Preparing for your project
How to prepare, how long each phase takes, and when your garage is back in service. No surprises, just a clear plan.
Before we arrive: clearing the space
Installation day needs a bare garage. Before our crew shows up, everything has to come out, vehicles, bins, shelving units, and anything hanging on the walls we'll be working on. A clear, open space lets us prep your concrete, install cleanly, and finish on schedule.
✅ Start clearing 2–3 days early
✅ Stage items in the driveway or a spare room
✅ Purge what you no longer need before the new garage goes in
YOUR PROJECT ROADMAP
Floor installation and cure schedule
Here's how the floor phase unfolds, from grinding the slab to parking the car back inside.
24 HOURS
Walking on the floor is generally safe.
48–72 HOURS
Bins, totes, and lighter shelving can start migrating back in.
INSTALLATION DAY
We grind the slab, fill cracks and pits, and apply the coating. Once coating begins, the garage is sealed off.
5–7 DAYS · FULL CURE
Park the cars, roll in the tool chest, slide the workbench into place. The floor is ready for everything.
Wisconsin's climate is a real variable. Cool temperatures and humidity stretch cure times, so a November install may run on a different clock than one in July. Your crew lead confirms firm dates before they leave.
Installation Timeline: Cabinets and Storage
Storage is the fast part. While floors run on a cure clock, cabinets, slatwall, and overhead racks go in quickly and you don't have to wait to use them.
A single day, start to finish. Most cabinet, slatwall, and overhead rack installs wrap in one day. Our crew arrives with your system built to the measurements we captured at your consultation, mounts everything securely, and walks the finished result with you before they leave. By that same evening, you can load your tools, hang your gear, and stock the shelves — no curing, no waiting, no second visit.
Floors first, then storage. When your project includes both flooring and storage, the sequence never changes: the floor goes down first. Cabinets and wall systems get installed two to three days later, once the coating has hardened enough for us to work on it without risking the finish. Mounting cabinets to a wall and anchoring racks to the ceiling doesn't touch the floor's cure, so this gap keeps both phases clean and protects the work you've already paid for.
You'll know the calendar up front. Every combined project gets a complete schedule at your consultation — install dates, the cure window between phases, and the day your garage is fully back in service. No guessing, no surprise delays. You'll know exactly when to clear the space and exactly when life returns to normal.
WHITE GLOVE SERVICE
Don't want to lift a finger?
Temporary storage
Secure storage quoted and coordinated
Pack out
We remove everything before install
Junk hauling
Unwanted items hauled off for good
If you want the Garage Elevations team to handle everything from start to finish, let your design professional know and we will include it in your estimate.
Re-organization
Items returned and organized in your new system
Ready to get started?
Free in-home consultation and 3D design. Serving Madison, Middleton, Sun Prairie, Fitchburg, Verona, Waunakee, and the surrounding Dane County area.