How to choose a floor coating contractor in Florida

The best check on a floor coating crew is a few minutes on three free state websites, followed by a written quote that answers specific questions. This checklist works on any crew, whether it is listed on this site or not.

1. Confirm the business exists and is active

Search the company name on Sunbiz, the Florida Division of Corporations site. You should find an active LLC or corporation, or a registered fictitious name if they trade under a different name. Look at the filing date and the annual report history. A business that was formed last month is not automatically a problem, but it should match what the crew tells you about its experience.

Also ask whether the crew holds a local business tax receipt from your county or city. Requirements differ by county, so check with your county tax collector if you want to confirm.

2. Ask about licensing, and check what they say

Florida's Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) lists paint, tile and carpet among work that does not need a state contractor license. Its FAQ does not mention floor coatings by name, and we have not found a written state ruling on coating-only work. Your county or city may have its own rules. Check with your county building department.

What you can verify:

• If a crew says it holds a state license, look it up on the DBPR license search and confirm the name, status and any complaints.
• If the job goes beyond coating (cutting or replacing concrete, moving a drain, electrical work), ask who holds the license for that part and whether a permit is needed.
• DBPR takes complaints about unlicensed work at 1-866-532-1440.

3. Check insurance yourself

Ask for a certificate of insurance showing general liability, and ask the crew to have its agent send it to you directly. Check the policy dates and the business name.

Workers' compensation is separate. Florida's Division of Workers' Compensation has two free public databases: one for proof of coverage and one for exemptions. Search the business name in both. Note that exemptions are issued to individual officers of a corporation or members of an LLC, not to the business itself, so an exemption covers the owner, not the helpers they bring.

4. Ask how they will test for moisture

Florida slabs often carry ground moisture, and many garage slabs have no plastic sheet under them. A crew that coats without testing is guessing. Ask:

• Which test will you run: calcium chloride (ASTM F1869), in-slab humidity probes (ASTM F2170), or something else?
• What reading does your product's data sheet allow?
• What happens, and what does it cost, if the slab fails?

Our moisture testing guide explains the tests in plain words.

5. Ask how they will prepare the floor

The coating only holds as well as the concrete surface underneath. The industry scale for this is the Concrete Surface Profile chart from the International Concrete Repair Institute. On that chart, acid etching produces the smoothest profile (CSP 1) and diamond grinding the next (CSP 2). A materials supplier's guide to the chart says mechanical profiling should be the first choice and that acid can be hard to rinse out completely.

Most coating data sheets name the profile they need. Ask the crew which profile their product calls for and how they will get there. If the answer is acid etching, ask why, and ask how they will neutralize and rinse it.

6. Get the products named

A quote that says "epoxy floor" tells you little. Ask for each layer by product name: primer, base coat, flake, topcoat. Ask for the data sheets. They list the cure time before you can park, the humidity and temperature limits, and the moisture limit for the slab. See epoxy vs polyaspartic in Florida for what to look for.

7. Read the warranty wording

"Lifetime warranty" can mean many things. Read the actual text and find out:

• Who backs it: the crew, the manufacturer, or both
• What it covers: peeling, hot-tire pickup, yellowing, staining, cracks
• What it excludes: check whether moisture from the slab is excluded, which matters in Florida
• Who pays labor to fix a failure, and how long the crew has to respond
• Whether it transfers if you sell the house

If moisture is excluded and the crew did not test, that exclusion carries most of the risk.

8. Agree the payment schedule in writing

Florida has a statute on this. Section 489.126 says a contractor who takes more than 10% of the contract price as an initial payment on home work must apply for any permits the job needs within 30 days of that payment and start work within 90 days after permits are issued, unless you agreed in writing to a longer period. The statute applies to people doing the work it covers regardless of whether they are licensed. Whether it reaches a coating-only job is a legal question we have not settled, so do not rely on it alone.

Practical steps that protect you either way:

• Get a written start date and a written payment schedule
• Keep the deposit modest and tie later payments to finished work
• Pay by card or check, not cash, so there is a record
• Do not pay the balance until the floor is done and you have walked it

9. Ask for real jobs near you

Ask for photos of three recent jobs in your area with the town and month, and ask whether you can speak to one of those homeowners. A crew that has done good work in Florida garages for years will have them. On this site, the "Real jobs" badge means we have seen that proof and a homeowner confirmed the job. See how we verify.

Red flags

• No moisture test, or "Florida slabs are fine" as the answer
• Will not name the products or show data sheets
• Price far below every other quote with no clear reason
• Large cash deposit, or pressure to sign the same day
• Business not found on Sunbiz, or the name on the quote does not match the registration
• Insurance certificate the crew will not let its agent send directly
• Warranty that is only verbal
• Plans to coat on a humid afternoon without checking the dew point

A short version to keep on your phone

1. Sunbiz: active business, name matches the quote
2. DBPR license search if they claim a license; county for local rules
3. Insurance certificate from the agent; workers' comp coverage or exemption checked
4. Moisture test named, with the pass number and the fail price
5. Grinding, or a reason why not
6. Every product named, data sheets in hand
7. Warranty in writing, exclusions read
8. Written start date and payment schedule
9. Three local jobs with town and month