# Paint options for basement walls and floors



## 68tele (Oct 25, 2009)

I am currently in the process of doing some repair and maintenance on my basement, and am trying to figure out the best course of action for painting once everything is finished. The guy at Home Depot didn't inspire too much confidence, so I wanted to get some more opinions. 

My home is about 60 years old, with cinder block walls and a concrete floor. One of the 4 walls has some seepage after hard rains, but the other 3 seem to be fine. (the one damp wall is below my deck, so I don't have a lot of options for re-grading, I've already extended the downspouts). 

I have scraped all the peeling paint and cleaned up some mold issues that I had. I ground out any failing mortar and had a professional come in and tuck point everything for me. So I now have...

1) the one damp wall that after scraping is a mixture of bare concrete and some previous paint that didn't come of from scraping or wire brush
2) the other 3 walls where the previous paint is holding up
3) and a small room (the old coal room) with bare cinder block walls that have never been painted. 

The first thing I know I need to do is to acid etch the coal room and bare spots on the damp wall with muriatic acid. Then I was planning to prep the bare walls in the coal room with a masonry primer. I was also planning to paint the damp wall with 1-2 coats of Drylok. Because Drylok doesn't have good coverage and the other 3 walls are dry, I was not going to Drylok all the walls, is this okay? 

I then plan to paint a top coat over everything (over the primer, Drylok and other 3 walls) so I can get a consistent color. The Home Depot guy recommended a Behr semi-gloss for the walls. I was surprised he said semi-gloss. What paint would you recommend for the final coat? Do you think I'm okay just Dryloking the one wall, or just I just bite the bullet on cost and Drylok the whole thing, and then not worry about a top coat over the Drylok?

After the walls, I would like to paint the floor as well. It's never been done and I think it will really spruce up the basement. Home Depot sells Behr Epoxy products for floors. The 2-Part epoxy was pretty expensive, so I was planning to use the 1-Part satin epoxy with some texture mixed in (after acid etching). Any issues there or are there better products out there?

Thanks in advance for the help! After all the work I've put into the basement, I want to make sure that I finish it up with paint that will both look great and give me some moisture protection for the future.


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## Sprayboy (Oct 21, 2009)

If your worried about the expense then use a porch paint on the walls or floors. Even the 2 part epoxy will scratch! I found that out soon after I rolled a floor. If you etch with acid make sure you go over with a base wash of vinegar or baking soda & water. If you don't stop the leak I can't think of anything coating that will stop it for you. Maybe polyurethane? :whistling2:


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## housepaintingny (Jul 25, 2009)

I would apply SW Shercrete on the walls. Its a masonry waterproofer that's tintable. On the floor I would use a concrete stain, such as H&C. There's about 80 colors to choose from and you can get it from SW. A stain will last longer on a floor than a paint for concrete. Clean your walls well with a mixture of liquid tsp, bleach, and water. Repair any cracks and damaged block or mortor before coating them with anything. Shercrete will fill in minor cracks on the wall


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## Faron79 (Jul 16, 2008)

*That (HD) advice scares me...*

On the "wet" wall:
* Get as much existing paint off as possible.
* Then scrub WELL with the Muriatic acid solution, and rinse.
* When dry...THE ONLY THING to put on there is the Drylok!! Use the Latex version.
* This isn't normal paint. It's not supposed to cover like normal paint!!!
It has cement IN IT:nerd:.
* The 1st coat must be brushed in, so the material can get "worked-into" the cement pores. Then, it wicks its way into the open pores and "sets".
Directions clearly state...Apply 1st coat with a brush.
* You MAY get 100 sf with the first gallon...so be it:wallbash:. That's how this stuff works. 2nd coat will go farther, because more pores are filled-up.
* NOW you have a decent level of hydrostatic protection IN THE WALL:icon_smile:.
* You can then leave wall as is, or use a finish paint.

Coal room: 
* Once VERY clean/etched... same thing...2 coats of Drylok.
* :nukeON'T PRIME B4 Drylok!!! You'll defeat the purpose of its penetration.
* After these 2 coats are dried-out...leave as is, or use your finish paint-of-choice. I'd use a Satin-sheen.

Floors:
* Yes...do the acid-etching, rinse, let dry...and dry...and dry...:wheelchair:
* Running a good De-humidifier helps.
* Concrete releases moisture sloooooowwwlly. Check with a good surface-reading moisture-meter.
* I'd suggest Drylok's Floor paint too! It's popular at our store. 2 coats, and dries to a nice Satin -sheen.
* Check this link for the Floor paint...
http://http://www.ugl.com/drylokMasonry/floorAndExteriorPaints/latexConcrete.php

IGNORE THAT PARTICULAR HD's advice...you'd regret it...:glare:

Faron


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## chrisn (Dec 23, 2007)

Get as much existing paint off as possible.

This step is crucial as Drylock will not work properly if applied over existing paint.


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## slickracer (Nov 13, 2008)

I used Zinsser Perma White interior semi-gloss in my basement. It covered a putrid yellow in one coat and is a nice, clean white. I would Drylok the wall that was repaired and then paint all the walls with the Perma White.


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## 68tele (Oct 25, 2009)

Thanks for the responses all. Sounds like a trip to SW is in store, the Home Depot guy just didn't inspire a lot of confidence. 

So it sounds like I need to do a little more scraping on the wet wall, I got a lot of the original paint off, but it's not down to bare concrete everywhere. Is it worth stripping it if I can't get it bare with a scraper and wire brush?

Faron, I'm curious why you suggested Drylok in the coal room too. It's bone dry in there (and two of the walls are interior), which is why I was leaning towards primer and paint.

Again, thanks.


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## Faron79 (Jul 16, 2008)

*Coal room option...*

68tele,

Oh...I must not have noticed that 2 coal-room walls were Interior...sorry!
You obviously wouldn't need to Drylok those...

The other two walls...hmmm....neither decision is "wrong", but I'd err on the side of Drylok-ing those two. That way, it's always there protecting if ground water-table issues change.

Separately...a couple of managers at our store have had the Drylok Concrete Floor paint down for years now, and they really like it:scooter:.

As the esteemed Chrisn said, the more paint you can "force" off that wet wall...the better! Maybe try a wire-brush wheel on your power-drill.

>>> B4 this basement can look pretty...it's gotta get "ugly"!!!:whistling2:
>>> Seriously...it's a lot of work behind-the-scenes, but once it's done, you'll have a nice "water-protected" lower-levelarty:!

Faron


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## chrisn (Dec 23, 2007)

Also be prepared to work,and I mean work when applying the Dry lock, it is heavy stuff and there is no easy way to apply it but back breaking labor, you will see what I mean after about a half hour.Also, avoid the oil base if at all possible, when I did it years ago it was all that was available and the basement I was in had no windows, not fun.:no:


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