What is the best way to remove sticky-back adhesive from a concrete basement floor to prepare for painting and sealing?
Hey there! So, I recently had to rip out some peel & stick tile in my basement, and now I’m looking for some advice on how to seal and paint the concrete floor before we put down actual flooring in the future. It’s going to be a temporary fix, but we still want it to look good in the meantime.
Now, a couple of questions came up during this whole process:
1) The previous owners had some water issues in the basement at some point, and when we ripped up the tiles, we found some sticky-back adhesive left behind that’s making certain areas a bit sticky. Any idea on the best way to remove this adhesive from a concrete floor? Will it also help with that musty smell that got released when we pulled up the tiles?
2) Should we seal the floor before we start painting?
3) And lastly, what’s the best method for painting the concrete floor?
Thanks a bunch for any advice you can offer!
You might want to try using something like goo gone, which is essentially just orange oil. But in order to address the water issue causing the mold, you’ll need to determine whether the water is seeping in through a wall crack or from the basement itself. Regardless, the odor is due to mold, so that should be your first priority to handle. Simply painting over it won’t suffice. You need to tackle the root of the problem to avoid potential health issues associated with prolonged exposure to the air.
Thank you! We found four small spots of mold under different parts of the floor trim that we removed. Those spots have been taken care of. There doesn’t seem to be an active leak, at least not since we moved in back in July. We haven’t noticed any water in the basement since then. I think the musty smell might be due to water that seeped under the tiles when there was water in the basement – that could have been years ago. We’re not exactly sure when it happened. I can see that drywall was replaced after the leak, but the owners never removed these tiles. I don’t see any mold on the actual concrete floor – just some remaining adhesives. The musty smell is much less this morning (it was strong as we removed the tiles last night), so I’m hoping it was just the tiles causing the odor.
Hey, we also have dehumidifiers and an air purifier down there. Hopefully that will make a difference
I tried out this product called Drylock for my basement walls and floors! It sealed up all the little cracks. You can find it at Home Depot. Good luck!
I encountered a similar issue during our home renovation. It’s crucial to expose the bare concrete for proper paint adhesion. After struggling with manual scrapers, I decided to rent a concrete grinder. However, this method wasn’t ideal because the concrete surface wasn’t entirely even. Each high or low spot created challenges for mechanical removal. To resolve this, I filled the uneven areas with floor leveling compound, added a moisture barrier, and installed LVP flooring. The end result? No musty odors and a fantastic appearance. Best of luck with your project.
Hey, thanks for that! I’ll definitely check it out.
If you’re planning to cover it up anyway, make sure to scrape and thoroughly clean the surface before applying concrete floor paint.
Remember that the black and white tiles may contain asbestos, so proceed with caution.
They were actually made in 1997 and from everything I’ve read, they shouldn’t contain asbestos.
Bethany Koch oh I see, my mistake then. I had those in my house and I’ve noticed them in other older houses and they definitely were.
I was pretty worried about asbestos before I began. I did a lot of research before starting the removal process and based on what I found.. there shouldn’t be any asbestos. We still took precautions when removing them. Our house was constructed in the ‘90s so hopefully they didn’t use anything with asbestos in it!
Bethany Koch a good way to tell is if the squares are 9×9 or bigger, then there’s a higher chance of asbestos. But yeah, from the late 90s, I would say there’s no asbestos risk.
If you’re dealing with residue, try scraping it off and then sanding down the surface. Instead of painting, staining your concrete floors could be a more durable option.
Hey, do you know what difference it would make to stain them instead? I haven’t really researched that before. There are a bunch of paint spots under the tiles (they’re not visible in this picture because not much was removed here) from what I’m guessing is someone spray painting stuff. Would that make a difference?
You can try using dry ice to remove those tiles. Just place the dry ice on the tile for a few minutes, and they should come off easily.
If you notice a musty smell, it’s likely due to moisture.
I’ll choose concrete stain over paint without a doubt. Paint and moisture always lead to issues in a basement.
I’m thinking about going with concrete polishing or epoxy. The surface has to be properly prepped beforehand. I might have to rent a concrete sander after removing all the tiles. I’d lean towards hiring a company that focuses on this and offers warranties on their work.
I had to acid-etch the concrete before putting on the epoxy paint. It turned out well in the end.
Rent a Concrete grinder first and then apply 3 layers of dryloc