A brewery or winery floor handles things almost no other commercial floor does: acidic wort and must spills, hot caustic washdown chemicals, constant water from cleaning cycles, and the weight of full fermentation tanks. Detroit Concrete installs floor systems built specifically for these conditions, chemical-resistant urethane or epoxy with proper slope to trench drains, finished for grip in wet conditions. Every project starts with a free written estimate.
A standard commercial epoxy floor will not survive a brewery. Acidic spills from wort, tannic acid from grapes, hot caustic CIP chemicals from tank cleaning, and constant wet conditions all attack standard epoxy systems within months. The right brewery floor is a urethane cement system rated for those exposures, or a specialized chemical-resistant epoxy if conditions are slightly less aggressive.
We also slope the floor to trench drains across the production area, not to point drains, because brewery washdown produces volumes of water that point drains cannot move fast enough. Tasting rooms and bar areas get a more attractive system (often polished concrete or a coated floor) with the spec dropping to standard commercial because the chemical exposure is dramatically different.
We walk the brewery or winery with the operator, identify which zones see acid, caustic, hot wash, or moderate exposure, and spec the right system for each zone based on the actual exposure rather than a single floor across the whole space.
Prep slab for chemical-resistant install
The existing slab is diamond-ground to the system's prep profile, contaminants and old coatings removed, cracks repaired, and trench drains installed or rebuilt with the engineered slope to them.
Install chemical-rated system
For high-exposure zones, urethane cement (4-6mm) goes down in a hand-troweled system with cove base up the walls; for moderate exposure, chemical-resistant epoxy with broadcast aggregate. Each zone gets the matched system.
Slope, drain, return to service
Floor slopes are verified during install, trench drain tie-ins are detailed flush, and the production area returns to service after cure. Tasting and bar zones get the appropriate finish system separately.
What kills brewery floors
Trench Drains Are What Makes Washdown Work
A brewery washdown moves more water per minute than a typical floor drain can handle. Point drains overflow, water pools, and the chemical exposure on standing water dissolves whatever coating is there. Trench drains across the production zone catch the volume, move it out fast, and let the chemical-resistant system stay sharp.
We design the trench drain layout with the floor slope as a single system, then install both together. Coordinate with adjacent restaurant areas if the brewery has a kitchen, and with the rest of our retail and restaurant work.
Chemical resistance, trench drains, urethane cement systems and tasting-room finishes.
Because of the chemical exposure. Wort acidity, hot caustic CIP cleaning chemicals, tannic acid in winery operations, and constant wet conditions all degrade standard epoxy. The right brewery floor is a urethane cement or specialized chemical-resistant epoxy system rated for those exposures.
For the production floor, yes, urethane cement handles thermal shock (hot wash on cold floor) and chemical exposure better. Epoxy can work in zones with moderate exposure and proper spec. We pick based on the actual zone exposure, not a default.
For any real brewery production floor, yes. Point drains cannot move the washdown volume; water pools, exposure prolongs, and the system fails sooner. Trench drains across the zone capture and move water fast.
Tasting and bar zones get a different system because the chemical exposure is dramatically lower. Polished concrete or a coated floor is typical there, matched to the brand look. Both systems install in the same project but as separate zones.
Production floor: typically a week or more depending on size, plus cure before returning to service. Tasting and bar zones add a few more days. The schedule is built around your production downtime needs.
Client reviews
What Detroit Operations Say About Their Brewery & Winery Floors
Production floor with urethane cement system rated for our CIP chemicals. Three years of brewing, no degradation, washdown cycles work. The trench drains made it possible.
Z. Y2
Brewery Owner, Detroit
★★★★★
Acid resistance for wine production zone, polished concrete in the tasting room. Two different systems, clean transition at the doorway. Both have held perfectly.
Y. K2
Winery Operations, Warren
★★★★★
They specced for our actual chemical exposure, not the cheapest option. Production floor is solid, no soft spots, no failed seams. Worth the right spec.
Q. M2
Microbrewery Founder, Ann Arbor
★★★★★
Trench drains across the production area changed our washdown game. Water leaves in seconds instead of pooling. The floor stays sharp because exposure is short.
X. M2
Cidery Director, Sterling Heights
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