Re-painted workshop floor

[thehomeengineer]

Hi All
The last time the workshop floor was painted was back in 2004 when it was built. So it was showing signs of wear. (Lots of wear) I didn’t realise just how bad it had got. I try and keep the workshop clean and tidy but as we all know the nature of our hobby does not make this easy. When sweeping the floor large concrete dust clouds would cover the workshop. So I decided to repaint the effected area’s. Unfortunately this then transpired in to a total floor re-paint. By the end of day two I was thinking why did I start this. So much stuff to move or raise so the floor could be painted. By day four it was all over and I now know why I started it. It has transformed the workshop into a bright easier to clean space and I even wipe my feet before entering. Anybody thinking about painting their workshop floor I can highly recommend it but it is very time consuming but the results are worth it in my opinion.


The home engineer

[Frank S]

I agree but you almost want to move every last item out of the shop and hire it done by the time you get half way into the repaint.
When I had my machine and fabrication shop I decided to seal the concrete floor in the machine area. just a little over 800sq ft but it took days and days to move everything, steam pressure wash and grind the surface, fill the random cracks then paint it with the epoxy floor sealing paint.
Might have been cheaper to have given everyone a few paid days off and hired it done by professionals. Certainly would have been faster.

[jdurand]

we've already told the builders of our new house that we want rhe xhop floor sealed and cured before we get there. Thinking ahead.

[Frank S]

we've already told the builders of our new house that we want rhe xhop floor sealed and cured before we get there. Thinking ahead.

You will never regret it as long as the job is done professionally with high quality sealant

[thehomeengineer]

The paint i used was brilliant covered really well. Wasn't the most expensive but still £35 for 5 litres and I needed two of them. The paint was able to have a second coat after 12 Hours as it was touch dry. This is the down side it takes 7 days to totally cure. So with all the effort to make it nice I have decided to keep out of the shop until next week. So jdurand a very good decision to get this done at the outset. I did move some machines over the painted areas with only minimal damage which was easy to touch up. I do keep going down to the workshop just for a sneaky look at the floor

[Frank S]

The paint i used was brilliant covered really well. Wasn't the most expensive but still £35 for 5 litres and I needed two of them. The paint was able to have a second coat after 12 Hours as it was touch dry. This is the down side it takes 7 days to totally cure. So with all the effort to make it nice I have decided to keep out of the shop until next week. So jdurand a very good decision to get this done at the outset. I did move some machines over the painted areas with only minimal damage which was easy to touch up. I do keep going down to the workshop just for a sneaky look at the floor

Kind of like waiting for a new fold to be born of your prize winning mare and stallion the anticipation get to you

[thehomeengineer]

I have a job that I want to do down the workshop. I need to make a mounting flange to fit between the encoder and stepper motor for the ever on going rotary table project I started. All the bits I ordered arrived today, so itching to get it finished knowing the floor is not ready is very painful

[Frank S]

Patience, patience, patience.

[skibo]

I tried to wash and paint the double car in my house before we moved in, but the original owner had two oil leaking cars in the garage and I'v tried everything to get the oil out to a clean surface. I only want to do the model shop area, a 20 by 15' area for better lite finding the small model parts I drop! I'll just not end up doing it now because I have way to many tools to move to do it,even if I could get oil spots clean!

[Frank S]

I tried to wash and paint the double car in my house before we moved in, but the original owner had two oil leaking cars in the garage and I'v tried everything to get the oil out to a clean surface. I only want to do the model shop area, a 20 by 15' area for better lite finding the small model parts I drop! I'll just not end up doing it now because I have way to many tools to move to do it,even if I could get oil spots clean!

Ok tere are several ways to eradicate an oil spot, none are going to be super fast if the oil spot had years of recontamination
A strong Alkaline detergent and scalding hot water scrubbed and scrubbed will bring out most oil spots.
The KBS kleen is what I use to remove oil on engine blocks or transmissions. it works great on concrete as well the stuff is pricey though However for best results with it you mix at about 10 to one in scalding hot water scrub it in blot it up reapply a couple of times then on the last application cover the wet area with kitty litter and lay a plastic sheet over that leave it for a few days then sweep it away.
Another way also much cheaper is to use Dawn Green or blue dishwashing detergent. scrub it in with 4 to 1 scalding hot water as in the process before then cover with kitty litter and plastic leave it a couple of weeks undisturbed.
Another way is after the detergent scrubbing is to pour acetone over the area and cover with kitty litter and plastic NOT RECCOMENDED in a closed confined area or near any possibility of sparks or flames
the last method detergent scrub and spend $35.00 for a 30 lb bag of U-haul oil sponge. spread and cover with plastic as before
The U-Haul oil sponge has oil eating microbes which will convert the oil into CO2 and water, there are no chemicals in the product
Cheap ground clay like is supplied for cleaning shop floors will do a good job of absorbing the oil over time but you need a catalyst such as Safety-clean solvent or something like the KBS Klean detergent
There is always the Amway concrete cleaner if they still make it. It was a great product but again pricey