Hangar floors must survive what no other industrial slab encounters: Skydrol hydraulic fluid, jet fuel, avgas, de-icing chemicals, and the concentrated loads of tow tractors maneuvering aircraft. Oshawa Concrete specifies and installs urethane and aviation-grade epoxy systems engineered for the full chemical and mechanical exposure. Free written estimate on every project.
Why Aviation Hangar Floors Demand a Different Approach
Skydrol is the problem most contractors miss. This phosphate-ester hydraulic fluid dissolves standard epoxy coatings in weeks or months of regular contact. Jet fuel and avgas add their own degradation pathways. Winter de-icing fluids introduce glycol chemistry that attacks the wrong topcoat. A hangar floor that works is one system rated for all three chemical families at once.
Load concentration is the second factor. A tow tractor's small hard wheels create point loads that rival forklift wheels. Aircraft parked in the hangar sit on gear points that concentrate weight. The slab and coating must handle both the moving tractor loads during repositioning and the static aircraft loads during maintenance. We engineer the concrete thickness and coating system for the worst case, which is typically the tow tractor.
We interview maintenance staff about the aircraft types, hydraulic systems (Skydrol or conventional), fuel types, spill frequency, and cleanup protocols. This determines whether the system is urethane-cement (Skydrol-heavy) or aviation-spec epoxy (general use).
Grind and remediate the slab
The concrete is diamond-ground to the coating's prep profile. Any zones with prior fuel or hydraulic contamination are identified and remediated, sometimes requiring removal and replacement of the top layer to ensure adhesion.
Pour the matched system
The specified coating (urethane or epoxy) is applied at the engineered thickness. Slip-resistant aggregate is broadcast into the wet coating in high-traffic areas like tow paths and maintenance zones.
Seal joints and document
Control joints are filled with chemical-resistant semi-rigid filler rated for the same aviation fluids. The topcoat seals the system. We provide documentation of the chemical-resistance rating for facility compliance files.
Load engineering
Tow Tractor Loads Are Often the Worst Case
The aircraft itself distributes weight across multiple landing gear points. The tow tractor that moves the aircraft in and out concentrates load on small hard wheels, creating point stresses that exceed the aircraft's static load. We design the slab and coating for tow tractor loads as the governing case, which means the floor will easily handle the lighter aircraft loads.
Skydrol resistance, tow tractor loads, joint fillers and aviation compliance.
Aviation chemicals (especially Skydrol) attack standard epoxy systems aggressively. Combined with tow tractor point loads and aircraft tire contact patches, the spec has to match a unique exposure profile that other commercial floors do not see.
If the hangar handles aircraft with Skydrol hydraulic systems (most modern commercial and many corporate), yes. Skydrol-rated urethane cement is the typical answer; the wrong system dissolves quickly under Skydrol contact.
Glycol-based de-icing fluids are part of the chemical exposure profile in Oshawa hangars. We spec the system for those alongside the aviation hydraulics so winter operations do not degrade the floor.
Yes, the joint filler has to be chemical-resistant to the same aviation fluids the coating handles. Standard polyurea filler can degrade under Skydrol; we use chemical-resistant variants in aviation environments.
A typical hangar takes a week or two from prep through cure, with the hangar offline during the work. Larger MRO facilities stretch to multi-week phased installs. The schedule is built around maintenance operations.
Client reviews
What Oshawa Operations Say About Their Hangar Floors
Skydrol-rated urethane install in our maintenance hangar. Three years of regular hydraulic spills, zero coating failure at any spill point. Worth the spec premium over standard epoxy.
Z. A5
FBO Manager, Oshawa Airport
★★★★★
Engineered for our tow tractor loads, not just aircraft loads. The coating has held perfectly at every tow turn point, where the previous floor had failed within months.
Y. A5
MRO Operations, Toronto
★★★★★
Coordinated install during a scheduled maintenance downtime. Hangar offline only for the cure window, back in service on schedule. Real coordination with operations.
Q. A5
Corporate Hangar Owner, Brampton
★★★★★
Documented chemical-resistance rating for our facility compliance file. Auditor accepted without questions. The documentation matters in aviation.
X. A5
Aviation Facility Director, Mississauga
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