Whats your shop Floor

[Dave Hammelef]

I am about done with my new shop and before I move the equipment in I am trying to decide if I should put anything on the concrete floor. So whats your shop floor and what are the pro's and Con's?

Thanks
Dave

[Don Henthorn Smithville, TX]

Well. my floor was obviously poured by some guy who told his friends he was going to open a keg of beer and then made the mistake of opening the keg BEFORE they poured the floor. Starts out not too bad, not good but not to bad, and then gets progressively worse as it gets to the other end. The last ten feet look like they used a piece pf corrugated steel roofing to smooth it out. Has about the same undulations as the roofing.

[Mike Schwing]

Seek out Terry Hatfield. He recently finished off his concrete floor and from the pictures it looks wonderful. He did an extensive write up on it.

Me? You don't want to know.

[Mike Mastin]

Well the shop floors are covered with 2 part epoxy. Some think it is excessive, but it reflects a lot of light, no concrete dust to foul all of the saw dust and it sweeps super easy (when I get around to it).

[Ken Garlock]

Hi Dave. My shop floor is also concrete, and I had my painter put two coats of Sherwin Williams Tile Clad 2-part epoxy on it. First they power washed it, and then acid washed and rinsed it. The let it dry for a couple days, and then put down the epoxy paint on two successive days. Of course all this happened as we were building our new home and the shop. I just bought a can of the Tile Clad to paint the dust collection "ditch" down the middle of the shop. S/W are proud of that stuff, like $80 proud The painter said that was the only brand he would use. Beware, that stuff does stink and the smell lasts for several days. You need to stay off the finished floor for about a week to let it cure.

Forgot to mention, for the $80 you get 2 1 gal. cans which are mixed 1:1 thus giving you two gallons of paint. That way it doesn't sound quite so bad.

[Jim Becker]

My shop floor is unfortunately hard concrete...if I had a choice in the matter, it would be wood. But retrofitting would raise it too high for some existing doorways, etc., so I just keep some anti-fatique mats handy for long sessions at a particular workstation.

[Richard McComas]

I am about done with my new shop and before I move the equipment in I am trying to decide if I should put anything on the concrete floor. So whats your shop floor and what are the pro's and Con's?

Thanks
Dave

My shop floor is just bare concrete. The biggest pro for me is zero maintenance period. It sweeps fine and it’s not slick. The only con is aesthetics, doesn’t look fancy but it works just fine as a shop floor.

[Mike Evertsen]

wanted wood but ended up with Concrete,,,,,I have carpet mats down but they are to clean and not much cushion

[Guy Kowalski]

Dave,

I have unfinished concrete but I can't handle the dust anymore. I plan of using some epoxy paint on it as soon as it dries up around here. Living on Long Island has been like living in the tropics this summer.

[Terry Hatfield]

Dave,

Do the epoxy now while the shop is empty!!!!!!!

I used the Rustoleum Epoxy Shield. I got it at Lowes. Worked great. The shop is so much brighter now it's really unbelieveable. Prep is the key to making the epoxy last so take time to do it right. I used muratic acid first and then the citrus cleaner that comes in the kits. $54 per kit. Each kit covers 250 sq. ft. Money well spent.

I also have several horse stall mats and they are wonderful. The mats truly made a huge difference in how my feet and back feel at the end of the day. I bought them at my local farm and home supply. Around $40 for a 4' X 6' mat.

Terry

[Terry Hatfield]

Dave,

Here are the 2 threads of my floor project.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthre...?threadid=2227

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthre...?threadid=2215

Terry

[Bob Powers]

I am about done with my new shop and before I move the equipment in I am trying to decide if I should put anything on the concrete floor. So whats your shop floor and what are the pro's and Con's?

Thanks
Dave

Dave,

I built my shop three years ago. I had the mason contractor make the floor as smooth as possible, then etched it with muriatic acid, applied two coats of latex concrete sealer, and two coats of industrial liquid wax. These operations are all done with a mop. After three years, maintenance has been sweeping, a minimal amount of vacuuming, and one more coat of wax. The floor looks just the way it did on day one.

Regards,

Bob

[Ken Salisbury]

The question was:

"What is your shop floor" ?

<p>It is that portion of the shop I stand on when working in there.</P>

<p>
<p align="center"> <IMG src="http://www.klsal.com/smiley2.gif">

[Tom Pritchard]

My shopfloor is concrete. I used UGL concrete etch on the floor first, and then used 2 coats of UGL concrete paint (gray) over it. The floor is easy to clean and easy to move things on. The paint also seals the concrete and eliminates a source of dust that can end up on your projects when finishing. The negative thing that I have found is that if I drop a heavy, sharp object, the paint does chip. Thanks for asking!

[Lee Schierer]

I guess I'm going to be the odd man out here. My shop floor is unpainted plywood! Double layer of 3/4 ply. Doesn't dull a tool if I drop one! Easy on the feet too! Sort of hard to see most of the time due to the sawdust!