Slippery concret floors

[John Hicks]

My floor around the lathe gets pretty slippery when the chips start flying. It is a garage with a concrete floor. Do any of you folks use something that doesn't cost a fortune to coat the floor with? I've done the splits more than once, (and in my elderly fat boy condition, that's dangerous)

Yes, I speeeelllled concrete wrong in the header, but I can't change it.

 

[Owen Lowe]

For a less than permanent solution and something kind to your feet, knees, hips, and back would be a horse stall mat. They're a 1/2"ish thick heavy duty rubber cushion. Since they're made to be around animals, they clean easily. The only other thing I'm thinking is a polyurethane porch paint (or epoxy) with sand added to the mix for the non-slip. The problem I see with this is that the embedded sand makes it hard to sweep and for a future buyer's appeal you'd probably have to do a good portion of the entire floor rather than what's directly around the lathe.

 

[Bill Boehme]

These are pretty good and they provide some cushioning which is good for old aching backs.

 

[robo hippy]

I have a local business that specializes in rubber mats. They told me that horse stall mats are great if you weigh about 1200 pounds. Don't know, and haven't tried them. I went with some 5/8 thick neoprene, which I cut to fit around the lathe feet. I picked up a roll of some thing that looks like what Bill has in the picture so I have plenty for more use around my lathes. To me, the wood chips on the floor, and wet wood always, made it less slippery for reasons I don't understand. Saw dust, like from the table saw seemed to make it more slippery though. Most local big box stores don't have a wide selection of mats. U-Line has more mats than you can shake a stick at, but I prefer to buy local when ever possible.

robo hippy

 

[Dean Center]

John, my garage concrete floor isn't slippery at all. The contractor suggested adding some fiber (?fiberglass) and the surface is actually a wee bit rough--not a shiney smooth surface of indoor finished concrete. Reed-is there a way he could modify the concrete surface if it's too smooth?

 

[Roger Wiegand]

Traditional solutions where the floor must remain concrete (washability for example) are to abrade the floor to roughen it or to paint with sand added to the paint. The latter needs to be refreshed regularly in heavier traffic areas. An epoxy paint will last longer with the sand. There are also additives to decrease slipperiness when wet. I have big neoprene mats under my lathe and in front of my bench and other tools. Unfortunately the expensive ones I got from McMaster are way nicer than the cheapies from the Borg. I find they add both comfort and slip protection. I find horse mats to be overkill (more expensive and less comfortable), way too heavy to move around conveniently at cleaning time.

 

[John Torchick]

I have a set of HF mats that can interlock.

 

[Leo Van Der Loo]

Large sheet of OSB in front and under the lathe will help you with regards of slippery and warmer and easier on your feet and back..

Pretty low cost as well

 

[GRJensen]

I have several stall mats (think horse or cattle stalls). They are heavy, and pretty firm, but I can stand on them for hours on end without leg/hip pain.

 

[robo hippy]

Best way I can think of to 'modify' a hard troweled concrete floor would be to acid etch it. Smelly nasty fumes. Easier to paint over it. There are many products that can do that. You may still have to 'clean' the floor first, depending on what you have been doing on it. If there has ever been any oil spills, of any sort, finished won't stick to it.

robo hippy

 

[Doug Freeman]

20 years ago I covered my shop/garage floor with SW concrete stain with grit added. I believe I added 1/2 the grit recommended. It seals the concrete from absorbing liquids and provides traction, though strong solvents like gas or dna will dissolve it - just let those evaporate and the stain is fine. No chipping or loss of adhesion. The grit has worn down over the years. Fine dust eventually makes it slippery. A disadvantage of mats is that usually there is not one everywhere you walk. If you get saw dust everywhere like I do most of the floor gets covered so mats dont really work, plus the edge of mats create trip hazards for old shuffling feet.