Reinhard, does that stuff come in rolls, or squares, or what? How do you install it? Glue it down?
Another reason that I'm in no hurry for the floor is the expense. I'll put that cost off for awhile, let the bank account recover somewhat.
I have never put down a floor in my shop. Once everything was done and ready to use, I cleaned the floor real good and rolled two coats of concrete porch and floor enamel on it. Until you get some other flooring it will definitely keep down the possibility of cement dust in the air from shuffling around. The painting is very easy when done before ANYTHING is put in.
Lynn
Gary S Wrote:Reinhard, does that stuff come in rolls, or squares, or what? How do you install it? Glue it down?
Another reason that I'm in no hurry for the floor is the expense. I'll put that cost off for awhile, let the bank account recover somewhat.
It is available from the roll or in squares. It recommend it from the role. The seam is welded. A professional contractor did it. That gives a perfect closed surface nothing can creep under.
But you hit the nail on the head... that stuff will attack you bank account brutal :oops: It might be up to $100 per square yard for material and labor. But I do not know US prices for the stuff and for labor. Take your time to explore that in detail...
Lynn: Thanks for the good idea. I may go that route for now. If I did seal the concrete, do you think there would be any effect later on if i was to glue down some type of flooring? I would guess not, but you never know.
Reinhard: Thanks for the info. $100 per square yard would be about $11 a square foot. With almost 800 square feet that would be $8000!! :o
If you are going to put some kind of flooring down - do it now. Once the layout is constructed, the task becomes mush more difficult. Being that it is just a layout room and nothing more, function and cost should be the most important factors. If it were my layout room, I would consider a low pile carpeting. It isn't great as far as allergies or finding small parts that you may drop, but it will cut down on the noise and echo, especially if you are running sound equipped locomotives. Plus, it can be pretty cheap and quick to install, and is easy on your feet.
Kevin, it would be easier to do the floor now, but probably not all that much easier. The entire layout will be on shelving off the walls, with no supports to the floor. About the only thing that would be in the way would be my control panel whci will sit on the floor (or possibly be built up off the floor with supports). Now, I am planning on putting cabinets with drawers under the two interchange/staging areas, so those will have to be moved for the flooring (or I could just put the flooring up to them like in a kitchen).
Gary S Wrote:Kevin, it would be easier to do the floor now, but probably not all that much easier. The entire layout will be on shelving off the walls, with no supports to the floor. About the only thing that would be in the way would be my control panel whci will sit on the floor (or possibly be built up off the floor with supports). Now, I am planning on putting cabinets with drawers under the two interchange/staging areas, so those will have to be moved for the flooring (or I could just put the flooring up to them like in a kitchen).
Depends on how high your shelving is. Because I nearly guarantee that after an hour of kneeling/sitting beneath something working on the floor, you will forget where you are and stand up and hit your head
.
When I bought my condo, the first thing I had to do was clean and "floor" the basement. The previous owners had kept their cats there, and the place smelled _______________________bad!! I got some stuff from a kennel, that cleaned up the "excretions" in the concrete, used a primer/sealer designed for preparing concrete for self stick tile, and laid the peel and press tiles. That was 17 years ago. The tile floor is still in excellent shape......except for a few paint spills around the spray booth, and the corner of a tile that I dropped the sledge hammer on.
I was able to do the work myself, and the cost was reasonable, (no I can't remember how much) for about 440 sq feet. I did use "inexpensive" tiles.
You might want to consider interlocking foam mats like are used in various types of shops to provide softer footing. Harbor Freight, Home Depot, and Lowes have packages of 4 mats for reasonable prices.
One thing to keep in mind is the moisture that might still be in the cement. I read somewhere that it can take up to a year to get all the moisture out of new concrete, especially indoors.
A good way to test is to tape a piece of clear plastic to the floor for a few days. If moisture appears under the plastic, it is not ready to be sealed yet.
Tom
Thanks for all the great advice. As I think about it (and because I love going barefoot), carpet may be a good idea. It would be awhile before it was installed - need to get all the benchwork and major construction done, need to cut/shape the foam, all that messy stuff before the carpet went down. The interlocking foam mats sound like another good option.
As for progress on the room. I finally fixed all the bad spots in the wall/backdrop. There was one place at the coved corner/wall junction that just couldn't be fixed.
I would fill it with mud, let it dry, sand it, and it still wasn't right. Finally figured out that the masonite board was not firmly screwed to the wall in that location, and it was flexing when I sanded the area. It would mash down as I sanded over it, then would spring back, leaving an uneven spot. So I put a couple screws in it to hold it down, remudded the area, used a hair dryer to enhance the drying time, mudded it again, dryed it, mudded one last time, then sanded it, and it is fixed.
Gary S Wrote:As for progress on the room. I finally fixed all the bad spots in the wall/backdrop. There was one place at the coved corner/wall junction that just couldn't be fixed.
I would fill it with mud, let it dry, sand it, and it still wasn't right. Finally figured out that the masonite board was not firmly screwed to the wall in that location, and it was flexing when I sanded the area. It would mash down as I sanded over it, then would spring back, leaving an uneven spot. So I put a couple screws in it to hold it down, remudded the area, used a hair dryer to enhance the drying time, mudded it again, dryed it, mudded one last time, then sanded it, and it is fixed.
So, we need to forget about the "golden spike ceremony" for now? How about a "golden drywall screw ceremony"?
Wayne
doctorwayne Wrote:Gary S Wrote:As for progress on the room. I finally fixed all the bad spots in the wall/backdrop. There was one place at the coved corner/wall junction that just couldn't be fixed.
I would fill it with mud, let it dry, sand it, and it still wasn't right. Finally figured out that the masonite board was not firmly screwed to the wall in that location, and it was flexing when I sanded the area. It would mash down as I sanded over it, then would spring back, leaving an uneven spot. So I put a couple screws in it to hold it down, remudded the area, used a hair dryer to enhance the drying time, mudded it again, dryed it, mudded one last time, then sanded it, and it is fixed.
So, we need to forget about the "golden spike ceremony" for now? How about a "golden drywall screw ceremony"?
Yep!
it happened last night, but instead of gold, the screws were gray. The signifcance of the event did not dawn on me, so I did not take photos.
Well, the walls that will be used for the backdrop are 97% perfect so I put the final coat of white paint on them. It dawned on me that if I would have used GERN Sheetrock Flux before putting on the mud, well, the finish would have been 100% perfect.
I also put up 8 light fixtures and got them wired in. Only 27 more to go, hopefully tomorrow.