Removing carpet pad and trying to salvage carpet can be a pain if a flood occurrs...this happened to us once in 17 years at our old home. The only thing worse would be having to rip up XPS, plywood, Dri Core etc. I have to believe in a real flood any of these would be a mess. If the chance of flood is remote, weight the options of dealing with each. I personally am leaning towards pad and carpet and some sort of tile in area more prone to water...water heater, washer etc. I wonder if the concrete should be sealed with something first. I also wonder how that speckled garage floor paint would hold up.

You might want to give the floor a wash with a muriatic acid solution first to clean and lightly etch it. Be careful though since muriatic acid is Hydrochloric acid and very corrosive and if combined with bleach can cause a very dangerous gas. Keep the area well ventilated with a fan and open windows or door if possible. After that, any of the big box home improvement stores or your local paint store will have a suitable product for the concrete floor. It holds up well under normal use (will wear if heavy things are lugged over it or abrade the floor) and sure helps with clean-up and keeping the area clean. We just did out floor and used a tinted concrete paint. It was less expensive than an epoxy paint but for our use it worked just as well. The epoxy systems aren't THAT expensive if you DIY. The cost issues that neighbors might be referring to possibly involve having it professionally done. The tricky part, in my mind, involve spreading the "sparkles" over the floor. Might be an issue when doing it in sections. In another area of our basement we used a 12"x12" vinyl tile. Sheet goods wouldn't work due to possible moisture issues from the concrete, but the tiles have been in place for 15 years and are holding up very well despite numerous overflowing washing machines, water leaks and other damp situations. Good luck!

Given that we have actually attended the World of Concrete convention, I’d say I’m quite comfortable with the material. What you’re describing is pretty much a failure of the material in design or install, not typical. Even your average garage floor, which is the cheapest of the cheap in install and quality, doesn’t have the durability and etching issues you’re describing. The costs you’re describing are also WAY out of line for anything I have seen, even with fiber reinforced and stained, with multiple sealing passes. Especially on a slab, you’d be hard pressed to hit $12 a square foot all done and done unless you’re being seriously ripped off, especially on top of an existing slab - that makes everything easier :) Over timber framing the costs go up and the mitigation needed to create a good base becomes more complex, but still not significantly beyond a tile product. And the possibilities for design are vast (props to WoC again, I didn’t know half those techniques and products existed!). I agree it’s not a budget finish in some circumstances, but having a good mix design for residential finish application is NOT difficult to obtain, especially if you’re working with a good contractor and not just directly with the batch plant (easier but only if you know what you’re doing, like with any fabrication mill). I wouldn’t be scared off OP - if it is a look you want go for it. If you’re ‘meh’ about it, a cheap tile will be easier to manage, especially in a small space. But you can do a very nice job, even DIY, if you have a slab already and like the material. What can I say, I’m an optimist and concrete is fantastic stuff.

OK...here we go. Garage floors are NOT sealed the way "house slabs" are sealed. They rarely have (if ever) a vapor/moisture barrier underneath them. The moisture barrier is what PREVENTS adhesion/bonding issues. So...that means the EXTRA EFFORT needed to ensure bonding will be required if you don't like the idea of your epoxy lifting or blistering. To get this to work, your epoxy flooring specialists (not just "painting professionals") will have to do the following: Shot blast the surface of the garage floor (to rough up the surface and remove an deposits sitting on the top...like the stuff they add to create a fast cure) Apply 1-2 coats (spray on is most common) of moisture barrier and allow to cure Apply a primer (1-2 coats depending on the system used) and allow to cure Apply a micro topping of concrete to give a finish Apply the epoxy of your choice Whew. Lots of work. I've heard the "prep" (the first 4 points listed above) can reach $5/sf. The epoxy is then added to the cost. This is not a job for painters. Regardless of the system used (commercial/industrial vs. residential) this is not a job for painters. I've seen SOOOOO many painters ruin home improvement projects I could just spit! As a former flooring professional, I can tell you that painters love to make suggestions - especially if it means more work for them. I'm sorry, but PLEASE contact several epoxy professionals to get some quotes. This is your best way forward. And those joints are supposed to be there. Your epoxy experts will know that.