sealing floor

[Tom Cullom JR.]

I have a concrete slab floor in the shop and its hard to sweep up.
any recommendations on how to seal it for easier cleaning?
I wont be able to do it all at one time cause I don't have anywhere else to put all the tools. it can be a clear sealer or color it doesn't matter to me.(usually covered in sawdust anyway :D) no cars ever in it its a stand alone shop.

[Christopher Kanda]

I sealed my basement floor with Stone mason. It was easy and it has held up very well after 5 years. here is a link http://www.usehickson.com/StoneMason/SealersAndCleaners/PremiumConcreteSealerMatte.shtml

[Glen Butler]

The absolute best thing is epoxy coating. Pricey. If you cannot do it all at once you would need to have controls joints as a good stopping/starting point. Next to that you can do an industrial enamel found at the paint store.

[Ken Shoemaker]

Just a thought: I just finished putting a "driloc" floor from Lowes down in my new 24X24" shop. I am amazed how easy it is on he feet/legs AND it insulates the floor. I have found my heater runs quite a bit less and the temp stays comfortable as well. The T&G raps together easily and quickly. We did the whole room in about 2.5 hours.

Lastly, I did the math, it was cheaper than professional epoxy and the comfort and insulation value puts it way above the rest. I simply put two coats of Ploy on it and it sweeps up just fine.

As you can see, I can't recomend it more.

Good luck with your decision..... Ken

[Michael Roland]

Just a thought: I just finished putting a "driloc" floor from Lowes down in my new 24X24" shop. I am amazed how easy it is on he feet/legs AND it insulates the floor. I have found my heater runs quite a bit less and the temp stays comfortable as well. The T&G raps together easily and quickly. We did the whole room in about 2.5 hours.

Lastly, I did the math, it was cheaper than professional epoxy and the comfort and insulation value puts it way above the rest. I simply put two coats of Ploy on it and it sweeps up just fine.

As you can see, I can't recomend it more.

Good luck with your decision..... Ken

Can you provide a bit more information? I tried searching Lowes and the only thing that comes up is "drylock" concrete and masonary paint.

Thks

[George Bregar]

I believe he is talking about Dricore, here is a link
http://www.dricore.com/en/eIndex.aspx

Didn't check Lowes but I know HD carries it. Pretty pricey stuff. I think using a product like Placon or Delta-FL and then OSB on top of that would be a whole lot cheaper, a whole lot easier to install.

[Damon Marxer]

I just moved into a new shop and debated what to do with the floor. Did a bunch of research and my primary goal was to make it easy to sweep up. Ended up going to Sherwin Williams and putting one coat of H&C Concrete Stain along with 2 coats of H&C Concrete Sealer. It was much cheaper than epoxy and is really easy to sweep up. I am very happy with the outcome and I think it will be plenty durable with woodworking...although it has not been tested long.

Here is a pic just before moving in. Did a tan stain on the floor.

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_nhUk8ElLr-U/Sw6j8uUomLI/AAAAAAAABkU/p9jfeZonskw/s400/DSC_0007.JPG

[Dave Schreib]

I used concrete stain from HD. Easy to apply, relatively cheap, a lot of colors. Unless money is really no obstacle, I would think that epoxy was overkill for a basement floor.

[Ken Shoemaker]

Michael,

George is right!! It's Drycore. I put dryloc on the basement walls of my last house.

It is a great investment and you only pay of it once, but the insulation value is well worth it.

[Ed Kilburn]

I used H&C concrete stain, it's more like paint. I put it down about 4 years ago, my cousin's husband worked for Duron paint. He said for the house garage that this is even better than epoxy because if you can drive on it with hot tires, the heat can cause the epoxy paint to blister and peel up. I don't recall the cost, it was way cheaper than epoxy. I cleaned the floor in the house garage and the machine shop in my building, then etched them with Muriatic acid, before coating both floors. No problems except if you spill gas or thinner the surface will soften, I tried to wipe up a gas spill with a dirty rag and left mark on the floor. It's sold at Duron and here is the link to it: http://www.hcconcrete.com/products/solid-color-stains/solvent-based-sealer/index.jsp

[John Neel]

Look at this epoxy paint for your floor. I had the same problem you have of not being able to move everything off the floor. I prepped the whole floor then I did one half one day and the other half the next day. It was amazingly easy and the floor looks great.

I have only done one floor, so I can't say whether this is the best, but read their comparisons before you do anything involving epoxy.

John Neel

http://www.epoxy-coat.com/index.php