What to do with this floor?

[nathank]

It looks like it's been painted and has worn / chipped in many spots. I know this isn't a garage, but there's so many flooring guys in here I thought I would give it shot posting in here.

This is a retail location. It's the showroom in a bakery.

What I need to know is....

How hard would it be to prep this to do epoxy / tile / VCT / etc?
Is there some sort of machine I can rent to prep it?

 

[tncatadjuster]

Sand and coat if it is bonded well. If not scrape it off and grind or shotblast.

Other than the one spot it looks like a good floor to apply another floor on top of.

 

[PecosBill]

There are a lot of options. What are your goals, and what kind of budget are you working with? Are you just addressing the floor in front of the counter, or back in the kitchen space as well? Is there a certain look you prefer?

Fill in some of the variables, and I'll be happy to offer up some advice.

 

[nathank]

The goal is to have a floor that looks nice with minimal budget and minimal time (hard to close for more than a weekend). Not married to the idea of any one flooring over another.

Only addressing the floor in the showroom. The floor in the back is not coated so we don't need to worry with it yet.

As far as look, I personally like epoxy BUT we all know it's expensive and time consuming to lay down epoxy. So I am open to anything.

 

[PecosBill]

The goal is to have a floor that looks nice with minimal budget and minimal time (hard to close for more than a weekend). Not married to the idea of any one flooring over another.

Only addressing the floor in the showroom. The floor in the back is not coated so we don't need to worry with it yet.

As far as look, I personally like epoxy BUT we all know it's expensive and time consuming to lay down epoxy. So I am open to anything.

A floor that looks nice, that doesn't cost much. Such a rare request.

I coat of floor paint is the quickest and cheapest, and it looks it. The next step up is VCT, but that means proper prep, and without knowing what that coating is, I would have a tough time guessing.

Here would be my recommendation. It could be done in a weekend, but it's going to be an intensive weekend, and some of the steps are on the low to medium skill level. It's on the low-medium budget scale.

I would recommend an LVT or LVP product. I like Armstrong's Natural Creations. It's very durable. It's fairly common in a retail environment. http://www.armstrong.com/commflooringna/products/lvt

For prep, I would recommend taking a 4" floor scraper and getting up all loos material. Remember, your floor is only as good as its weakest bond-line. From there I would recommend Ardex P-51 Primer, http://www.ardex.com/cms%5CAssets%5CProducts%5CDocumentation%5Card-p51-tech-us-e.pdf, and then a double skim coat of Ardex Feather Finish, http://www.ardex.com/cms%5CAssets%5CProducts%5CDocumentation%5Card-sdf-tech-us-e.pdf. Sand a smooth finish, and then follow the instructions for installation of the flooring material. I would recommend a good 6" rubber base to finish it off.

Another option, but I am not a fan of it, is, a commercial grade laminate floor. It's a floating floor, so the bond to the slab is not an issue. But... be sure to use a pad with a good vapor barrier. Laminates do not like vapor emissions.

 

[thegarageguy]

Perception is reality......having a clean and unique environment surrounding their products help sell more products and sometimes at a better rate. As a businesa owner myself, we are always trying to separate ourselves from our competition.....what better way than a beautiful custom made floor.

 

[red]

Garage and Beyond, that is one beautiful floor. Just think it may be a little difficult to get it done in a weekend. Kinda rough on the budget too?

Nathank maybe you can do the job on the three day weekend? (with plenty of notice for the customers) Day One grind it Day Two ceramic (HD 59 cent tiles) tile it Day Three grout it.

 

[porphyre]

Garage and Beyond, that is one beautiful floor. Just think it may be a little difficult to get it done in a weekend. Kinda rough on the budget too?

G&B doesn't care. He just uses this board for advertising his wares. Yeah - that floor was probably $5-$6/sq ft. If not more.

Nathank maybe you can do the job on the three day weekend? (with plenty of notice for the customers) Day One grind it Day Two ceramic (HD 59 cent tiles) tile it Day Three grout it.

I agree. That floor looks good enough for tile with minimal prep. VCT or ceramic - Nathank will have to evaluate price vs performance there.

 

[thegarageguy]

G&B doesn't care. He just uses this board for advertising his wares. Yeah - that floor was probably $5-$6/sq ft. If not more.

Hate to get your ******* in a bunch porphyre, but that floor is $10 to $12 per sqft and today we are installing another 7500 sqft for the same client.

My reason for being here is not only to advertise my wares but to also show people the possibilities of epoxy flooring and how it's a viable option or alternative to tile, wood floors or even marble.

@red, thanks for the compliment. This floor can be done in 3 days but it has a long cure time.

@nathank, if I where to recommend anything on the polymer flooring side, it would be to diamond grind it, clean it, fill the cracks and roll on 2 coats of a fast cure pigmented polyaspartic with light non slip texture. This can run you between $3 to $4 per sqft. I would not recommend epoxy since it has a very slow cure time, approx 7 to 10 days to reach it's maximum compression strength. Getting back on an epoxy floor too early would cause the floor to scratch and gouge prematurely. Some polyaspartics fully cure in 24 hrs.

Good luck in whatever you choose.

 

[red]

G&B, 10 to 12 per square is a bargain! (still way too rich for my pocket) Three days installed for a professional, and from what you experts have said, you're also better off leaving Polyaspartics for the pros as well. Not DIY friendly.

So Nathink what did you decide?