Hi,

 

A friend is converting a barn to a shop and cafe - there is a new concrete slab on the ground floor and we are trying to work out how to finish the floor. 

 

The idea would be that something is painted onto the concrete that :

 

- will be tough and long lasting

- will stop the concrete getting dusty

- is also suitable for the small cafe kitchen

- has to be washable

- not too slippery a surface when wet

- could be clear, or have a color to it

 

Any ideas on what the right kind of product to look for is?

 

thanks for any advice - reddal

Depends on budget and current / required finish.  Floor paint is cheap. Porcelain plank tiles are hard wearing and look good.

https://www.watco.co.uk/paint-and-sealers

 

Is the cafe used for preparing food? It complying with environment and health regulations is far more important than colour. Don't know the UK regs but in Ireland you pretty much have to put down some none slip vinyl in the food prep area unless you get a very smooth finish on the concrete which still has a slip resistance. I can't imagine an 'old barn' wall would pass either and at the least would need a smooth plaster finish if not whiterock, tiling or other cleanable smooth surface.

 

If you don't know the regs I'd contact the local food safety officer and see what they want for the kitchen / food prep area.

@reddal

Ideally you need an epoxy resin floor eg:

https://gbr.sika.com/content/united_kingdom/flooring/en/products-and-systems/resin-flooring/about/sika-resin-flooring.html

If you can afford it go for something that has a thickness of between 1 and 2mm. The DIY versions are usually just paint-on and will wear out too quickly.

20 hours ago, mvincentd said:

https://www.watco.co.uk/paint-and-sealers

 

 

Thanks - that looks good - eg https://www.watco.co.uk/safety-coat-hygienic.html .  Its quite expensive though - something like this seems a lot cheaper - https://www.regalfloorpaint.co.uk/epoxy-floor-paint.html . I guess you get what you pay for?

 

 

7 hours ago, Dudda said:

Is the cafe used for preparing food? It complying with environment and health regulations is far more important than colour. Don't know the UK regs but in Ireland you pretty much have to put down some none slip vinyl in the food prep area unless you get a very smooth finish on the concrete which still has a slip resistance. I can't imagine an 'old barn' wall would pass either and at the least would need a smooth plaster finish if not whiterock, tiling or other cleanable smooth surface.

 

If you don't know the regs I'd contact the local food safety officer and see what they want for the kitchen / food prep area.

 

Yes - part of the cafe will be a kitchen - which will have whiterock type walls and ceilings. Hoping to avoid cost of vinyl though by using a fancy coating on the concrete floor. Our local environmental health are relaxed about the floor, as long its cleanable and anti-slip to some extent.

 

6 hours ago, Ian said:

@reddal

Ideally you need an epoxy resin floor eg:

https://gbr.sika.com/content/united_kingdom/flooring/en/products-and-systems/resin-flooring/about/sika-resin-flooring.html

If you can afford it go for something that has a thickness of between 1 and 2mm. The DIY versions are usually just paint-on and will wear out too quickly.

 

Looks good but can't see prices - where can I buy it? How does it compare to this kind of product https://www.watco.co.uk/safety-coat-hygienic.html recommended by mvincentd ?

 

thanks - reddal

 

Edited September 21, 20188 yr by reddal

I've used non-slip epoxy floor paint from Reactive Resins and it was really good, but sadly I see they have now gone into liquidation.  There are plenty of other suppliers of epoxy floor paints though, and generally they are all pretty similar, and if applied as at least two coats would probably meet any food safety issues OK.  They are hard work to apply, in my experience, as to get the required build thickness they tend to be quite thick and need a lot of work to brush or roller out.  Worth it though, as there's simply no comparison between ordinary floor paint and the epoxy stuff - it's far more hard wearing and gives a really nice looking finish.