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What are Some Tips for Painting Cement Floors?

Sheri Cyprus
Sheri Cyprus

Cement or concrete floors are often covered with carpeting in homes. If it's difficult to keep carpeting clean or you're looking for a less expensive option to buying new carpeting, a cement floor can look great if you paint it. Painting cement floors should only be done after cleaning, planning and making sure you have all of the needed materials.

Paints made just for cement floors are available, but color choice is often very limited to colors such as gray and brown. On the plus side, those may be the only colors you'll need if you want to create a faux stone cement floor. Alternatively, you can use latex paints and these will give you many colors to use. Be sure to use only good quality latex paint.

A cement floor should be thoroughly cleaned before paint is applied.
A cement floor should be thoroughly cleaned before paint is applied.

If you find that the concrete is damp, never paint the floor as the source of the moisture problem must be addressed first. If the floor is dry, prepare it for painting by scrubbing it thoroughly with a trisodium phosphate (TSP) solution or something recommended by your local do-it-yourself building store. If it's an outdoor garage floor, use cat litter to absorb grease first and then scrub. The paint won't adhere to coated or greasy surfaces.

A cement floor should be sanded before paint is applied.
A cement floor should be sanded before paint is applied.

The floor should be allowed to dry for several days after scrubbing to ensure that it's perfectly dry. The next thing to do before actually painting cement floors is to use sandpaper to file off any lumps or bumps on the floors. Finally, vacuum the floor and go over it with a tack cloth, which is a sticky cloth you can find at a home improvement store.

It is important to vacuum a cement floor before applying paint.
It is important to vacuum a cement floor before applying paint.

Be sure to apply at least two coats of good quality latex paint when painting cement floors. Once you finally get these base coats down, you can use your creativity and imagination to decorate your floor. Think ahead about what you'll be painting on the floor and make sure you have all the necessary materials. If you want faux stone you can do marble, cobble stone or slate. You can also stencil designs onto your floor such as a border near the wall that goes around the room. After painting, a polyurethane coating should be added for protection and maximum durability.

Discussion Comments

gregg1956

@googlefanz -- You definitely need to get rid of any stains on your concrete before you even think about epoxy floors.

If they're just oil stains, then you can try to scrub them out with a metal-bristled brush. However, like the article said, make sure that your floor is completely, 100% dry before you start to put down your primer and paint.

Although it may be tempting to just paint over the stains, don't.

The uneven surface and the difference in the smoothness between the stain and the rest of your concrete will start to show, and pretty soon your pretty new painted concrete floors will be in tatters.

googlefanz

So I've been wanting to put down epoxy paint on my garage floors. However, my garage floors have a lot of oil stains on them, so do I need to get rid of them before I put down the paint?

If so, how do I get rid of a cement stain?

Does anybody have any good tips about getting rid of stains on concrete floors, or on garage floor painting in general?

CopperPipe

This is a great article on painting concrete floors.

I recently helped my parents paint their garage floors, and I really can't reiterate enough how important it is to make sure that the floor is completely, entirely dry before you start to paint.

If you put that cement floor paint down without the floor being completely dry, your paint will just peel right back up.

Although it may seem like a waste of time to wait for it to dry all the way, it really beats doing the same job twice.

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    • A cement floor should be thoroughly cleaned before paint is applied.
      By: csimagemakers
      A cement floor should be thoroughly cleaned before paint is applied.
    • A cement floor should be sanded before paint is applied.
      By: csimagemakers
      A cement floor should be sanded before paint is applied.
    • It is important to vacuum a cement floor before applying paint.
      By: vetkit
      It is important to vacuum a cement floor before applying paint.
    • Cat litter can be used to absorb grease before painting a cement floor.
      By: Vidady
      Cat litter can be used to absorb grease before painting a cement floor.
    • Cement.
      By: brunobarillari
      Cement.
    • Supplies for painting.
      By: Scanrail
      Supplies for painting.
    • Paint and a paint brush.
      By: Jiri Hera
      Paint and a paint brush.
    • Painting can give a plain cement floor a faux stone look.
      By: Lilyana Vynogradova
      Painting can give a plain cement floor a faux stone look.