Basement Floor Epoxy in Waterloo, IA

Basement floor epoxy turns a dusty, stained basement slab into a floor you can mop. In Waterloo, that slab is often old. Census estimates published by Point2Homes show 21.6% of the city's housing units were built in 1939 or earlier and the median year built is 1962. Basements of that age often have painted floors, patched cracks, a floor drain or two, and corners that get damp after a heavy rain.

Moisture is the first question

Most basement coatings that fail do so because of water vapor coming up through the slab. The vapor collects under the coating and pushes it off as blisters. So we test the slab before we suggest a system. If the floor is dry, a standard epoxy base works well. If it shows moderate moisture, we use a moisture-tolerant primer under the coating. If water is actively seeping in, the coating waits until the water problem is fixed. We tell you which group your floor falls in.

Old paint and sealers

Many older basement floors have been painted more than once. Paint is a weak layer, and anything coated on top of it fails when the paint lets go. We grind old paint and sealers off before coating. On some floors that takes longer than the coating itself, and it shows up as its own line on your quote.

Radon

Iowa has a radon problem. The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services says 71.6% of Iowa homes are above the EPA action level of 4 pCi/L, the largest share of any state, and Iowa is entirely EPA radon Zone 1. A coating seals the surface of the slab, but it is not a radon mitigation system and does not replace one. If you have not tested, we suggest doing it before finishing the basement. If you already have a mitigation system, we coat around the suction pipe and keep the sealed openings intact.

Finishes for different rooms

• Laundry and utility rooms: solid color or light flake, easy to clean and resistant to detergent spills.
• Storage and workshop areas: flake floors that hide dust and scuffs.
• Rec rooms, home gyms and bars: metallic epoxy, a poured finish with swirls and depth, or a solid color with a satin topcoat.
• Stair landings: flake or anti-slip topcoat for grip.

Metallic epoxy in finished basements

Metallic epoxy is a pigmented epoxy with metallic powders that are moved and swirled while wet to make a one-of-a-kind floor. It works best where looks matter and traffic is light to moderate. This Old House and Bob Vila both put metallic at about $5 to $12 per square foot. Because the finish is poured and worked by hand, no two floors look the same, and we show you samples before you decide.

Cool slabs and humidity

Basement slabs stay cool year round. In humid summer weather, warm air hitting a cool slab can condense on the surface. We check the dew point before coating and run dehumidifiers when needed, because coatings will not bond to a wet floor.