darkroom floor question

[weasel]

Aftwe aseveral years absence without a darkrrom, I am in the process of building one. I have a question about floor surfaces-my last darkroom had a painted plywood floor which worked ok and was cheap. The building I buit has an OSB subfloor, and I was thinking of using the Restore products they are selling for decks, that make a thick coating. Seems cheaper, quicker, and easier than putting down underlayment and doing something else, and I would think it would last really well being in temperature controlled environment out of the weather.
Thoughts?

 

[Larry the sailor]

How smooth is that stuff?
Might look at porch paint. Very durable and might be easier to clean up spills.

 

[David Brown]

Sheet vinyl.

 

[Neal]

Give it a try, what's the worst that could happen? If it doesn't work out you can always put a floor in. My next door neighbor used the Restore system on his front porch and it is working nicely.

Neal Wydra

 

[ac12]

Whatever is smooth and NON-POROUS, so any spills are easily wiped up, and is easy to clean.

 

[MattKing]

Whatever is smooth and NON-POROUS, so any spills are easily wiped up, and is easy to clean.

You also want to avoid something that will be very slippery if it becomes wet.

 

[AgX]

The building I buit has an OSB subfloor, and I was thinking of using the Restore products they are selling for decks, that make a thick coating. Seems cheaper, quicker, and easier...

What about the seams between the OSB boards? Will they be closed by that coating?

 

[Mainecoonmaniac]

Chemical resistant and light colored. I coved my darkroom floor for easy cleaning.

 

[pbromaghin]

Home Depot or Lowe's has a product called Deckover. It's a real thick sludge of stain with real fine sand to fill cracks and provide good footing.

 

[mgb74]

Costco (and I'm sure others) sell rolls of Dead Link Removed for use in garages. We recently installed in a community darkroom and seems to work well.

 

[GRHazelton]

A suggestion: Whatever you choose make it a light color, and if sheet vinyl virtually without a pattern. Makes it easier to find that lid to the stainless steel tank you somehow dropped. If you can somehow manage it a central drain would be lovely! Imagine: Spilled hypo, the ultimate horror! Just flood the floor with clean water! Problem solved!

 

[Brian Schmidt]

Keep in mind that the stuff might out gas for longer than you would think. It is meant to be outside so accumulation of fumes isn't a big deal. That and if you end up really disliking it, how hard will it be to get back up? Will spilled chemicals make it peel up? Is the heat of the sun needed to cure it?

Brian

 

[AgX]

Good point, but in principle that applies too on vinyl covering and strand board.