Porch floor paint must satisfy two requirements: beauty and wearability. Selecting the wrong color or type of paint
for your porch floor can cost you both time and money.
I'm not fond of painting so I like to do it right the first time and not have to think about doing it again for quite awhile.
However, changing the color or pattern does have its advantages and can be a great weekend project.
Be sure to see our Porch Paint section for porch paints, colors, and creative ideas!
Painting Porch Floors
Floor paint is specially made to allow the paint to
dry harder, adhere better, and to handle heavy traffic. Use urethane if you want a high gloss finish
and easier maintenance.
Acrylic latex has a lower sheen than urethane but provides a fairly non-slip finish.
Latex floor paint is the most popular for concrete floors; however, an oil-based epoxy paint
provides a more abrasion-resistant finish and tends to wear better.
Wood
A previously painted wood surface must be cleaned. (TSP is a great cleaning product.
Remove any mildew with a bleach and water solution. Rinse thoroughly
and allow the porch to dry completely.
Remove any loose or flaking paint and remove any residual dust.
Prime new wood with two coats of a thinned acrylic latex paint specifically for floors.
Apply two additional coats of latex paint allowing the paint to dry thoroughly between coats.
Prior to painting, protect your house siding and surrounding plants. Tape off areas you don't want painted
and shield plants with plastic (remove when finished painting that area).
Porch Floor Paint Tricks: Stir a small amount of sand into the paint to help prevent falls on painted porch steps.
To keep pesky insects from landing in your wet paint,
add several drops of citronella oil to each gallon of paint.
Concrete Paint vs. Concrete Stain: Concrete paint coats and adheres to the concrete
surface. Concrete stain, like its counterpart for wood, soaks into the pores of
the concrete and changes the color permanently.
When considering painting your porch concrete floor, we recommend a premium, 100% acrylic masonry paint.
Before you paint; however, there are two extremely important must do's:
Allow newly poured concrete to cure at least 28 days before you paint. Fresh concrete should never be painted.
