The most important thing is the prep. Make sure you clean your floor really well. Then you need to acid etch it. That helps the paint to get in there and bind better to the cement.

Remember, this is a floor. It is going to take some serious and heavy abuse. The walking, rolling of machines, the dogs etc. etc. So, it's going to chip here and there. It's inevitable.

That said, there's 2 ways you can go. The first is with an epoxy. Now their are 2 types of epoxy. The oil based or water based. They are always in 2 part form. The A part which is the paint and the B part which is the catalyst.

The best epoxy is the oil based type. I forget the name and it's killing me. But this is EXTREMLY strong odorous stuff and I don't think you should use it in your home. We referred to it as the A B Bomb because It will clear out a building with the smell and make you dizzy and sick. You need a good quality respirator when you use this too. You don't want to breath this in. Trust me, I know. LOL You even need Methyl Ethyl Keytone (MEK Highly toxic solvent) just to clean up with. This type of epoxy is used in the locker rooms of all the Pro and College stadiums as well as some high schools. When it dries, it looks and feels like tile. It's so thick and strong.

The second type of epoxy is the water based. That's also an A B - 2 part system, but a lot less toxic. If you choose this, wear a good mask and open all the windows to air it out. A fan is a good thing to use as well to circulate the air. You should use one no matter what paint you use. It has about a 60 - 90 minute pot life before it starts to harden on you. It will dry well in about 8 hours but needs about 72 hours to fully cure. It's very durable too. Will it chip? Yes, it's paint, but, you can always take and mix some more as needed and do touch ups. You'll see a little sheen difference when the touch up dries of course, but it will fade and blend with time. You could rough it up lightly with a green scrungy pad. Not hard to scratch it all up, but just to dull the sheen a little bit. This is the way I myself would go if I were to paint.

The second way you could go would be to use what they use for spray in truck bed liner. We did this at work and it holds up awesome. Vehicles driving over it as well as tool carts and heavy equipment. This is expensive stuff, but if money weren't an issue, I'd definitely use this.

The product we used was called Raptor. It is a 2 part epoxy based rubberized coating. The rubber is what makes it so durable. It gives it some flex and resistance. It also dries flat so that you can touch it up at will and you don't really notice what was redone. You can even add sand to it for gripiness if needed. Same goes for the epoxies and I highly recommend that you use a sand in the paint because if it gets wet and you hit it without noticing it, you could easily take a Dixie and really hurt yourself on that hard non forgiving cement.

I will say this, this may be a great option for you. I thought of it while typing. Check out this link. I almost used this in my finished basement with its concrete floor. it's high strength plastic snap locking flooring that simply clicks together. And if a piece gets ruined, you just pull it out and snap in a brand new piece. Pretty cool stuff and a few different companies make it in a wide array of colors, textures, and designs, including carpet style. Definitely give this a look see. I think this is a better alternative to paint myself and a lot less labor intensive.

Me, I ended up using faux wood looking rubber gym flooring. My wife works out down there so it gives here extra cushion, and it looks really cool. It's a simple jigsaw puzzle pattern and installing it is a BREEZE! You simply cut it with a nice sharp razor blade. They come in all different colors including different faux wood types. We went with the light wood look. We're very happy with it. It will leave an indent if you have a heavy object on it. So if you have something on it, then move it to another place after it's been there for a little while, it will leave that imprint. BUT, you can simply pull out the affected piece and install a new one. Then your good as new again.

Here's a link for that.

Anyway, if you have your heart set on painting it. I strongly suggest you go to Sherwin Williams. They'll help to steer you in the right direction as far as product, price and process.

No matter which way you go, good luck and I hope this helped.

Derek.

You can call the company that makes the Raptor liner because they sell it in 5 gallon barrels that way. You don't spray it on. You mix it and cut the room in. Then you roll it on the floor right of the bucket. You'll get the roller texture and that helps with the grip. If you want extra grip you can add sand. When we did this on our work floors we didn't use sand on the whole floor, just at the entrances for extra grip with how wet it get from a thousand guys walking in and out when it rains or snows. The rest of the floor was straight product.

This paint has held up unbelievably. 20 ton trucks and busses ride across it. Mechanics and machinists drag 1000lb tool carriers across it and tons of other stuff. It has held up through all that. Some spots have chipped here and there and when it does, we just mix a little and then take a small 4" or 6" roller and pour the stuff on the floor and roll it out.