Wehave no flooring in ourbasement family room and have been trying to find a flooring solution that will work.  We have an uneven floor so tile, laminate and linoleum are all out.  We have a fireplace down there, and its a basement, so carpet just seems silly.  We are thinking we might paint the concrete and add throw rugs for warmth..  What do you think?  Has anyone tried this?

You can buy a large 8x10 (or 10x12?-can't remeber) area rug for less than $30 at most dollar stores.   

We had our basement carpeted after the flood. the original rec room was carpeted so it didn't cost too much extra. There was cement floor and the paint didn't stick.  the thick underlay with a durable green/brown tone carpet.

Paint won't work; it can't penetrate the cement, so it just sits on the surface and abrades very easily; then it peels off. 

I covered my basement floor with cement sealer; it's been about a year and so far it's holding up very well - which isn't too surprising, as the stuff I used (Behr) is intended to be used to seal garage floors, and hold up to cars.  The Behr cement sealer is about $18/gallon, and I used two coats - but the second coat took less than half what the first coat did.  It went on very easily with a roller, and my floor wasn't smooth - half of it was where I had pulled up loose linoleum, some was smooth cement, and some was the old linoleum that I didn't pry up - it's holding equally well on all surfaces, and cleans easily with water and vinegar.  The down side is, I used gray (I think they had white, too) - but since I put puzzle mats down (work out space) I really didn't care a bout the color.

If you use the paint intended for garage floors inside the house, make sure the area is very well ventilated. If what you're talking about is a two-part paint that is an expoxy. While it's curing it will give off fumes that many people are extremely allergic to and can lead to severe health issues. After it's cured the stuff is inert so its safe then.

If there's a window, don't just open the window, put a box fan in the window pulling the air outside, and pay attention to the wind direction so the fan is not "fighting" the wind. The fan will lose that battle. Hopefully there are two or more windows that can be opened, better yet a door to keep fresh air circulating.

Walt34:

If you use the paint intended for garage floors inside the house, make sure the area is very well ventilated. If what you're talking about is a two-part paint that is an expoxy. While it's curing it will give off fumes that many people are extremely allergic to and can lead to severe health issues. After it's cured the stuff is inert so its safe then.

If there's a window, don't just open the window, put a box fan in the window pulling the air outside, and pay attention to the wind direction so the fan is not "fighting" the wind. The fan will lose that battle. Hopefully there are two or more windows that can be opened, better yet a door to keep fresh air circulating.

 

I didn't use the two part epoxy - I used cement paint intended for garage floors and similar surfaces.  It went on like paint, and had the same warnings on the can that paint has, but nothing more.  I keep calling it cement sealer because that's what the guy at Home Depot called it, and that's how it works - but I just looked at the can and it said "Behr Garage Floor and Cement Paint".

You don't paint the concrete--you stain it.  My mother was telling me about some new stuff that they have out now that stains concrete. 

My parents finished out our basement and turned a section into a den.  They got low-pile carpet (like you might find in an office) and put it in there for cheap.  If you want to turn it into a game room or den, I don't see why you can't carpet it.  My mother laid those individual stick-on laminate tiles in the laundry room and hallway down there. 

The reason that we don't want to carpet is threefold.  

• Its an older home so even though there are nbo moisture issues now....there very well might be some day
• We have a fireplace in that room, and smoke will eventually build up in the room, making the carpets nedd replacing
• With the floor being uneven we can not get a good installation of the carpet
  

You can paint concrete( with concrete paint) or you can stain it as well.  I prefer painting because it will allow us more consistant coverage for a beat up floor.  We considered peel and stick tile, but the uneveness of the floor is still a deterrant 

 There is a product to level concrete. you mix it with water and pour , it levels out the floor. Bought it at Home Depot.  we did that in a mudroom.  It isnt perfect but much better than in the past. Then we covered the floor with a rubber flooring made for garages. Bought it at Job Lot. It came in 18 inch squares that fit together and can be taken up again. It is a rough texture but works well. I run the vacumn over it. Doesnt sweep , too rough. Then I threw a few small cheap rugs on top of it . Babs

what about carpet tiles? We have carpet now but we left parts with no carpet like under the washer and dryer.  Our cheap plan is to get the peel and stick vinyl tiles from the dollar stores 3 for $1 and dh will glue them down with lino glue to cover the cement. The paint came off so easy (previous owners looked good for selling) so it is a messy looking floor.