Brewery Floors: Engineered Coatings for Performance and Aesthetics

The foundation of any successful microbrewery business starts from the ground up – literally, with high-performance brewery floors. For one thing, brewery floors take a beating. And with heavy equipment constantly moving, hot liquids sloshing, and chemicals spilling, brewery flooring needs to stand up to some of the toughest conditions of any industry. That’s why having proper floors engineered specifically for brewery use is so important. The right floors can help make brewery operations more efficient, clean, and safe for workers.

Black Bear has been designing & installing seamless flooring solutions in breweries and beyond since 2005. Keep reading and you’ll discover the ideal solution for different brewery spaces so you can keep your business moving.

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What are the High-Performance Flooring Solutions for Brewery Processes?

There are several flooring solutions engineered specifically to meet the demanding needs of the brewing industry. Let’s take a look at each of these options.

Epoxy Coatings

Epoxy floors are extremely durable and chemical resistant. Epoxy coatings provide excellent traction and seamless surfaces that eliminate places for bacteria to hide. Epoxy floors can withstand heavy loads from forklifts and equipment. Epoxy is available in a variety of colors and can be used to designate separate work zones.

Urethane Coatings

Urethane floors offer many of the same benefits as epoxy. Urethane coatings provide impact resistance and chemical resistance. Urethane floors have a high gloss finish that enhances lighting. Urethane floors are easy to clean and sanitize. Like epoxy, urethane is seamless. It comes in many color options.

Polished Concrete Flooring

Polished concrete grind and honed existing concrete floors. This results in a smooth, shiny surface. Polished concrete is durable, slip-resistant, and easy to clean. It’s an economical solution for some breweries. The polishing process exposes concrete aggregate and color variations, giving floors visual interest.

Other Floor Coating Options

One popular choice is decorative floor systems, such as Black Bear’s designer epoxy series. These systems offer a wide range of striking decor options, including metallics, vinyl flake, and quartz, allowing owners to create unique flooring experiences for your brewhouse floor.

Decorative floor systems are not only visually appealing, but they also provide various surface textures and slip-resistant features. Metallic coatings can give flooring a luxurious, reflective finish, while vinyl flake and quartz systems add texture and depth. These decorative options can enhance the overall ambiance of the space, creating a more memorable experience for customers.

In addition to their aesthetic benefits, these decorative floor systems also offer practical advantages. They can be customized to meet specific needs, whether it’s the ability to withstand heavy equipment and foot traffic or resistance to harsh chemicals and hot water exposure. Their non-porous material helps prevent bacterial growth and makes for easy maintenance.

What are the Benefits of Proper Brewery Flooring?

Brewery flooring is a crucial component in ensuring the smooth operation of breweries and other beverage industry facilities. Crafted to meet legal standards for hygienic purposes, brewery floors offer numerous advantages that contribute to the overall efficiency and safety of the brewing process.

Durability – Floors in breweries endure fork trucks, pallet jacks, and keg dollies rolling over them all day long. They need to stand up to heavy loads without showing wear. Industrial coatings like epoxy and urethane provide durability to withstand constant traffic. Epoxy coatings are designed to be long-lasting, hard-wearing, and resistant to abrasion from heavy loads. Urethane coatings also provide impact resistance.

Cleanliness – Sanitation is critical in brewery spaces. Floors must be non-porous and easy to clean. This prevents bacteria growth or wild yeast from contaminating beer. Seamless floor coatings eliminate cracks and crevices where microbes could lurk. Epoxy and urethane create seamless flooring without grout lines, enhancing cleanability. The high-gloss finish of urethane makes floors shiny and clean-looking.

Traction – Brewery environments often involve liquid spills. So, your flooring must provide traction even when wet. In this case, proper coatings give floors a grip to avoid slips and falls. With this, the traction ensures employee safety. Brewery floors use additives for slip resistance like angular aggregate or shark grip particles to create grip even in wet conditions.

What are the Specific Flooring Needs for Brewing Processes?

Every industry has unique needs when it comes to floors. Here are some key requirements for breweries:

To withstand Heavy Equipment

Forklifts, pallet jacks, and keg dollies are standard equipment in breweries. Floors need to stand up to heavy loads rolling over them all day long without showing any signs of wear. For this reason, epoxy and urethane floors are formulated for heavy-duty use. They provide the durability and strength to withstand brewery equipment and operations.

Temperature Resistance

Brewery floors see high temperatures as boiling wort, hot water, and steam are used in the brewing process. So, the flooring needs to withstand heat without warping or becoming damaged by thermal shock. In this case, epoxy coatings are designed to withstand temperatures up to 220°F, making them suitable for areas with hot liquids. Urethane floors can also resist high heat.

Chemical Resistance

Floors in breweries must resist damage from caustic chemicals because cleaners and sanitizers are routinely used on floors. Hence, epoxy coating offers broad chemical resistance, withstanding acids, bases, oils, and solvents. Urethane floors are also highly chemical resistant. Proper coatings prevent chemical damage.

Drainage & Slope Requirements

Proper drainage and slope requirements play a crucial role when installing brewery flooring systems. In the beverage industry, where exposure to water and other liquids is common, it is essential to have effective drainage systems in place to prevent water build-up and potential damage to the brewery floors.

When designing a brewery floor, designers and contractors like Black Bear should design the floor to be sloped appropriately towards floor drains and termination points to ensure efficient water drainage.

The Different Brewery Flooring Areas and Needs

While every area needs slip and chemical resistance, the various spaces in a brewery facility have some unique flooring needs.

Brew Rooms – In brew rooms, heavy equipment, and hot liquids make flooring choices like epoxy or urethane ideal. These coatings provide the durability and heat resistance needed. For instance, epoxy has slightly better temperature resistance, while urethane offers a brighter, glossy look.

Packaging Areas – Packaging and bottling lines involve large equipment with constant movement of kegs, cans, and bottles. Urethane or polished concrete floors withstand heavy packaging traffic while resisting spills. Urethane tends to be more resistant to impact from heavy loads.

Tasting Rooms – Visually appealing floors like polished concrete give tasting rooms an upscale, sophisticated appearance. Traction additives help prevent slips. Polished concrete offers an attractive, natural look patrons appreciate.

Restaurants – Commercial kitchen floors need to withstand grease while providing traction when wet. Often, urethane coatings are perfect for back-of-house restaurant floors. Also, it resists damage from hot grease, water, and chemicals.

Commercial Kitchens – Grease, water, and heavy equipment make urethane or quarry tile good fits for kitchen floors. Traction aids safety for kitchen staff. Like restaurants, urethane performs well in brewery kitchen settings.

What is the Long-Term Value of Engineered Coatings?

In industrial settings like breweries and distilleries, facility owners cannot afford downtime, safety hazards, and continual maintenance from subpar flooring. While the upfront cost of engineered coatings exceeds bare concrete, the long-term value proves compelling:

Maximized Uptime – Industrial-grade epoxies and urethanes withstand heavy use and chemical abuse without cracking, pitting, or wearing. You avoid downtime from continual concrete repairs and replacements.

Enhanced Safety – Unlike slick concrete, anti-slip coatings provide traction for workers, reducing slip and fall incidents. Smooth urethane self-coving prevents bacterial harborage.

Easy Cleaning – Bare concrete absorbs and traps liquids, whereas impermeable epoxy and urethane make sanitizing simple and effective.

Aesthetic Versatility – From subtle concrete looks to vibrant metallic epoxy and quartz colors; coatings offer endless design possibilities. You can zone spaces with color.

Long Service Life – Epoxy and urethane coatings last 2-3 times longer than untreated concrete floors when properly maintained.

Sustainability – Eliminating repeat concrete replacement conserves resources and landfill dumping. Stained concrete cannot be recycled, whereas coatings can be reclaimed and recycled.

Over the lifespan of your brewery, the return on investment from engineered floor coatings is compelling compared to continual concrete replacement and repairs.

Maintenance Costs & Requirements for Brewery Flooring

Proper maintenance is essential for brewery flooring to ensure its longevity and prevent costly repairs. The maintenance costs and requirements can vary depending on the type of brewery flooring system chosen.

Regular cleaning procedures are necessary for maintaining brewery floors. This typically involves sweeping or vacuuming to remove debris and mopping with non-abrasive cleaners to keep the floor surface clean and sanitary. Some types of flooring, such as epoxy coatings or urethane concrete, may require specialized cleaning products or techniques to maintain their appearance and chemical resistance.

Repairs may be needed periodically, especially in areas with heavy traffic or exposure to aggressive chemicals. Damaged or uneven flooring can lead to workplace hazards and should be addressed promptly to avoid accidents. Hiring an experienced industrial flooring contractor is recommended to assess and repair any issues that arise.

Certain brewery flooring systems may have specialized maintenance requirements. For example, the use of trench drains and sloping is crucial for proper drainage and preventing the growth of harmful organisms. It is important to follow the manufacturer’s guidelines for maintenance and ensure that any necessary repairs or adjustments are carried out promptly.

Partner with an Expert in Brewery Floor Coatings

When advanced flooring performance and longevity are paramount, rely on Black Bear Coatings & Concrete. As a premier applicator of high-performance floor coatings, we bring experience across thousands of microbreweries, industrial plants, and commercial facilities. Our in-house team handles your project turnkey from initial consultation and spec to certified installation and ongoing maintenance. Contact us today to discuss the flooring solutions ideal for your brewery or tasting room. Here’s to cost effective engineered coatings designed to withstand the rigors of your brewing operations while retaining their beauty for decades!

Black Bear has engineered solutions for breweries such as: Idle Hands, Madison Brewing Company, Downeast Cider, Wachusett Brewing, and Craft Roots.