What actually produces the smell
Odour in a floor coating comes from volatile solvents evaporating as the film cures. A 100% solids epoxy, which is what we use, contains essentially none: the whole product becomes the floor rather than partly evaporating into the room. Polyaspartic topcoats do carry solvent, and that is the part you can smell. It is a sharp chemical smell for a few hours during and after application, and it dissipates as the coating cures rather than lingering in fabrics.
Garage installs
For a garage with the door open or a fan running, almost nobody leaves. The interior door to the house stays shut, we ventilate the space, and the smell stays in the garage. Where the garage is attached and shares an air path with a furnace return, we ask about that at the site visit, because a return duct in the garage is worth taping off for the day regardless of what is being installed.
Basements and interior rooms
Inside the living envelope we plan ventilation deliberately: windows open where they exist, fans moving air out rather than around, and the HVAC system off during topcoating so the smell is not distributed through the house. For an interior floor we suggest being out from the topcoat going down until the following morning. That is a comfort recommendation, not a safety instruction, and it matters most for anyone with asthma or chemical sensitivity.
Pets and birds
Pets should be out of the area for the topcoat and overnight, and birds specifically should be out of the building. Birds have far more sensitive respiratory systems than mammals and react to airborne irritants that people barely register. This is the same advice given for interior painting and it applies here for the same reason. Tell us at the booking stage if there are birds in the house and we will plan around it.
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