My shop is an old 3 level barn with the middle level the vehicle level and the other 2 storage and future work area/office.

My biggest issue with the shop , though I am glad I have one, is the 100+ year old, oil soaked barn boards.

VERY worisome to run a grinder or a welder in there. Forget about laying down on them and staying clean.

My thought is to put down some 7/16" OSB and paint it with a good durable paint.

Ideally I would use some sort of industrial rubber tile but I do not have the $$ for that right now.

What would be a good paint to use? Think it would hold the adhesive if I ever do get to tile it?

Here is a shot of how it is currently:

Pour a lightweight concrete slab on it. 2-3" thick. I'm sure that old floor will handle the weight. Then you'll have a "fireproof" floor & something that's solid & level. It will also be quicker & easier to do with less maintenance.

um do you realize how much 2 - 3" of concrete will weigh especially when it is being poured?? its probably way more that that 100 year old floor will handle... If you want to do concrete you will have to add xtra supports under that floor to hold the extra weight... i think your idea is the best when you paint it look for a good quality shop floor paint that has a bit of fire proofing in it so sparks do not melt through and start burning your floor..

um do you realize how much 2 - 3" of concrete will weigh


He prolly does.I am guessing that is why he said "lightweight" :D

Ya, actually I do. It weighs 6 pounds per square foot per 1" thick. An old shop floor like that will typically be built with large timber beams. & plank flooring. Depiending upon the span it shouldn't be an issue. Of course you'll want to get a qualified person out there to assess the situation. Probably have a structural engineer look at it for a couple hundred bucks, trust me it'll be money well spent.

By the way, if you do go the sheating & paint route. Use plywood, OSB sucks in this application. Besides right now OSB is way more expensive than Plywood. It seesm they've been shipping it to Iraq for construction over there.

i think concrete is good idea.. but if you are going to put heavy stuff there.. it will start cracking the concrete since wood are flexiable.. whay ya think about that one?

Certain types of lightweight concrete have an elasticity to them so it shouldn't be a prob. That is also why I suggested upwards of 3" thick. I suggest you talk to an experienced concrete guy if you go this route. You can also add fiberglass reinforcing. The barn is so old, that the floor has already deflected as much as it probably will, plus when you add the concrete, you'll prestress the floor so it shouldn't deflect.

Not interested in the concrete idea, though I would love a concrete floor.

The weight would worry me. Though the floor is build quite well. There are other issues structurally that I need to deal with.

7/16" OSB= $12.57 a sheet
Plywood is in the $20s.

I need to go cheap unfortunately.

Wow, it's totally backwards pricing versus around here.

I would coat it in resin:
http://www.tapplastics.com/shop/product.php?pid=35&

Pergo!

-t

I would coat it in resin:
http://www.tapplastics.com/shop/product.php?pid=35&

What about the inherent flex? Doesn't resin crack?

FWIW- the floor moves when you pull a vehicle in there.

As far as weight goes, I am worried but not too much for what I do. When I bought the house this level of the barn was FILLED with a 1959 Nomad and all other available space was occupied with old appliances. There is ~600sf per level.

Thanks for all the advise.

Pergo!

-t


:laughing: :laughing:

What about the inherent flex? Doesn't resin crack?

FWIW- the floor moves when you pull a vehicle in there.

As far as weight goes, I am worried but not too much for what I do. When I bought the house this level of the barn was FILLED with a 1959 Nomad and all other available space was occupied with old appliances. There is ~600sf per level.

Thanks for all the advise.

You will never get it thick enough to crack. The wood will soak it up and become water tight. Spills ( gas-oil-water) will pool and the surface will be considerably tougher to gouge.

You will never get it thick enough to crack. The wood will soak it up and become water tight. Spills ( gas-oil-water) will pool and the surface will be considerably tougher to gouge.

That sounds about perfect.

Think the existing soaked in oil will affect the resin curing?

I thought you were looking to cover/paint a new overlay of plywood/OSB. It will not work with an old oil soaked floor.

I thought you were looking to cover/paint a new overlay of plywood/OSB. It will not work with an old oil soaked floor.

Trying to be a cheap fawk.

Oh well.

Thanks. Prolly what I'll do.

OSB is very flamable...

OSB is very flamable...

damn.

regular plywood then.

you can try renting a floor sander and seeing what happens by sanding the floor. you may get enough off that paint will stick to the existing wood.

if you do go the osb or pw route, spand the extra $ on toung and groove, it will keep the edges aligned so your castered items wont catch at seams

epoxy floor paint, but i also vote for the 2inch concrete solution

what kind of sq footage are we talking about here ?

if it's not a WHOLE, WHOLE lot you might put that cement hardiboard down that they put in bathrooms. it's flameproof for sure ...

Just under 600sf.