Basement flooring (colors, installation, family room, stains)

[niko]

What do you think of staining or glazing an existing concrete floor in a basement? Costly? Bad for resale?

[EricD]

You can always put flooring over it, so that's a plus

and I can't imagine it being more expencive than other options...

[sunsprit]

On a concrete slab in good condition, acid staining presents many opportunities to create an attractive and durable floor that can enhance the value of the area.

If it's a family room or "rec" space, you can have a design or logo put into the pattern.

With an epoxy seal coat on top, the colors are "popped" and will be sealed below the durable protective layer. Damp mopping should keep the floor clean, so maintenance is very low.

The only concern I'd have about doing this would be any moisture issues since the coating is a moisture barrier. You can test for this yourself by doing a "patch test". Tape down a square yard of heavy black plastic over a bare section of the concrete, and leave in place for 24 hours. Then pick up the plastic; if it's wet underneath, there's a moisture problem which will adversely affect any flooring system (carpet, tile, sheet goods, etc). If it's dry, then it should be OK.

A basic acid stained floor typically runs about $2.00 psf, installed. Some areas of the country may do it for less, but be careful about getting a quality epoxy coating of at least 6 mils thickness on the floor. There will be cost adjustments (upward) if the space is small, or access is limited, or there's a lot of detail or artistry involved. For the most part, however, acid staining is a very low cost process. In an existing house, you'll want to use water based acid stains and 100% solids epoxy to minimize odors or contamination during the installation.

[niko]

Sounds really good to me! I will do the patch test first. I think it's a great option since the summers are often unbearable here. That's a nice cool solution. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.