Basement Floor Epoxy in Cedar Rapids, IA

Basement floor epoxy turns a dusty, stained concrete slab into a floor you can mop. Cedar Rapids homeowners ask us about it for laundry rooms, storage areas, home gyms and rec rooms. A basement slab is a different job from a garage, though. It sits against the ground, it can carry moisture up from below, and in this city many basements have a history with the Cedar River.

Moisture comes first

The most common reason a basement coating fails is moisture moving up through the slab. Vapor pushes against the coating from below and causes blisters and peeling. Every basement estimate starts with moisture testing at several spots, including near walls and floor drains. Humid Iowa summers add a second issue: a cool slab under humid air can sweat, so we also look at how the space is dehumidified.

If your basement took water in 2008

Wikipedia reports that the 2008 Cedar River flood crested at 31.12 feet in Cedar Rapids and that about 5,900 homes were evacuated. Downstream in Palo, the whole town of about 980 residents was ordered out. Basements in the flooded areas were pumped out, cleaned and in many cases rebuilt. When we look at one of those slabs, we check for residues from cleanup products, patched areas, and cracks that let groundwater through. A sound, dry slab can be coated. A slab that still takes water needs the water problem fixed first.

Radon and finished basements

Iowa HHS reports that 71.6% of Iowa homes are above the EPA radon action level of 4 pCi/L and that the whole state is EPA Zone 1. A floor coating is not a radon mitigation system. If you are finishing the basement, test for radon first. If a mitigation system is needed, its suction point usually goes through the slab, and it should be installed before the new floor so it is not cut into later.

Basement slabs by house age

Cedar Rapids has a wide spread of housing ages. About 14.3% of homes were built before 1940, and the median year built is 1974, according to 2019 to 2023 American Community Survey data from Point2Homes. Older basement floors can be thin, uneven, painted or patched. In newer areas like North Liberty, where the median home was built in 2004, slabs are usually flatter, but new construction can still hold moisture. We grind to remove paint and sealers and fill cracks before any coating.

Finish options

• Solid color epoxy: a clean, bright floor for laundry and storage rooms.
• Flake broadcast: texture and color that hide lint and dust and add grip near the washer and the stairs.
• Metallic epoxy: a poured, swirled look for rec rooms and home bars.
• Moisture-tolerant primer: used under any of these where readings are borderline.

What a coating will not fix

A coating does not stop water leaking through a wall crack, a failed sump pump or a cracked floor drain. Cracks wider than about a quarter inch can point to foundation movement, and HomeGuide's resurfacing guide suggests a structural engineer for those. We tell you at the estimate if your basement needs that kind of work first.