Painting Concrete Floors
Do you want to remodel your home at a minimum cost? Have you considered painting the floors of your home to give it a slightly different look? Mind you, not only is it possible to paint floors, but it would help you to refurbish the entire look of your room. If you want durable and long lasting results, you need to be clued on to a few facts before you undertake the job of painting concrete floors.
Just about any flooring surface, including concrete, wood, ceramic tile flooring, sheet vinyl and vinyl, can be painted if it is in good shape. The only surface that may present problems is concrete flooring that experience seepage or a floor that is even slightly damp. Water that seeps into concrete can sometimes cause a painted finish to peel. However, many modern concrete floors have a vapor barrier under the slab, allowing paint to stick tenaciously to the concrete.
Before painting concrete floors, the surface to be painted should be clean, dry, dust-free and as smooth as possible. Large depressions and cracks in the wood flooring need to be filled with a product that dries hard. Concrete floors need a special masonry primer and stain blocker before paint is applied. Oil paints work best for concrete floor painting as the oil resins have a tendency to adhere better than water-based paints. They also tend to cure and harden faster. Durability and long-term finish can be achieved by applying three coats of clear urethane to the painted surface. There are plethoras of accents you can imaginatively incorporate in terms of stenciling borders, geometric shapes or even pin stripes to give your floor a typical nouvelle appearance.
Do not take your painted concrete floor for granted. The key to keeping the concrete floor looking good for a long period is painting concrete floors with a single coat of urethane every few years.