Partial Flake vs. Full Flake Epoxy: What’s the Difference?

When it comes to durable and visually appealing flooring solutions, epoxy systems with decorative flakes are a popular choice for residential garages, commercial spaces, and industrial facilities. These flakes—also called chips or broadcast media—enhance aesthetics, improve traction, and help hide imperfections. However, there are two common application methods: partial flake and full flake epoxy. While they may seem similar at a glance, each offers unique advantages and considerations.

In this article, we break down the differences between partial flake and full flake epoxy flooring to help you determine which is right for your space.

What Are Epoxy Flake Floors?

Epoxy flake flooring involves broadcasting colored vinyl chips onto a base coat of epoxy. These flakes come in various colors, sizes, and blends, and they can be customized to match branding, décor, or personal taste. A clear topcoat is then applied to seal the surface, enhancing durability and gloss.

Partial Flake Epoxy

How It’s Installed:

1. Surface Prep: The concrete is cleaned, repaired, and ground down to ensure clean surface adhesion.

2. Base Coat Application: A pigmented epoxy base coat is rolled onto the floor. This colour becomes the background for the flakes.

3. Partial Flake Broadcast: While the base coat is still wet, flakes are sprinkled across the surface in a light, controlled manner. The distribution may be random or patterned, depending on design preferences.

Visual Effect:

The final result is a speckled design with a high degree of customization. You can choose contrasting or complementary flake colours to either pop against or blend with the base colour. The flake density can also be adjusted within the partial range for a more dramatic or subtle effect.

Advantages of a Partial Flake System:

• Design Flexibility: Because you can see the base colour, this method allows for creative colour combinations. For example, a dark grey base with light-coloured flakes offers a sleek, modern finish.

• Cleaner Look: The lower density of flakes results in a more open and spacious visual feel, making it popular for home garages, offices, or retail spaces.

• Easier Maintenance: With a smoother finish than full flake systems, it's often easier to sweep or mop.

Considerations:

• Surface Quality Matters: Since the flakes don’t fully cover the floor, any imperfections in the base coat or concrete—such as patch marks, discoloration, or uneven textures—may still be visible.

• Less Texture: A smoother finish can be more slippery when wet, though non-slip additives can be included in the topcoat to address this.

What is partial flake? A partial flake epoxy system is a decorative flooring finish where coloured vinyl flakes are lightly broadcasted (scattered) onto the wet epoxy base coat, covering roughly 10% to 50% of the surface area. Unlike a full flake system where the flakes are applied to complete saturation, the partial flake method intentionally allows the underlying colour coat to show through. This results in a more understated, speckled appearance that gives the floor character without overwhelming it visually.

Full Flake Epoxy

What is Full flake? A full flake epoxy system is a high-performance decorative floor coating in which colored vinyl flakes (or chips) are broadcast to complete saturation over a wet epoxy or polyaspartic base coat. This means the flakes are applied until the entire surface is completely covered, with no visible gaps or exposed base coat beneath. The flakes overlap and build up, creating a textured, dimensional appearance and a much thicker flooring surface than a partial flake system.

How It’s Installed:

1. Surface Preparation: The concrete is thoroughly cleaned and mechanically profiled via grinding to ensure optimal adhesion.

2. Prime Coat Application: A tinted epoxy base coat is rolled onto the floor.

3. Base Coat Application: A tinted epoxy base coat is rolled onto the floor. The colour typically complements the flake blend, although it will be entirely covered.

4. Full Broadcast of Flakes: While the base coat is still wet, flakes are broadcast to rejection—meaning they are added until no wet epoxy is visible. Excess flakes fall and pile up on the surface.

5. Flake Scraping: Once cured, the excess flakes are scraped and vacuumed off, and the surface is flattened to remove sharp edges and ensure a smooth profile.

6. Topcoat Application: Two clear topcoats (polyaspartic or polyurethane) are applied to seal the flakes, enhance gloss, and provide long-term durability.

Visual Effect:

The finished look of a full flake system is bold, rich, and highly textured. The full coverage of flakes creates a more consistent and visually uniform surface, similar in feel to terrazzo or granite. You can customize the flake size, color blend, and gloss level to suit the environment—whether it's a vibrant showroom or a professional workshop.

Advantages of a Full Flake System:

• Superior Durability: The added thickness and flake density create a tougher, more impact-resistant surface—perfect for commercial garages, warehouses, or high-traffic areas.

• Flaw Concealment: Because flakes completely cover the surface, they hide imperfections in the concrete, such as patchwork, discoloration, or texture inconsistencies.

• Excellent Slip Resistance: The texture provided by full flake broadcast improves grip and reduces slip hazards, especially when wet or oily.

• Long-Term Performance: Combined with multiple topcoats, full flake floors are extremely resistant to chemicals, abrasions, stains, and UV exposure (if using a UV-stable topcoat).

Considerations:

• More Material & Labor: This system requires significantly more flakes, topcoat, and labour time, making it more expensive than partial flake options.

• Longer Installation Time: Each step—especially curing and scraping—takes time, often requiring multiple days.

• Textured Finish: While the texture improves traction, it may also require more effort to mop or deep-clean compared to smoother finishes.

Partial Flake vs Full Flake

Explore the visual and functional differences between partial flake and full flake epoxy flooring systems.