Laminate flooring in Workshop
#11
My workshop is in basement, concrete floor. One of the challenge is the expansion joints in the concrete, all my tools are on casters so when I move the tools they get stuck in those joints.The other issue is dust, which get stuck in those joints.

I have been dealing with this for last few years, to solve this issue , I purchased laminate flooring and hoping to install this soon. Looking at some installation video, it looks like I need to put a vapor barrier on the concrete floor. The laminate floor has foam backing so I do not need foam underlay.  Anything else I need?

I do not have heavy tools. The heavied tool I have is Delta Contractor Table Saw probeley 300 lbs. Once I install the flooring , will the tools movement damage the flooring will it make it move the floor?

Any feedback will be appreciated.
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#12
I love my basement shop's laminate floor.  Feet are comfortable and don't get cold. Tools roll around nicely. (My jointer is ~700 pounds.) And against naysayers' opinions, it is NOT slippery - at least mine isn't. In fact, I typically wear gym shoes or rubber soled slippers when in the shop and my shoes will often squeak like as you would hear in a basketball game.  I do try to keep a pretty clean shop though.

My house is newer construciton, but I did do a water test over the course of several months with no concerns.  For my floor, I went with:
> 6 mil poly barrier
> Cushioned moisture barrier underlayment
> Cheapest laminate I could find (hey it is a woodshop afterall)
[Image: 20100105_Floor_b.jpg]
[Image: 20100105_Floor_e.jpg]
[Image: 20100106_Floor_f.jpg]
I'd do the same thing over again the same way if I had to.

[Image: 20120301_125625.jpg]
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#13
Cian,  nice looking floor.   I went with a cheap laminate, with a vapor barrier, and while it is a bit slippery,  I still love it.  It is much nicer on the feet that concrete, and in the winter it feels far warmer, because the concrete seemed to make me feel cold.   I put down a rug in front of my work bench to get added traction.
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#14
(11-15-2018, 11:03 PM)Jack01 Wrote: My workshop is in basement, concrete floor. One of the challenge is the expansion joints in the concrete, all my tools are on casters so when I move the tools they get stuck in those joints.The other issue is dust, which get stuck in those joints.

I have been dealing with this for last few years, to solve this issue , I purchased laminate flooring and hoping to install this soon. Looking at some installation video, it looks like I need to put a vapor barrier on the concrete floor. The laminate floor has foam backing so I do not need foam underlay.  Anything else I need?

I do not have heavy tools. The heavied tool I have is Delta Contractor Table Saw probeley 300 lbs. Once I install the flooring , will the tools movement damage the flooring will it make it move the floor?

Any feedback will be appreciated.

I did just that last winter in my walk out basement shop.  Plastic sheeting down first and then the cheap laminate with foam backing.  It solved all my problems of dropped tools, moving equipment over expansion joints, and comfort for standing.  The biggest problem I had was that the concrete wasn't totally flat so I ended up putting a transition piece in the center of the room to allow me to snap the laminate together cleanly.  I have all my equipment on mobile bases and nothing moves the flooring when I move equipment.  You shouldn't have any problems with that issue.  Can't think of anything else you need but do make sure you know how flat and level the floor is before starting.
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#15
(11-16-2018, 06:59 AM)barryvabeach Wrote: I went with a cheap laminate, with a vapor barrier, and while it is a bit slippery,  I still love it.

Is it relatively new?  With mine, there was a coating of very fine dust (aluminum oxide?) on the boards from the manufacturing process.  A very thorough initial sweeping (I figure a slight damp mop wouldve been faster) fixed it right away.
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#16
I hadn't thought of that.  I painted mine with concrete paint - didn't hold up well.  Maybe I'll do that if I can get it cheap enough.  I have been thinking about painting it again but epoxy this time but that means taking up the old paint and other things.  This would be the right way to go.
John

Always use the right tool for the job.

We need to clean house.
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#17
I worked on a Habitat for Humanity new home. Pre-finished Laminate can be extremely slick. While we were laying the thing, I learned to walk on "ice" and my partner in standard work boots ended up in rehab. 

A lot of the problems can be resolved by wearing 'gummy-type' shoe soles. But I think taking a sandwich bag of sawdust to the Borg and throwing the sample board on the floor to test walk is the better judge. 

Oh... The  underlayment(s) Cian mentioned are really not an option.
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#18
Local John Deere dealer installed in their showroom 7-8 years ago.

Handles the heavy foot traffic, ridingmowers, zero turns, Gators with no problems and still looks great.

Sold me on it

Ed
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#19
(11-16-2018, 11:56 AM)hbmcc Wrote: Oh... The  underlayment(s) Cian mentioned are really not an option. ???

Another vote for laminate. Based on Cian's experience and the pictures he posted here, I bought some at HD on a "fire sale" to put in my shop. 

Doug
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#20
(11-16-2018, 10:15 AM)Cian Wrote: Is it relatively new?  With mine, there was a coating of very fine dust (aluminum oxide?) on the boards from the manufacturing process.  A very thorough initial sweeping (I figure a slight damp mop wouldve been faster) fixed it right away.

Thank you very much for all the feedback. I hope to start the project this weekend.

Cian

Your workshop looks great, nice looking floor.
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