Cleaning/painting shop

[MichaelBikel]

So my shop is in my basement, I had plans to get some lights in and possibly insulation/drywall. Kind of limited on funds at the moment...What I do have is a power washer and I thought that to at least make it look a bit more fresh I could wash the cement walls and the floor (which is painted greyish/bluish/green?). Then I started thinking that maybe I could paint the walls?

#1 does this just sound stupid?
#2 would I need a special paint/primer for cement walls
#3 I don't like the idea of sheet rocking the ceiling because I like the idea of ease of access to the wiring (breaker box is in shop) and plumbing and who knows how long i'll be here. Thoughts?

 

[Stuart in MN]

Are the walls that dirty they need to be power washed? I'd be concerned about getting overspray into the ceiling. Also, unless there's a floor drain handy you have to deal with removing the water afterwards.

 

[MichaelBikel]

Are the walls that dirty they need to be power washed? I'd be concerned about getting overspray into the ceiling. Also, unless there's a floor drain handy you have to deal with removing the water afterwards.

They are painted white so the lower half has gotten a bit dirty, the overspray is only really an issue to me near the electrical which I can cover and keep away from. I would probably spray one wall at a time then shop vac the water, the residual can just air dry with the door/windows open if its a warm day. I'm really just dying to make a change/get it looking nicer in there and its pretty much a cheap option.

 

[Cyberbear]

Find out what type of paint was used prior before applying additional cover-up new paint, they may not be compatible. If the original paint is not peeling, blistering, etc., perhaps a good cleaning with some TSP may get it clean enough for the new paint to adhere properly.

 

[CJ7VFR]

Do you have a French drain in the basement to let any water out if you do wash down the walls? Or are you just going to shopvac it all up?

Think about where the water goes when you pressure wash something outside. How wet do things get around where you are pressure washing? How wet do your feet get? How much back spray do you get when you hit a spot that has a 90 degree angle to it?

I don't know about you, but whenever I use my pressure washer on stuff outside, especially when I am washing the house, and the spray hits that 90 degree corner where the house meets the ground, I always get spray back that goes everywhere!

And, if you did pressure wash the walls, where is all the dirt and water going to go? If you have some type of French drain, then it can go there, but if you don't, the water and dirt will go everywhere, and you will have to clean the floors too even if you do shopvac it up.

If I was you, and you have time, why not try using some type of cleaning product in a spray bottle with some buckets of water? You could spray down the walls with the spray bottles, let the stuff sit in the walls for a minute or two, and then use a wet sponge to remove the dirt and cleaning product.

It would take awhile, but you would be able to control not only how much water gets around the basement, but where it would go as well.

Jim

 

[MichaelBikel]

Not a bad idea Jim, I just figured if I power wash one wall at a time since I'm really only doing the lower half it won't be excessive. There is no drain, I was planning to use my shop vac in bursts. Speaking of those french drains, could that cause flooding during a storm since it would be so low underground? Or does the drain pipe get graded?

Do you have a French drain in the basement to let any water out if you do wash down the walls? Or are you just going to shopvac it all up?

Think about where the water goes when you pressure wash something outside. How wet do things get around where you are pressure washing? How wet do your feet get? How much back spray do you get when you hit a spot that has a 90 degree angle to it?

I don't know about you, but whenever I use my pressure washer on stuff outside, especially when I am washing the house, and the spray hits that 90 degree corner where the house meets the ground, I always get spray back that goes everywhere!

And, if you did pressure wash the walls, where is all the dirt and water going to go? If you have some type of French drain, then it can go there, but if you don't, the water and dirt will go everywhere, and you will have to clean the floors too even if you do shopvac it up.

If I was you, and you have time, why not try using some type of cleaning product in a spray bottle with some buckets of water? You could spray down the walls with the spray bottles, let the stuff sit in the walls for a minute or two, and then use a wet sponge to remove the dirt and cleaning product.

It would take awhile, but you would be able to control not only how much water gets around the basement, but where it would go as well.

Jim

 

[1940_dodge]

Water in a basement with no drain, painted walls, and I'm assuming a drywall ceiling would be a bad idea. If it's dirty in there, I would say the best thing to do is get a rag and some elbow grease to get the concrete wall ready for primer.

 

[MichaelBikel]

Water in a basement with no drain, painted walls, and I'm assuming a drywall ceiling would be a bad idea. If it's dirty in there, I would say the best thing to do is get a rag and some elbow grease to get the concrete wall ready for primer.

The floor and walls were painted probably 25 years ago maybe more, there is not a spot of drywall in the basement. No, there is no drain but it has flooded down there and it wasn't hard to clean up.

I am noticing a pattern here though! Maybe i'll just get a scrub brush on a pole and give it a once over.

 

[Ghost11]

Im thinking a scrub it by hand, and put a fresh coat of paint

 

[lutter94]

I'd use a mop, screw doing it all by hand.