Basement Flooring Options

[upnorth]

We are finishing the basement in our lakehouse and wanted to solicit the good, bad and ugly regarding flooring options. The floor is concrete, but sits on 4 inch rigid foam. The basement is a walkout, but we had tile installed along the walkout wall to the stairs leading to the main floor (works well, as there is usually a puddle of water there as the kids drop the life vests, towels, shoes). We could continue with that tile throughout the basement, but are also considering laminate flooring, carpet and even staining/painting the concrete. (If we had thought ahead, we probably would have done a stamped concrete floor).

Just wondering what your experiences/preferences are and whether you would have done something different.

[AC2717]

Since you cannot do stamped concrete, I would love to see a stained concrete floor in this case, only mantence after sealing is washt he floor just like every other floor you put down, i would nto go laminate just becasue of the moisture and also if the kids are bringing stuff like that in you really do not want standing water on it, it will ruin it

[Highlander]

We have a similar situation in our house, lower level that everyone comes in thru from the beach, hot tub etc. The floor had berber carpet that was new when we purchased. Carpet was not good for that type of use and was impossible to keep dry and clean, we also have 2 labs that trounce around. Last winter as part of an addition we took an existing laminate floor from upstairs and had it installed in place of the carpet. The laminate is put over the concrete with the padding/ vapor barrier that they recommend. This has been a much better solution for this type of use. Don't know if cold will be an issue during the winter yet.

[donnamatrix]

Hi
Our basement is concrete also. We were going to do laminate, but had Home Beautiful do testing of moisture levels. Even though the basement seems dry as can be, there is too much "below grade" for anyone toguarantee the laminate. SO we went to look at the flooring used by Major Brands, right up the street from Home Beautiful. It's a heavy duty vinyl (Color Shed has it too, but not the heaviest duty kind). I don't recall the name of the product, it begins with a "K" ... it looks like wood, kinda. It can be set right upon the concrete, it's a peel and stick variety. We LOVE IT. The guy who did the finishing of our basement was so impressed with the stuff, he is doing the floor in one of his bathrooms with it. It really takes a beating, because we always enter the house thru basement or garage/basement, with skis, boating stuff, snow, ice, etc. Go check it out!

[Steveo]

Look into Prego type of laminate. It's "floating" with vapor barrier. Had it in my basement, held up real well.

[newbie]

We used Pergo flooring on our basement floor and really like it. The only thing to watch out for, is you need to ensure that floor is nice and level otherwise you get soft spots. Good luck

[Drummer Girl]

Trafficmaster puts out resilient flooring called Allure. This can be put right over concrete, even if the concrete has slight imperfections. It is a "floating" floor and is totally waterproof, both from the top (life vests, wet towels etc.) and from any existing moisture issues of the average basement. Even w/ the moisture barrier, laminate flooring (Dupont,Pergo), and water (life vests/wet towels) do not mix. They are not recommended for kitchen/bath unless the user is extremely vigilant about the moisture issue. They will soak up sitting water. Allure adheres to itself, and is easy to put down. You cut it w/ a utility knife using a metal straight edge as your guide. I have seen it, learned a lot about it and highly recommend it. It comes in many wood tones and several tile pattens. The plank size is about the same as laminate, yet thinner, yet thicker and more resilient than vinyl flooring. Easily maintained. I know that Home Depot carries it. Google it.

[Audiofn]

Go to Home Depot and buy the underlayment squares. They have egg crate like plastic on one side with partical board on the other. They work FANTASTIC in situations that are "slightly" damp. We use them all the time.

Jon

[Drummer Girl]

The squares are called Dricore. Google it, there is a wealth of information. Usually it is used if the moisture is on the floor already, not from above-wet bathing suits, towels, life jackets etc. Dricore is a sub-floor w/ a moisture barrier so that you can put down many floor types on top of it and not have to worry about the moisture damaging your carpet, wood etc. The surface is treated w/ a moisture resistant sealer, I am not sure that it would stand up to the prolonged moisture from the stuff you say hits the floor.

[parrothead]

A friend used a flooring made by ICOR that works well for their basement. It is a laminate flooring that is impervious to moisture. It floats on a moisture barrier and is made of a plastic composite. Looks like PERGO type laminate flooring. The flooring goes down in "boards" like any other floating floor. The difference is that each seam is sealed with a bonding agent. When it has hardened it makes a waterproof seal. The under layment gives the floor a little bounce which better on the legs when walking on cement. He and I installed the floor in a 25 by 25 rec. room in a couple of days. Was really easy to install and all you need for tools is a chop saw to cut the boards.

[arthurc]

We used Dricore and then carpeted over it. Its stood up well for 4 years. We also used the laminate in the laundry room and the spare room. That also has stood uo well.

[HUH]

We run a dehumidifier in the basement/lower level. Moisture in the air is bad for alot of things. Mold etc.