I am process of building a room for woodworking shop . I plan to put down
a plywood floor and want to apply an industrial coating to it to prevent scratches
from machinery movement. Can you recommend type of coating , manufacturer
etc. Would require color
Skim-coating with joint compound covers texture, renews old drywall and plaster, and leaves smooth surfaces ready to paint.
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Replies
Vinyl tile.
Thanks for your vinyl suggestion. But I am looking for a liquid solution which
can be applied with brush or roller
sherwin williams epoxy
Plywood is not very hard. Any paint type finish might be durable in the right place, but in a shop on plywood, not so hot. The plywood will dent easily. A gallon of floor paint costs a good 25 bucks, maybe double or triple for epoxy, and covers maybe 200 square feet. Commercial vinyl tile costs $100 for 200 square feet. If it were my shop, tile would be the minimum I'd want. I'd definitely not just paint it to save 50 bucks and a day's labor.
Ever worked on a hard surface all day while standing? When concentrating on tasks your muscles tense up, making hard unforgiving surfaces that much worse. Think cushioning. Your legs and back will help. If concrete, seal it. Then put down mats all over, work station mats are always in the place you aren't. Go vinyl for your shop, quick simple, cheap, and more cushion. There are even tiles that are elevated so you get cushion plus the ability to clean them out. Think plush..........Your back will thank you!
For a shop, I'd actually go with Vinyl sheet flooring--I'd ask around about offcuts too, the shop floor can look a little crazy. Why vinyl sheet? A little faster than tile (and no joints to catch dust or spills), it also is a tad more resiliant for working on.
I'd get interlocking mats, too.
Now, another way would be to use a floor coating paint (basically to seal the concrete). Then using interlocking rubber tile to rovide workstation relief.
A paint finish will get dinged by tool feet, or rolling carts, or that hunk of ply that slips off the stack. Patching the paint is possible, but it will be hard to get agood job of it 9and you have to stop using the shop while the paint patch dries.
(Too many bobs here. I'm not the original posting bob.) My suggestion was tile since I figured he was concerned about cost if he was thinking paint. Rubber tile is absolutely great as a shop floor. Either glue-down or interlocking. Only problem is the $5/square foot price tag. Maybe he can find a cheap source, but I don't know of any. Vinyl sheet goods are not as good in my opinion. Yes, they're more cushioned. But, the wear surface is much thinner and you'd have to do a total glue-down and not just the edges. Rolling stuff around would make creases otherwise. Plus its more expensive. Solid vinyl has the pattern all the way through and is almost a full 1/8 inch thick. Also cheap, like 47 cents a tile. Much more comfortable than painted wood.
If you're anywhere near an agricultural area, you could get horse stall mats. 4 by 8 foot neoprene about a half inch thick. Very durable, very comfortable, about $40 each. Only drawback is the color. Black.
Only drawback is the color. Black.
Sorry Bob, thought I hit reply at the top of the stack.
Black might not be bad for the floor, and horse mats are definitely durable. Walls & ceiling would need to be semi-gloss white with plenty of illumination. (Which is something probably more shops need than have.)
Saw that Sam's has "play mats" of interlocking rubber tiles, around $2-3 the sf, but small lots, like 10 x 12, or so.
I had interlocking rubber mats for the kitchen in my old apartment (to cover up very busted VCT). Landloard liked the look (dark green borders, tan field) enough that he bought the floor off of me when I moved. Every so often I miss that floor, but my 13 x 18' "L" is a different proposition than the 8 x 9' double galley (4 x 9' of exposed floor vs. 9 x 16').Occupational hazard of my occupation not being around (sorry Bubba)
I have the vinyl tile in my shop. Not too bad. Paint would hold up about a week. These have held up for 10 or 15 years. I'd add some of the interlocking mats, but it would be expensive and I'd rather have a new bandsaw. 1000 SF of mats is getting up there. Plus, you can't really roll machinery on them. Got lots of light. Maybe 10,000 watts of halogens. Not efficient lights, but I like the color better and they are also my heating system during the winter so the watts don't go to waste.
Still better than 4 two tube 4' fluorescents, like too many shops seem to have <g>.
The epoxy garage floor paints fold up pretty good, they just don't respond well to patching.Occupational hazard of my occupation not being around (sorry Bubba)
A linseed oil, or other penetrating oil, finish is what I like in a shop. If you use a tung oil fortified oil it will harden the surface quite a bit, decreases wear, while maintaining the springy nature of the plywood.
Cheap, looks good, easy to maintain. You just mop on a light coat every year or so. After a few years even this becomes unnecessary. The finish penetrates and withstands scuffing pretty well and ambers with time giving the shop a mellow wood grain look that I particularly like in a woodworking shop. Once hardened, used boiled if you go with linseed, these finishes sweep well and are water resistant.
The anti-fatigue mats are a good idea. They need not be everywhere. Just where you are stationary for lengths of time. For workbenches a dedicated mat makes sense. Lengths can also be moved around when you go on a jag using any particular machine or area to save having to buy more mats than you need to.
I'm also trying to decide how to finish the plywood floor I just built for my shop. At first I was thinking of the industrial paints and epoxy paints, but I was told that these are too brittle and will crack, rather than stretch with the wood. Regular "porch and floor" paint just seems way too wimpy for a shop floor. As for the vinyl that people in this forum seem to like- does it get slippery when wet? All winter I will have to walk through the snow to get to the shop, so it will get a little wet. I don't want to put anything too thick, because I am constrained for headroom already. I thought the hard part would be building the floor, not figuring out how to finish it.
Water-based polyurethane is extremely durable and very easy to apply. You can get 4-5 coats on in a couple of days with very little odor or off-gassing. Furthermore it can be re-applied as necessary with fairly minimal prep (particularly on a shop floor)
Thank you for your reply. I will consider this.
Some shops with plywood floors are finished with a simple oil finish. There are quite a few good penetrating finshes. Sometimes just linseed oil is used.
Saw one where the guy cut 2' square pieces and placed these over his sub floor. He alternated the grain to make a checkerboard. I don't think he even fastened them. It looked quite nice. A handsome look for a shop.
These finishes mellow and darken with age. Are durable as they penetrate. They are water resistant and, if they get scratched, easy enough to refinish.
Often this is as simple as mop on, let set and mop off any remainder. Sweep and mop as needed. When it gets worn recoat.
If you go this way be careful with the mop and any oily rags as they can combust if confined. Don't put them in a drier, even after washing.
Thanks for the reply. I like the idea that the penetrating finish is easy to fix if it gets damaged, and I agree that would be a nice mellow look for a shop.