Temporary flooring....

[Victorthesecond]

Hi all. I'm not lucky enough to have a workshop - my tools are stored in a shed and I use our garage conversion for any projects. By ' garage conversion' I mean that we had our garage converted to a nice garden room with a small bathroom.There's a sofa bed in there for when we have all our family or other visitors staying.

It all works well enough - I'm able to set my Workmate up and do the small jobs I enjoy. My woodwork skills are limited - for example, I'm currently making boxes from old pallets that we are going to use as hampers for Christmas presents. Once made up,sanded down, and stained they look great and can be used as seed boxes ,/ small planters once the Christmas contents have gone,!

But, I don't want to damage the nice laminate floor we have so am currently putting old sheets down.As you might imagine this isn't the best solution - the sheets get tangled up as they inevitably move around and it's just messy.

I just wondered if anyone had come across a good temporary flooring solution that I can use instead of old sheets? Ideally, it's something that I can easily roll up or store if and when we need to use the conversion for it's proper purpose!

Thanks for any ideas!

 

[phil p]

Hi,
I know Wickes stock like a plastic 8 x 4 sheets which I think are predominately used to cover flooring while decorating, and unlike sheets there would be no tripping hazard.

They weigh absolutely nothing and think you could probably fold them in half if needed to help with storage, alternatively you could just stand them against a wall or under a bed until needed, also a nice flat surface to either sweep or vacuum.

Not sure how hard wearing they would be over long term however they cover a lot of space if butted together for a small outlay.

Hope this helps.

 

[robgul]

If @Peter Sefton sees this he can probably tell you what he uses . . . . when I did his French Polishing course last year he had all the very smart woodworking benches shrouded in a grey, fluted plastic material to catch any stains or spillages - same stuff I've seen used for protecting floors during building works.

 

[MARK.B.]

Buy some cheap lino,you can roll it up and stand it in the corner when done,tough enough to protect your flooring ,easy to sweep or vac up when done.

 

[Jacob]

Protec is tough stuff. We used it to cover new floor boards whilst building operations underway. Re-usable and packs away small. Resembles Tyvek roofing felt.

 

[Peter Sefton]

If @Peter Sefton sees this he can probably tell you what he uses . . . . when I did his French Polishing course last year he had all the very smart woodworking benches shrouded in a grey, fluted plastic material to catch any stains or spillages - same stuff I've seen used for protecting floors during building works.

Yep this is the sort of thing we put on our benches.

https://www.wickes.co.uk/Proplex-Bl...0S0NHnsml3arw6kwo74aAq8gEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
We have DPM on the floors.

https://www.screwfix.com/p/capital-...rt3retRyrsHlF3_AJAAaArXrEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[johna.clements]

Where you are placing your workmate you could put down a sheet of 9 mm OSB to protect the floor from things that are dropped. Ripped down into three or four then you can put it in a corner when not required.

 

[Jameshow]

I'd suggest a 1.5 X 2m length of ribbed or button rubber flooring.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/26540981...ar=565238386289&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

 

[Jameshow]

Where you are placing your workmate you could put down a sheet of 9 mm OSB to protect the floor from things that are dropped. Ripped down into three or four then you can put it in a corner when not required.

You could use a sheet of hardboard and hinge it with duct tape?

 

[robgul]

I'd suggest a 1.5 X 2m length of ribbed or button rubber flooring.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/26540981...ar=565238386289&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

Good plan - but don't get the ribbed - you'll never get the sawdust etc out of the grooves - the button or checkplate versions would be fine

 

[johna.clements]

You could use a sheet of hardboard and hinge it with duct tape?

Hardboard would be more slippy, I think, especially if you had covered the wider area in plastic sheet. I have been on sites where we have used OSB to protect against mechanical damage. Better than cheap plywood if some liquid gets spilled.

 

[Victorthesecond]

Thanks everyone. I found these at B&Q, looks like they'll do the job!

https://www.diy.com/departments/aut...ing-floor-tile-2-16m-pack-of-6/1270021_BQ.prd

 

[2 Rivers]

The construction industry use a material called Antinox (might be spellt wrong).

 

[KeenToLearn]

Buy some cheap lino,you can roll it up and stand it in the corner when done,tough enough to protect your flooring ,easy to sweep or vac up when done.

+1 for cheap lino

Easy to roll up, impact resistant, easy to clean

 

[Garden Shed Projects]

I would avoid the proplex style sheet, I know it as corex. As it’s not really reusable. You may get a couple of times out of it. The rolled up vinyl or cushion floor would appeal to me the most as it’s easy to roll out and would most likely be the cheapest long term option if you are not fussy about pattern or colour.

 

[Reffc]

Another vote for Pro-Tek vinyl flooring. Not too expensive, hardwearing and cheap

 

[Inspector]

The OP has his interlocking mats so it doesn't matter now however I'm surprised no-one has suggested carpet? Sure some dust will stick to it but a quick vacuum will keep that to a minimum and an occasional blow off outside with compressed air or leaf blower will get a little more. Generally a dropped chisel won't make it through to the floor below and it is easy on the feet.

Pete

 

[Reffc]

I had carpet when I first moved into our current workshop. I would advise against it. It picks up a heck of a lot of dust and is impossible to keep clean for long plus gets bashed about a lot and tufted or glue stained. It's a nightmare with dust. Best to have a smooth finish. If concrete base, screed then epoxy self levelling flooring paint is imho the best bet, or to use a tough vinyl. Under the carpet in ours was some high density OSB over the concrete for insulation value. That has tough paint on it but it's no protection and as it's got badly scratched and chipped, I'll be laying a tough vinyl floor system over it.

 

[johna.clements]

I had carpet when I first moved into our current workshop. I would advise against it. It picks up a heck of a lot of dust and is impossible to keep clean for long plus gets bashed about a lot and tufted or glue stained. It's a nightmare with dust. Best to have a smooth finish. If concrete base, screed then epoxy self levelling flooring paint is imho the best bet, or to use a tough vinyl. Under the carpet in ours was some high density OSB over the concrete for insulation value. That has tough paint on it but it's no protection and as it's got badly scratched and chipped, I'll be laying a tough vinyl floor system over it.

This is over a "nice laminate floor" in a room used for other purposes. I agree that a carpet would be difficult to keep clean. If a small nail etc penetrated could be a problem if not spotted.

 

[Reffc]

In which case a vinyl (lino) roll flooring? Easy to put down and not too expensive?