Moisture nobody tested
Ground moisture rises through a slab as vapor. Seal it under a film without testing and the film blisters weeks or months later.
We read the slab with ASTM F2170 or F1869 before a product is chosen.
Protect. Enhance.Perform.
Premium concrete coating solutions for residential, commercial and industrial spaces across the DMV.
Surface preparation
Many of the slabs we see around Alexandria, Arlington and Fairfax are decades old, and nobody can confirm what sits under them without opening the floor. So we do not assume. Every job starts with a moisture test and diamond grinding, and the repairs go into the written scope before a product is chosen.
We review the space, slab condition, traffic, exposure and design goals.
We recommend the right floor system for durability, budget and finish.
We mechanically prepare the concrete for proper profile and bond.
We apply your coating system with clean execution and quality control.
Start with the room
Every room asks something different of a floor. Pick yours to see the system we usually recommend and why.


Before you compare quotes
The complaints we hear from people who were burned once come down to four shortcuts. None of them show on day one.
Ground moisture rises through a slab as vapor. Seal it under a film without testing and the film blisters weeks or months later.
We read the slab with ASTM F2170 or F1869 before a product is chosen.
Etching leaves a weak, uneven profile and residue in the pores, so the coating never really grips.
Every slab we coat is diamond-ground to the profile the data sheet asks for.
Speed is fine on a dry, sound slab. It goes wrong when the day is used to skip scraping, repairs or a second clear coat.
We tell you which system fits your slab and why, in writing.
If cracks, joints and spalls are not written into the scope, they are not in the price and they come back through the finish.
Ours lists every repair before you sign.
If the answers are vague, keep shopping.
Want our answers?
We put all five in writing before you sign. 571-417-5802Virginia · Washington, DC · Maryland
DST Coatings installs epoxy flake, metallic epoxy, polished concrete, staining and urethane cement floors for homes, shops and commercial buildings across the DMV. Pick a city to see what we run into there.
Mostly older homes on slabs poured decades ago, often with no vapor barrier underneath. We test moisture before we recommend a system, then grind and prime so the coating bonds and stays bonded. Popular here: polished concrete basements and garage floor epoxy.
Fairfax, Burke, Annandale, McLean, Vienna, Tysons, Lorton, Clifton and Centreville. Homeowners want durable garages and easy-to-clean lower levels. Businesses want floors that handle traffic and look sharp, like grind and seal or urethane cement.
Leesburg, Aldie, Haymarket and Manassas. Newer homes with big garages, plus shops, warehouse bays and farm buildings. Newer slabs are dense and smooth, so a proper diamond-ground profile matters for a lasting bond.
From DC rowhouse basements to garages in Bethesda and Silver Spring and commercial space in Rockville and College Park. Humid summers and freezing winters are hard on floors, so we pick systems built for moisture and temperature swings, including metallic epoxy and stained concrete for showpiece spaces.
Not sure we cover your address? Call 571-417-5802 and we'll confirm.
Questions
Short answers here, full detail on the service pages.

On a sound, dry, properly ground slab, yes: you get a seamless surface that wipes clean and stands up to oil, salt and dropped tools. Where it disappoints is almost always a slab that was never tested for moisture or never ground, so the coating lets go. The system and the prep matter more than the brand. See our epoxy flooring guide for how the options differ.
That depends on four things: how the slab was prepared, what the moisture readings were, which topcoat chemistry was used and how hard the floor is used. A well-built system in a residential garage or basement is a long-term floor, and when traffic lanes lose their sheen the clear coat can be refreshed without redoing the color coat. We give timelines as general ranges, never as a promise for one floor.
Square footage and the shape of the space, slab repairs such as cracks, spalls and old coatings that have to be ground off, moisture readings and whether a mitigating primer is needed, the system and its thickness, the topcoat and number of clear coats, cove base and anti-slip additive, and access and scheduling. We quote after a free on-site assessment because those factors cannot be guessed from a photo alone.
They are different resins doing different jobs. Epoxy builds a thick, strong body coat with a long working time. Polyaspartic stays clear in sunlight and cures fast, which is why it is the usual clear coat over a flake floor. Many good floors use both. What you should ask for is the right chemistry in each layer, not one word on the whole floor.
A glossy film can be. Anti-slip aggregate in the topcoat fixes that at entries and wet zones. Commercial floors are commonly checked for wet dynamic coefficient of friction under ANSI A326.3, where 0.42 is the usual benchmark; it is a comparison number, not a guarantee. Polished concrete varies with the sheen level, so we talk about where the floor will get wet before choosing the finish.
Sometimes. First we test the slab. Some readings allow a moisture-mitigating primer within the limits the manufacturer sets. Active water coming in has to be fixed by drainage or grading before any floor goes down, because no coating stops a leak. When readings are beyond what primers allow, a breathable finish such as polished concrete is often the honest answer.
It depends on the system. Polyaspartic clear coats take foot traffic within hours and vehicles typically within one to three days according to the data sheets. Epoxy clears stretch that across most of a week. Polished concrete can be walked on when the crew leaves. You get the day-by-day sequence in writing before we start.
Yes. We are based in Alexandria and work across the DMV: Arlington, Fairfax County, Loudoun and Prince William in Virginia, the District, and Montgomery and Prince George's counties in Maryland. If you are not sure your address is covered, call 571-417-5802 and we will confirm.
Free estimate
Send the basics and we will call or text to set up a visit. Photos help: text them to 571-417-5802 or email [email protected].
Tell us about your space anywhere in the DMV. We'll recommend the right system and send a free estimate.