I’ve got a concrete basement floor that has many layers of peeling grey paint. I’m going to take a surface grinder and strip it down, then coat with 2 part epoxy paint. There are however a lot of patches, cracks etc that would probably telegraph. I was thinking of pouring some self leveler and then do the epoxy on top for a nice smooth surface. I am worried that the cracks will come through. Would it be a good idea to thinset down an isolation barrier like Schulter-Ditra first, then pour the leveler on top?
Mike
Replies
Ditra is going to add about 1/8" to the height of the patching work which will be obvious. I recommend grinding or chiseling out the cracks and filling them with an appropriate product. You could fill them with patching concrete, concrete grout, anchoring cement, epoxy filler, elastomeric sealer etc.
Here is an odd website with a lot of information about epoxies. You may learn something, or make a purchase from them.
http://www.epoxyproducts.com/
You need to go a step further and ask "why?" As in: why is the floor cracked and patched? Why is the paint peeling? Etc.
Until you answer those questions, you've a good chance of just wasting your money.
The first thing I'd do is cover a rew square feet of floor with a plastic sheet. You'll know in a week whether there's moisture coming through the floor from below. If there is, ANY paint will eventually fail.
We've had any number of threads about basement floors. I'm not sure the issue has really been settled- but one thing is clear: at the heart of most basement problems is inadequate ventilation and improper building techniques. You most certainly do NOT want to build 'just like the house was' in the basement. Basements are not ntended to be finished, and 'doing it right' means first addressing those differences.