Over the past few months I have had so many messages about this DIY reel of us painting our concrete floors, so I decided to put all the details here as a resource for those interested in trying this project themselves!
Recap- we built our house in 2019 and had carpet in the master bedroom which we found out later that we truly just couldn’t stand. We had plans to *eventually* run LVP in there, but we figured removing the carpet and painting the concrete would be an easy and affordable “quick fix” for now.
The reel went a little viral and I got tons of feedback. Some amazing, some not so amazing. 😆 Guys, Anthony and I are not professionals. We’re DIYers but we do like to do research on projects before we start them to know what we’re getting into. I also want to mention that we have painted indoor concrete in the past and actually really liked it which is what prompted us to do this project in the first place.
Ok so here are the products we used in order~
- Ready Mix Concrete Patch (to patch all the holes & imperfections from tack strips)
- Liquid Cement Crack Filler (to fill the concrete cuts that were made during building to prevent cracking)
- Valspar Porch, Floor & Patio Paint For Wood & Concrete (this paint is tintable and comes in different sheens. The color we used is SW Pale Bloom)
- Clear Seal Concrete Protector (final coat)
After removing all the carpet and tack strips, we patched the holes and imperfections using a putty knife. Then we sanded with a heavy grit sandpaper to get a pretty smooth finish. We the cleaned up the dust and prepped the floors for paint. Make sure the floors are swept and mopped before painting. I cut in around the baseboards using a paint brush and then painted the rest of the floors using a regular roller and a non foam nap. We repeated this process twice to get an opaque finish. When the paint cured, we sealed the floor using a roller with a non foam nap. We did one coat of this and the let it cure for the recommended time before bringing furniture back into the room.
We did these floors in August of 2021 and had them up until recently (April 2022) before finally putting the LVP down in that room. It held up amazing and we honestly loved it!
In the reel comments, there was a ton of concern about the baseboards. We opted not to move them because we knew this was all just temporary. However, if the concrete were staying longer, we would’ve either moved the baseboards down to meet the floor or added quarter round to hide the gap.
FAQ:
How do you clean it? I cleaned them like I did the LVP throughout the rest of my house. I vacuumed with a normal vacuum/swept if needed and then I just used a mop solution mixed with water. Cleaned up great and I never had any issues!
Is it freezing? Concrete must be so cold! It is. I don’t think it makes a difference in the entire room, though. We never walked in there thinking “wow it’s so much colder in here than other rooms!” Though, stepping on it, I would compare it to tile maybe. We live in SC though and it doesn’t get crazy cold here. We also have central heating so our house is warm in winter and rugs always help to warm things up too.
Does it chip/scratch? I suppose it can. It is painted, after all. However, We were never really dragging any heavy furniture around in here so we never had any issues with paint scratching or chipping. That’s why a sealant is so important though! It prevents this from happening and makes cleaning easier.
Why white???? Doesn’t that get dirty SO fast?? Ok so, lots of questions/concerns about this. I initially chose the off white color to brighten the room and just to be different. You see gray concrete everywhere and I figured since it’s temporary, why not!? I really freaking loved it though. We do wear shoes in the house, don’t @ me 😂 but our bedroom is not a high traffic area so while it may get slight scuffs or marks here and there, it really was never that dirty and as I mentioned earlier, it always cleaned up just fine.
I get it, it’s not for everyone but I loved it and would totally do it again! It’s such a good option if you want to get rid of carpet but don’t have the budget for all new floors.
I hope this was helpful!! Let me know if you try this!
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