# basement floor



## varminthunter (Dec 19, 2005)

im trying to repaint my basement floor. it was done 25 years ago when the house was new but doesnt look the best anymore thanks to the last owners. i plan on using the epoxy paint for basement floors by rust-oleum with the tan color and the flakes you sprinkle in. The room im doing is about 500 square feet so ill be using 2 kits.

There is about 50 square feet of glue down vinyl tiles im trying to get off with a heat gun. (slow process) After i get the tiles up they are leaving behind alot of sticky glue.How do i get the glue off the cement floor so its clean enough to paint with the epoxy, and also do i need to prep the rest of the floor that has the old paint?

Last but not least there are about 15 spots some almost as big as baseball size around, of cement pop out from removing walls that were secured into the cement. Id say the deepest they are is 1/2 to 3/4 inch in the center of some.What can use to fill these in and then paint over so they are not noticeable anymore?
thanks guys!


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## BirdieShooter (Feb 7, 2010)

OK, thats a bad idea. I just usually got straight to fire or explosives for some reason my therapist can't quite figure out yet. 

I recently had to get some glue up from concrete and I pulled out my Dremel Multi-Max that I got for Xmas last year. Put on a scraper blade and it came up so fast and clean I wouldn't have believed it if I wasn't doing it myself. I don't know how long 50 sq ft would take though. I did maybe 12 in 20 mins or so. Not sure how good the surface has to be for the epoxy or how thick you glue is but if you need to scrape that is the tool for the job.


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## bigcountrysg (Oct 9, 2006)

Acetone, open all the windows up and get some fans going. for the patch work just regular cement patch from the local store will work for that. 

After you get the glue up. If you use a chemical like acetone. I would clean the floor real good with soap and hot water.


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## jpollman (Jan 14, 2001)

You've got quite a bit of work ahead of you if you're going to repaint it!

First off, you're going to have to remove most of the old paint or anything new isn't going to stick. Once you get the bulk of the old paint off you're going to have to etch the floor with acid before you use the epoxy. As far as the area where the glue is at, you're going to have to get most of that up before you etch or the epoxy isn't going to stick there either.

IMHO the best solution would be to just tile the entire area. You can buy commercial grade VCT (Vinyl Composition Tile) at Home Depot for about .68 per square foot. Just remove the old tile with a torch. Yes, a propane torch. Just apply the flame directly to the tile and move it around a bit. Work on one tile at a time. It will only take about thirty seconds to a minute per tile and it will come right off. Use a wide firm bladed putty knife and you'll get it off. I've removed hundreds of square feet of VCT this way. If you're going to re-tile, you won't need to worry about removing the old glue. The glue you use to lay the new tile will go right over top. Again, I've done this on hundreds of square feet of tile with great success. If you clean up the bulk of the old paint and remove any flaking and then just thoroughly wash the floor you shouldn't have any problem with the new tile adhering to the floor. Just don't use "peel-n-stick" tiles. Use the VCT with good grade adhesive for that type of tile. 

The nice thing about VCT is that it's VERY durable and cleans up very well if it gets dirty. If you do install this type tile, just seal it once it's installed and in a residential setting will last for MANY MANY years.

There's another option that's a little more costly than glue down VCT but would work well if you want a nicer look. It's a floating vinyl floor that runs about $1.78 per foot. It comes in about 4" wide by three or four foot lengths. It just comes in strips that adhere to each other and not the substrate. Once done, it's just laying on top of the floor and not physically attached to it so there's no adhesion issues to deal with. It even looks like a wood floor if you'd like!

Well I'm rambling a bit so I'll cut it off here. If you need anymore help or want some more suggestions just post them here or drop me a line via PM and I'll be glad to help.

Good luck!

John


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## BirdieShooter (Feb 7, 2010)

Yeah, acetone rocks! I have made..... er, ah, umm.... have HEARD of people making some kickin' fire bombs out of the stuff. And as bigcountry (great name by the way, good band, great song) pointed out it makes an EXCELLENT solvent. The Fire Marshall Bill in me had to jump in here with a disclaimer though. (that and I worry like a mom) Acetone has a REALLY low flash point AND during the incipient vapor stages it can easily stay heavier then air long enough to pool or travel along surfaces until it finds something it doesn't agree with very well. Like maybe a water heater. :help: I know, I know, I am probably overstating the obvious to someone that doesn't need a safety lecture from a two-bit like me but I can't help myself, it's the mother hen in me.


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## varminthunter (Dec 19, 2005)

great guys thanks for all the options! Ill try the acetone to get the glue off. should i acetone the rest of the painted floor too? None of the old paint is peeling at all, it on very well but its just wore off and stained in some spots.
Also great idea with the torch thats what i started using but i went to the heat gun instead, the torch seemed to leave more glue on the cement instead of coming off with the tiles.


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## Wendy (Oct 6, 2008)

Jpollman is correct, the paint mfg will tell you you have to remove the old paint before applying new.


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## varminthunter (Dec 19, 2005)

well i miss guessed the other day at work. the area is acutally 12x10 thats tiled so its 120 square feet of tile not 50 like i said before. i was way off! anyway i tried working at it last night and it sucked! the glue left behind after pulling a tile is actually as thick as the tiles are. I bought a gallon of acetone last night and it doesnt even touch the glue. any other ideas ???


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## jpollman (Jan 14, 2001)

I'm surprised by that. I've removed a lot of VCT over the years and the tile almost always pops right up with a little heat applied and there's normally a very thin layer of residual glue. I think if I were in your shoes I wouldn't even think about painting the floor again. In order to be successful, you're going to have to do a ton of prep work. I really think I'd recommend just tiling it again. Yes there will be some prep but not nearly as much as with paint. 

If you've got that much tile to remove, rent a "tile ripper". It's an electric machine with a 6" stiff metal blade on the front. If vibrates and pops the tile up. It sounds like it would be the best solution for you because of that thick glue they used. It will probably remove the majority of the glue too. You wouldn't have to remove absolutely all of the glue if you want to re-tile, but you'll have to get it to the point where at least it's smooth. That electric scraper should do a good job. If you do want to try to remove more of the adhesive, try this.

http://www.homedepot.com/hdus/en_US...d_Pages/Paint/Behr/Docs/RemoversStrippers.pdf

It's rated for indoor and outdoor use but should do the job. 

As far as those chipped spots in the floor, you can use a cement based floor leveling compound to fill them in because it sounds like they're not very deep. Just mix it up with water and apply it with a wide putty knife and feather it out. I wish you lived closer or else I'd come by and take a look. 

Good luck!

John


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## varminthunter (Dec 19, 2005)

jpollman said:


> I'm surprised by that. I've removed a lot of VCT over the years and the tile almost always pops right up with a little heat applied and there's normally a very thin layer of residual glue. I think if I were in your shoes I wouldn't even think about painting the floor again. In order to be successful, you're going to have to do a ton of prep work. I really think I'd recommend just tiling it again. Yes there will be some prep but not nearly as much as with paint.
> 
> If you've got that much tile to remove, rent a "tile ripper". It's an electric machine with a 6" stiff metal blade on the front. If vibrates and pops the tile up. It sounds like it would be the best solution for you because of that thick glue they used. It will probably remove the majority of the glue too. You wouldn't have to remove absolutely all of the glue if you want to re-tile, but you'll have to get it to the point where at least it's smooth. That electric scraper should do a good job. If you do want to try to remove more of the adhesive, try this.
> 
> ...


Great! thanks alot for the advice and taking the time to post all this! Looks like painting may not be an option anymore for me.


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