"RoyJ" wrote in message
link.net...
I'd start with one coat of the concrete wall primer/sealer, the stuff that
is supposed to block moisture. Even though you have a dry basement, there
is still soil moisture that is coming through the concrete.

Sounds like good advice and the walls have (sometimes) wet soil on the other
side of them anyway.

Put on a top coat of satin acrylic laxtex in a very light color of your
choosing. Eggshell white, a very light beige, a very light green, etc.
Nothing off in the yellow, orange, red or blue tones. The satin finish is
harder than the flat so it does not show the dirt and washes up easily.
Use the light tones to reflect the light. Ask for a finish that is used in
a bathroom, they are much tougher than the ones for walls.

Thanks for the above. It looks like at least some of the primers are white
but can be lightly tinted. Should the primer be tinted to match the over
coat? It sounds like the overcoat needn't be formulated for concrete, if a
primer/sealer is used. Is that right?

I've got the same problem with heat ducts so I've been using 2x40watt
florescent light fixtures stuck up inbetween the floor joist. You have to
use the older fixtures or the commercial grade new units in order to get
decent reflectors. Plan on a watt of florescent per square foot if you
want to work anywhere in the shop (cabinet work, fabrication, layout). Use
task lighting if you are just running machine tools or bench work.

The shop is about 400 sq. ft. but it's broken up into 3 separate areas and
about 100 sq. ft. are taken up with the furnace, water heater, a few
structural elements. I've got (3) dual 40 watt fixtures now but they are the
cheap ones so I'll look into upgrading those. Looks like the locations for
a couple of the fixtures might have enough room for quad fixtures and there
is room to add a couple more. Task lighting sprinkled throughout - a mix of
articulated incandescent, halogen, and fluoresent round fixtures. The
latter kinda suck but do add a bit of light and were used because there
wasn't room for much else. Do the type of bulbs make any difference? Some
seem to like a warm bulb for a basement shop.

Mike

Mike Henry wrote:
I'm thinking about painting the poured concrete walls in the basement
shop to get it looking a little brighter. What is a good color, brand,
and type of paint to use? Is a glossy or matte finish better? Is selaer
needed or can the walls just be painted as is? The walls are 12 years
old and we never have any water leaks - the sump pump has never come on.

Home Depot, Menard's, Lowes are all nearby as is a J.C. Licht paint
store.

An archive search didn't reveal too much from rcm, but Boris Beizer seems
to like a really bright yellow in acrylic. Some seem to think that pure
white is not a good color

More lighting would also help but there are too many air handling ducts
in the way to do a better job of that and the ceiling is way too short to
consider a drop ceiling.

Mike