Best material for tiny pottery studio

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Lady has a new 12x16 manufactured building to be used as a pottery studio. It will have two kilns in it. She was thinking sheet vinyl. I'm thinking plain old VCT.
Your suggestions?
 
I haven't seen it yet so I don't know if this is just for drying and cooking or if the whole operation is in this area. Wouldn't a coat of sealer and a few coats of wax fix the tile/cracks issue? VCT would be a lot tougher wouldn't it?
 
VCT is hard to beat but it does require regular maintenance. Waxing and stripping and such. When properly burnished it’s beautiful, impenetrable and can last virtually forever. Nothing is getting in the cracks. You can do some nifty designs too if so inclined…

Loose lay sheet vinyl is easier, less maintenance, and easy to replace when needed. Moving the kilns might not be so easy though…
 
VCT is hard to beat but it does require regular maintenance. Waxing and stripping and such. When properly burnished it’s beautiful, impenetrable and can last virtually forever. Nothing is getting in the cracks. You can do some nifty designs too if so inclined…

Loose lay sheet vinyl is easier, less maintenance, and easy to replace when needed. Moving the kilns might not be so easy though…
I'm picturing two kilns, a potters wheel or two and tons of shelves setting on the perimeter. I'm thinking replacing sheet vinyl would be a nightmare some day.
 
Roppe radial rubber tile is pretty tough stuff but expensive… Epoxy floors are nice too…

VCT is still my pick. Works in schools and supermarkets…Can’t kill it if properly installed. Cheap and tough... As we all know proper prep is everything.
 
Just be careful with your substrate. I’d bet money there’s no vapor retarder under that slab. If you can get your hands on some old S-86 you’d be okay but these new clear thin spread adhesives don’t tolerate moisture and pH issues at all.

3-5 coats of a good acrylic metal cross-linked floor finish minimum or you could do a semi-permanent urethane finish but those are not a cheap date and you really need someone who knows what they are doing and has the correct equipment to apply it. If done right though you could get 5-6 years out of the urethane finish before you have to remove and re-apply. Pro tip…do not strip the VCT before you apply acrylic finish. Stripper is highly alkaline and will begin to soften the adhesive and you’ll get glue ooze when you’re applying the finish. I could fill a filing cabinet with the paper work from the number of times I’ve had to go look at that issue.

Stripping first used to be the norm back when they used carnuba waxes for the factory coating. If you didn’t strip it would streak when you tried to apply more wax. But they also were using cutback back then which wasn’t bothered by the alkalinity of the stripper. Today’s acrylic adhesives just begin to re-emulsify and break down if you strip them. We use to say no stripper for the first 1-2 YEARS because of the alkalinity.

Also don’t know how long it’s been since you priced any VCT but since circle A and Tarkett are the only two left making it domestically it’s gone up a lot. Most of the time you’re also paying a significant amount of freight on top of the higher pricing. You can easily be over $2.00 / sf for a landed price. Add finishing and there are other products that look better with less maintenance that are in the same price range.
 
Just be careful with your substrate. I’d bet money there’s no vapor retarder under that slab. If you can get your hands on some old S-86 you’d be okay but these new clear thin spread adhesives don’t tolerate moisture and pH issues at all.

3-5 coats of a good acrylic metal cross-linked floor finish minimum or you could do a semi-permanent urethane finish but those are not a cheap date and you really need someone who knows what they are doing and has the correct equipment to apply it. If done right though you could get 5-6 years out of the urethane finish before you have to remove and re-apply. Pro tip…do not strip the VCT before you apply acrylic finish. Stripper is highly alkaline and will begin to soften the adhesive and you’ll get glue ooze when you’re applying the finish. I could fill a filing cabinet with the paper work from the number of times I’ve had to go look at that issue.

Stripping first used to be the norm back when they used carnuba waxes for the factory coating. If you didn’t strip it would streak when you tried to apply more wax. But they also were using cutback back then which wasn’t bothered by the alkalinity of the stripper. Today’s acrylic adhesives just begin to re-emulsify and break down if you strip them. We use to say no stripper for the first 1-2 YEARS because of the alkalinity.
 
Just be careful with your substrate. I’d bet money there’s no vapor retarder under that slab. If you can get your hands on some old S-86 you’d be okay but these new clear thin spread adhesives don’t tolerate moisture and pH issues at all.

3-5 coats of a good acrylic metal cross-linked floor finish minimum or you could do a semi-permanent urethane finish but those are not a cheap date and you really need someone who knows what they are doing and has the correct equipment to apply it. If done right though you could get 5-6 years out of the urethane finish before you have to remove and re-apply. Pro tip…do not strip the VCT before you apply acrylic finish. Stripper is highly alkaline and will begin to soften the adhesive and you’ll get glue ooze when you’re applying the finish. I could fill a filing cabinet with the paper work from the number of times I’ve had to go look at that issue.

Stripping first used to be the norm back when they used carnuba waxes for the factory coating. If you didn’t strip it would streak when you tried to apply more wax. But they also were using cutback back then which wasn’t bothered by the alkalinity of the stripper. Today’s acrylic adhesives just begin to re-emulsify and break down if you strip them. We use to say no stripper for the first 1-2 YEARS because of the alkalinity.
Not that I do any stripping, but good to know about the alkalinity of the stripper.
 
There's a double layer floor and it is insulated from what I've been told and I'm going to contact the builder of the building, better built is the name.
All I know is there's a 6-in bed of gravel under it but I don't know the ventilation space or anything else about it. I'll have to do some studying. The owner says VCT is out and she has some type of 12 ft sheet goods in mind.
Want to know anymore until I know anymore.
I appreciate the feedback very much.
 

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