codes for kitchens, food storage and preparation areas call for the walls to integrate into the floors. To achieve this, inspectors want a smooth easy to clean transition from your walls into the floor. You can eliminate hard to clean corners quickly when using epoxy on the floors as well as over your cove and a portion of your wall surface. As with so many things "technique is everything" if you want a fast low cost yet functional and long lasting solution for your health inspector.



Health codes usually call for an epoxy coating for food related floors that have an integrated cove of at least ¼ to ½ inch. Then going up the walls 4 to 6 inches. This type of system eliminates hard to reach corners where dirt, grime and grease can build up. In addition, liquids hitting the walls easily find there way off the walls and out onto the floor where they can be cleaned easily and not stuck in hard to reach right angle corners and edges.



Let’s go through a fast and easy way to meet code.



First, you want to apply a finish that lasts. We all know that when you want a flow-coated system to last the key is getting it to stick to the surface for an extended period of time. How many of us have had a Formica counter top last for decade and then come off in a few weeks when a corner starts to lift? Once the adhesion of your counter top is compromised liquids start softening the underlayment and the counter starts to peel. If you want your flooring and coving to be long lasting and meet code be sure to spend most of your effort on good surface preparation. If you go to www.concrete-floor-coatings.com you can get a free cost analysis and step by step instructions on getting your epoxy to stick and last.



But what we want to talk about now is coving. Once you have done our floor preparation you need not wait for the floor to dry. You can mix a grout compound into a peanut butter consistence and with a gloved hand slap a mall amount into your floor corners and edges. Then pull your finger or thumb along the corner to create a curve matching your finger. Don't’ worry about crumbs or a little uneven ness. Just quickly get the basic shape in the corners and move on. Next take a putty knife or stir stick and scrape off the excess grout leaving just the corner grout in place. Once the whole room is done take a break for an hour and have some lunch. Because when you come back the grout will have dried sufficiently enough that it will smooth surprisingly well when you sweep along the edges to remove crumbs. As the broom is pulled over the grout which is now just lightly soft it will smooth and shape the grout into that good looking cove you wanted. Pick up all the crumbs you swept off with a dustpan and your are ready to tape. Take two stir sticks and with a piece of tape mark them at the same height. Next pull blue tape along your wall measuring with the sticks at each end and rub them onto the wall. Leave the tape ends sticking out into the air so you have something to grab when you want to remove them.



If the floor is dry you can start coating right away even if the grout is a little soft when you start. Brush your epoxy coating in one direction along the line of the coving to both smooth and coat your surface. Then remove your tape so it won’t get stuck to the wall. Then weight 10 hours or more for your second coat. Re-tape for your second coat. Use a little grout to fix any gaps that appear or divots in your coving. If you find a lump use a 4-in. grinder with masonry wheel to buzz it off. Then re-coat the cove and the floor.



You will end up with a seamless floor that is smooth easy to clean and meets code.