Frequently Asked Questions

Published 2025-2026 Ontario and Canadian contractor ranges put commercial and industrial-grade epoxy at about $8 to $15 per square foot installed, with lighter commercial systems from about $5. Slab prep, crack repair, a moisture-mitigation primer, cove base and after-hours work all move the price. These are published ranges, not rates, so compare at least two written quotes line by line.

Published 2025-2026 contractor ranges put polishing an existing slab at about $3 to $15 per square foot, with most commercial jobs about $5 to $12. The level of aggregate exposure, crack and joint repair, and removing old tile or adhesive first change the number.

The product names and their data sheets, the prep method and the surface profile it targets, moisture testing (and what happens if results come back high), the number of coats or the system thickness, anti-slip texture, cove base, the closure window from the data sheet, and the price for each line. Ask what is excluded as well as what is included.

Ontario's Food Premises regulation (O. Reg. 493/17, s.7(1)(c)) requires floors in rooms where food is prepared, served or handled, and where utensils are washed, to be "tight, smooth and non-absorbent", and s.7(1)(g) requires them to be kept clean and in good repair. The regulation does not name a product and does not mention coved bases, floor drains or slope. Ottawa Public Health inspects food premises and asks to be told about significant renovations.

We found no Ottawa Public Health or CFIA approval list for floor coatings. The Ontario rule describes how the floor must perform (tight, smooth, non-absorbent, clean and in good repair) rather than approving products. Treat "food-safe" or "health-code approved" on a product page as marketing, and ask the contractor how the system meets the regulation's wording.

R.R.O. 1990, Reg. 851, s.11(b) says a floor used by workers must not have any finish or protective material "likely to make the surface slippery". It sets no slip-resistance number, and neither does the Building Code. Anti-slip texture from broadcast aggregate is one way to address it; ask for a sample on your own floor.

The City of Ottawa lists "New flooring" and "Painting and decorating" among projects that do not need a building permit, but the page does not say whether that list covers commercial buildings, so confirm with the City. Plumbing alterations such as new floor drains and structural repairs need a permit, designated heritage buildings are not exempt, and a change of use that increases hazard needs a permit first (Building Code Act, s.10).

The 2024 Ontario Building Code (Div. B, 3.1.13.7) sets floor-surface flame-spread and smoke values only for buildings regulated as high buildings, for example in exit stairways, service rooms and elevator cars, with a sprinklered exemption except for Group B occupancies and elevator cars. For a typical one- or two-storey shop or warehouse we found no floor flame-spread limit. Ask the building's designer if you are unsure.

Canada's Architectural Coatings VOC Regulations (SOR/2009-264) limit opaque floor coatings to 250 g/L, but the rules bind the companies that make, import or sell the coating, not the applicator. A product's VOC content is on its data sheet; ask for it if odour or air quality in an occupied building matters to you.

It depends on the product's data sheet, the slab and the room temperature. Typical figures from the data sheets we read: an epoxy at 24 hours for foot traffic and up to 7 days for heavy traffic, a self-levelling urethane cement at 18 hours for light foot traffic and 72 hours for heavy traffic, and a polyaspartic at 24 hours for light traffic and 7 days for vehicles. Prep and moisture-test days come on top. The data sheet for your product governs.

They suit different conditions. One coatings maker's article describes epoxy as hard and chemical-resistant but weaker under thermal shock, and recommends cementitious urethane for commercial kitchens. Urethane cement data sheets are written for hot water, cleaning chemicals and wetter slabs. Ask each contractor which system they would put down and why.

Moisture in a slab can make a coating lose its bond. ASTM F2170 lists debonding and deterioration of coatings among the failures excess slab moisture can cause, and the coating data sheets we read set their own limits, about 75 to 80% relative humidity for epoxy and polyaspartic and much wetter for some urethane cements. A test shows the slab only on the day and in the spots tested.

No. No floor-coating, concrete-finishing, flooring or painting trade is on Ontario's list of compulsory trades (O. Reg. 876/21), and we found no Ontario licence for epoxy contractors. Ask for a WSIB clearance certificate, proof of liability insurance, references on similar commercial floors and the product data sheets. We do not check any of these for you.

Yes. WSIB policy says a business that hires a contractor for construction work must get a clearance certificate before the work begins and keep it in effect while the work goes on. Without it, the business may be liable for the contractor's WSIB payment obligations up to the value of the labour portion of the contract. The homeowner exemption does not apply to businesses.

Ontario's Construction Act applies, not the Consumer Protection Act, which covers individuals buying for personal or household purposes. Under the Construction Act a proper invoice is due within 28 days unless the owner gives a notice of non-payment within 14 days, the owner keeps a 10 per cent holdback, and a contractor's lien expires 60 days after the earlier of completion or publication of substantial performance, unless preserved. Get legal advice on any dispute.

Ask for the safety data sheet (SDS) for every product. Ontario's OHSA requires employers to make SDSs readily available to workers who may be exposed, and that can include your own staff who stay in the building. Read Section 2 for hazards such as skin or respiratory sensitisers and Section 9 for the flash point.

It can be. Old vinyl tile and black mastic may contain asbestos, and grinding concrete creates silica dust; asbestos, silica and isocyanates are designated substances in Ontario. Before a project starts, OHSA s.30 requires the owner to determine whether designated substances are present and give the list to contractors before a binding contract. Have old flooring tested first.

Sometimes, by phasing the work by area or working after hours, but the products decide what is safe. Some solvent-based primers and MMA resins can be flammable liquids, and Ontario's Fire Code bars open flames, sparks and heat near them unless controlled. Ask for the SDS, the ventilation plan and the cure time at your room temperature before you plan around staying open.