Workshop floor

[Mattty]

My new shop is almost complete. I have a concrete floor down at the minute which will be great for mounting the machines however i feel the need to paint or cover it in some way.

Concrete is naturally dusty and although it is power floated i'd prefer it painted or possibly covered with another material- eg ply. I'd also like some anti fatigue floor around the bench area.

If anyone has any experience of any of these areas please let me know what you've done and why.

Thanks

 

[Racers]

Hi,

I have some floor mats from Maplins round my bench http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=217645 they are often reduced to £9.99 and some old carpet tiles the ones with bitumen in the middle every else, it works for me easy to clean and comfortable to stand on.

Pete

 

[wizer]

how high are you cielings?

If you have the room, put in a timber floor on 2x4 joists... Why? Well mainly because wood is much nicer to walk and stand on than concrete, but also you have the option of running dust extraction in the floor aswell as power. This is the route I am going next year. Concrete is cold, unforgiving on dropped tools and harsh on the feet and back.

 

[Steve Maskery]

You are right to consider covering the concrete. I didn't and I've regretted it ever since.
S

 

[CNC Paul]

Matty,

I have a friend who has 18mm T & G chipboard over 50mm polystyrene on a concrete floor, very nice to work on. He has a Altendorf F45 (800 Kilo + ) on this without any problem.

Paul

 

[filsgreen]

Hi,

I have some floor mats from Maplins round my bench http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=217645 they are often reduced to £9.99 and some old carpet tiles the ones with bitumen in the middle every else, it works for me easy to clean and comfortable to stand on.

Pete

I have used this and would recommend it, here are a few pics of it in my garage.



https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?t=27119

However, if this was my house I would have put wooden flooring down.

Phil

 

[OLD]

Having recently extended my workshop i used visqueen dpc under the slab and t&g chipboard floor glued tenons over it, after it was dry .Its fine m/cs move easily and it is easy to clean it can be sealed or painted if required.

 

[Daven]

I used floor paint from Screwfix (the cheaper stuff) and it does help keep the dust down and easy to vac off!

I got away with one tin as my workshop is only 4mx2m, that did two thick coats as I poured it on and pushed it around with an old broom :lol:

It did stink for a while but as I did it in the summer it didn't hang about too long and dried quick!

Dave

 

[Steve Maskery]

Hey, OLD

Nice lectern!

Here's mine:

I guess we both like the work of that Japanese guy whose name escapes me at the moment!

Cheers
Steve

 

[Shadowfax]

MR T&G chipboard with a membrane underneath. If you want some insulation under it try to avoid expanded polystyrene but, at a push, it might be alright.
Personally, I hate the stuff.
The chipboard makes a very good floor though and it is cheap.
Cheers,

SF

 

[MikeG.]

Matty,

If you are to do this really well, and don't we all regret not doing that when you have the chance, then a 2 part epoxy is certainly the best floor paint. I don't think these things are cheap, but with a power floated floor and epoxy finish you will have a floor we would all envy.

Mike

 

[Dave S]

Matty,

I have a friend who has 18mm T & G chipboard over 50mm polystyrene on a concrete floor, very nice to work on. He has a Altendorf F45 (800 Kilo + ) on this without any problem.

Paul

That's interesting - I also have t&G chipboard floated on 50mm polystyrene (with DPM underneath) in my garage. Had it for 3 years now. I've posted about it here a few times but since I'm hobby and have no heavy machinery I've never been sure how it would stand up to heavy machinery.

I painted mine with a garage floor paint from Ronseal, I think.

I ended up with a medical condition as a result of standing on a cold concrete floor. No problems now, it's really nice to stand on - more forgiving and much warmer.

SF - I never found the polystyrene a problem - once it's down it's hidden and you don't have to worry about it again.

Dave

 

[chipchaser]

A floating floor of polystyrene insulation below flooring grade chipboard is ok see quote below from Jablite:

Domestic floor insulation: below chipboard finish using Jabfloor 70
Jabfloor 70 can be placed above a concrete slab or a precast concrete floor in domestic ground-floor constructions, and finished with a wearing layer of chipboard to satisfy the Building Regulations' U-value requirements.

Product Description
Jabfloor 70 is available in sheet form, size 2400 x 1200mm and in thickness – 25,40,50,60,75,100,120 and 130mm. It is EPS 70 as defined in BS EN 13163. Flame retardant additive material is available to order.
Jabfloor 70 is BBA approved; certificate number 87/1796.

Physical Properties
Thermal Conductivity 0.038W/mK
Design Load 20kPa

20kPa is over 400 lbs per sq foot.

If you had high point loads from a very heavy machine on small feet you might need to spread the load a bit.

I like t&g flooring grade ply more than chipboard as it is more resistant to impact but that is only my preference and in most cases chipboard would probably be sufficient. Kitchen floor where I used to live was chipboard over polystyrene and never had any problems.

Regards

Graham

 

[wizer]

I'd never heard of doing it like that (or not taken notice of it). If I don't put the extraction in the floor, I may consider this.

 

[Mattty]

Thanks for all of the advice.

The floor to ceiling height is 2500mm and i wish to lose non or a maximum of 25mm. The workshop is a new build and the concrete floor is insulated with 100mm of kingspan as are all the cavity walls (50mm).

I like the look of the interlocking floor panels. My only concern is the hassle of shavings and dust building up underneath them and them becoming a trip hazard and an annoyance. Maybe they could be stuck down?

I also like the idea of Epoxy paint (thanks Mike). It does look the business.

So i think my 2 options are-

A- Chipboard/Ply over the whole floor

B- Epoxy paint everywhere + Interlocking mats possibly.

Any more thoughts anyone?

Thanks again for all your responses.

 

[Mattty]

What colour floor paint would you choose?

 

[wizer]

Pink

 

[Inspector]

Any more thoughts anyone?

There is a discussion going on at Knots in the States along the same lines as yours. The origional poster wanted to know if cork would work because it was inexpensive. Here is the link to the pictures of the floor when part way through the installation. The cork is the kind used as underlay for carpet and is 1/4" or 6mm thick. You can see some of the rolls standing wayyyy down in the corner by his cyclone.

http://forums.taunton.com/fw-knots/mess ... g=43780.42
You may need to sign up to read it (like this site), but it is free to join Knots.

If cork doesn't do it for you then consider the agricultural mats made of recycled tires used in barns. Over here a 3/4" x 4' x 8' sheet goes for about $40Can.

 

[Mattty]

Any more thoughts anyone?

There is a discussion going on at Knots in the States along the same lines as yours. The origional poster wanted to know if cork would work because it was inexpensive. Here is the link to the pictures of the floor when part way through the installation. The cork is the kind used as underlay for carpet and is 1/4" or 6mm thick. You can see some of the rolls standing wayyyy down in the corner by his cyclone.

http://forums.taunton.com/fw-knots/mess ... g=43780.42
You may need to sign up to read it (like this site), but it is free to join Knots.

If cork doesn't do it for you then consider the agricultural mats made of recycled tires used in barns. Over here a 3/4" x 4' x 8' sheet goes for about $40Can.

Thanks i've just had a quick look through and that is very interesting. I haven't seen that type of floor underlay in the Uk we do have a cork tile flooring here though.

Do you know of a site for the recycled tire mats you mention?

 

[Doug B]

Matty,
I went for 2 part epoxy in grey on a fibre reinforced screed & have not regretted it. It`s been down 3 years with no problems.
I have a Wadkin surface planer which is on hard plastic casters, & even though it must weigh 3/4 of a ton, the casters have not marked the paint at all.