painting linoleum

[cabarber]

I just bought a 1950's house. The Kitchen has roll linoleum. I saw a TV show where they painted the linoleum - does this really work? Will it hold up to traffic?



Woman with a Big Truck!

[handyandy]

Really? I can't imagine a scenario in which this would work! What kind of paint?

[Gummi_Girl]

Yes
I am familiar with the process that you are referring too. A friend of mine had his bathroom floors sprayed and I hired the same guy to spray my kitchen counter tops. I will try to find out what type of paint he used, but I believe his preparation process was a key part in the lasting finish. I had my counters painted 2 years ago & I still love the way they look!

For my kitchen counters, they treated the surface with a chemical that "ate-off" the glossy finish. The chemical removed all of the color from my counters; the result was that the counters were a brite-white and felt porous, almost brittle. Then they sprayed the "granitizing" paint over the counter tops, and then lastly covered the new paint with a clear-coat substance. This is the same process they used on my friend’s flooring too.

I wonder how durable the finish would be if you were to paint your vinyl without some type of chemical pre-treatment. The acid preparation process that removed the gloss & color, made a perfect surface for the paint to adhere too. I am far from an expert, I would suggest talking to some professionals about your flooring. The process was not expensive, and it was great to have them tape off everything and clean-up. The guys I hired advertised as bathroom refinishers. But they told me that they have been hired to paint tons of stuff; from vinyl, counter-tops, furniture, people even hire them to paint rooms (and I am sure that would hide anything!).

Good luck & let us know how your project turns out!

[shuttlebunny]

cabarber, It would be nice to know what you decided. I would think that replacing the flor would be a better choice. Then again, nobody is going to convince me that I don't want to spend the time sanding my MB floor. I like the beat-up look of it & the fact that it's tongue & groove.

[Todd]

I am anxious to hear how this is done. How could it last?

[Littledevil]

Hi.... Painting a lasting design on the floor is possible! The trick is varnish, varnish and varnish! You apply the basecoat then stencil your design on top (if desired) for example, a cobblestone or flagstone look. Perhaps a nice oriental rug? Then apply at least 4 coats of acrylic varnish. If it is a high traffic area I would suggest more. After each coat is dry, sand it very lightly, this helps give depth to the floor. Hope this helps!

Diana L. Henry