We removed the cheesy rubber molding and this is the first door we attempted.
How do we finish our basement laundry room floor?
by Schwarzy
+16
We recently had a flood in our basement and decided to change the toilet in the laundry room. We'll that turned in to replacing the flooring and the molding as well. But we've run in to issues with the floor. We did a peel and stick tile. For one, it's not sticking and secondly, the color is all off. So now we've abandoned that particular tile. But we don't know what to put down. I tried painting the floor prior to all of this and it scratched. We also have a dilemma. We have a drain in the middle of the floor. Can anyone suggest what to do with the flooring in this room. It is a basement laundry room by the way.
This is the drain. My husband can't even get the grate off at this time due to the rust.
This floor isn't sticking.
I would tile the floor. Basement floors are always wet and damp. Only tile wouldn't be affected by this problem.
Tile it sloping into drain thats how it should be done to eliminate any further water problems. Then add some molding/trim around bottom of walls.
Luxury vinyl planks are a great option. Waterproof and easy to install. Some look fabulous too!
Consider something like this flooring that is used in commercial buildings. We put this in our laundry room in a black and white checkerboard pattern. It looked great, will hold up to water, and you can cut it with a razor cutter. https://www.lowes.com/pd/Armstrong-Flooring-Imperial-Texture-1-Piece-12-in-x-12-in-Blue-Gray-Glue-Adhesive-Speckle-Commercial-VCT-Tile/999978386
Find a good tread-on -enamel (or epoxy paint) the major color you want and a pint of same but contrasting color. As you roll the floor take several broom straws or alter a cheap paint brush(experiment off the floor till you get a splatter or drip pattern you like) dip in the contrast color and drip as you go. I used maroon and beige. Looked like a giant pizza, ugh! Remove loose rust off drain cover treat with liquid that converts rust to an oxide primer and paint with you choices. You may want to cover baseboard and up walls to prevent errant splatters. The paint you use may be difficult to remove? You want only to paint as much as you can reach to drip/splatter on. Plan ahead, don't paint yourself into a corner or wall with out an escape plan?
Go see a reputable paint company dealer and don't be afraid of industrial paints.
Use paint designed for garage floors, as others have said. It will be your most reliable and most durable.
Fix the drain BEFORE painting so you don't mess up the paint dealing with the drain. Try spraying with WD-40 and letting it sit for a while - maybe put some plastic over it or something. Use a wire brush to try to loosen rust. Use a prybar or something if necessary to get it opened.
Determine whether the drain is still functional. If it is, get a new top part for it. If it's not and doesn't need to be, seal it off. If it is not functional and needs to be, call a plumber and get it deal with before doing floor. I would LOVE to have a floor drain in my basement....would make cleaning the floor so much easier.
Schwarzy,
You can paint the drain cover. loosen rust, apply liquid that converts rust into primer(ask your paint store person) and paint with say rustoleum (sp.). or the paint used on the floor, if that's way you go. There is a spray made for dissolving rust, not liquid wrench, I can't think of it but it should help get the cover off, if not cut it up with a metal cutting blade on a skil, reciprocating, or saber saw? The pipe the cover is attached to if it is cast iron don't be beating on it too hard?
Use a dremel cutting tool with a diamond blade on it to cut that drain out of the floor. Also I suggest if your basement flooded already you may want to install a sump pump. I’m getting ready to do my basement floor too. I’ve done a lot of tile work in my life... if it’s just a laundry room and no one is going to see it... I suggest painting the floor but you will need to prep the floor first. You will need to paint it with a good oil base paint so it will not peel or flake if it gets damp/wet again. Good luck 🍀
I just recently redid my laundry room floors after my sons dog ate the linoleum. We purchased 1/4” plywood Home Depot cut it the size I requested and I sanded it and stained it and polycrylic over that and we nailed it down. After it was finished I wished I had staggered the boards. But it works for now and looks so much better. And was $50 Aprox I had some supplies on hand.
If you click on the link that I included in my original answer, you can scroll down the page and see lots of different colors that this flooring comes in. You can also see the type of adhesive to use to install this flooring. You can go to Lowes or Home Depot and talk to the flooring department and actually see the flooring. Here is the link again: https://www.lowes.com/pd/Armstrong-Flooring-Imperial-Texture-1-Piece-12-in-x-12-in-Blue-Gray-Glue-Adhesive-Speckle-Commercial-VCT-Tile/999978386
In our basement we used the interlocking pieces that are found in gyms. Easy to put down and take up if you get water again. We love ours. Very soft to walk on. We vacuum them and wet mop. Also makes the floor warmer. Walmart. A little over $50 for 100 plus feet. They have black or gray.
yes they interlock and they come in black and gray. Wish we had gotten the gray as the black makes the room too dark. We are really enjoying ours. Walmart shipped them to our house. Perfect for our basement floor.