Oil-Based Drylok To Block Mildew & Seal Cinderblocks, step by step

Ok, we are back on speaking terms with the basement. After it gave us quite a hard time when we began our Dryloking-interrupted-by-oh-no-is-that-mildew adventure (read all about that right here), we are feeling victorious after conquering the first step towards turning our cinder block insect shelter into clean and functional storage space.

If you recall, we had already faced the grueling disappointment of mildew spots making their way through our first coat of white latex-based Drylok (which is like painting with Elmer’s glue, btw)…

So with our second round of bleach-treatment having tamed the mildew a bit more, we crossed our fingers as we broke out the powerhouse oil-based Drylok (as recommended by the experts at True Value for being even more protective and durable).Talk about stinky. Sheesh. Thank goodness for our professional grade gas masks (we have read about people passing out without them when it comes to the oil-based formula). When it came to the consistency, it was like we had traded Elmer’s glue for natural peanut butter (you know, the kind that you have to stir to mix the oil in?). But we furiously trudged ahead as swiftly as possible while October graced us with a convenient little “heat wave” last week (Drylok has to be applied at 50+ degrees so last week’s highs in the 70’s were a blessing to our otherwise unheated basement).

After two 5-hour days and eight additional gallons of Drylok (yes, eight!) we at last wrapped up slathering a second coat on the walls and floor plus two complete coats on the ceiling. And with that we officially sealed our beige box of a basement (yup, that is 13 gallons all together, totaling 325 beans- thank goodness for our True Value gift card!). And a few hundred bucks is still a small price to pay for a weatherproofed basement that can now serve as usable storage forevermore (in fact after the first coat we had about a week of rain and nary a drop of moisture seeped through, so the second coat convinced us even further that our basement was fully waterproofed for the long haul). And despite the premixed tan Drylok color being a little fleshy for our tastes (they offer it in white, tan, gray and blue- we went with tan to make it feel a bit less stark down there), it in fact looks fairly good- especially compared to the raw cinder block “before.”

But the best part by far is no mildew (!!!) – even now, a week and at least two rainstorms later. Zero. Zilch. Nada. I guess the folks at True Value were right… that oil-based stuff is way better than the latex version.*

So with our Drylok at last packed away, this weekend we took care of the last bit of painting prep: the floor. See, we opted to use tan Drylok everywhere instead of painting with tan latex paint over white Drylok because painted Drylok cannot be re-Dryloked, which is recommended every 15+ years or so. But we hoped to bring some color to the floors to break up the big beige box of a basement (all of our moisture problems stemmed from the porous cinder block walls, not the concrete floor, so we are confident in painting over it without worry that we will need to re-Drylok the floor in a decade or two).

And in the spirit of being low-cost using what we have, we broke out some leftover chocolate brown porch and floor paint from our sunroom floor-painting project (Valspar’s Oil-Based Porch & Floor Paint in “Brownstone” in case you are wondering), slapped on one thick coat, and called it a day. We enjoy that the dark color will hide dirt and outdoor footprints (since it is a separate entry basement that is consistently a plus because we will consistently be trudging in from outside) and we also appreciate that the rich tone works with the rest of our home’s mocha flooring to make it feel like a part of our casa, even if it is a bit disconnected.

But of course this is all still simply the beginning of the big basement overhaul. Once that floor paint has a few days to dry, we will be back in there planning how to minimize eyesores like the big water heater in the middle of the room, brainstorming some storage solutions, tidying up a few more areas – including the access to our crawl space – and hopefully finishing this basement makeover before the whole lack-of-heating-down-there thing truly makes this project uncomfortable.

Oh and while we are on the subject, tell us what you folks use your basements for. Are they storage only? Fully abandoned? Livable square footage with extra bedrooms and bathrooms? Man caves? Rooms where monsters live like in Home Alone? Spill it.

*I also mentioned our basement project to my quite-expert-in-construction friend last weekend (at his wedding – I know, strong “you simply got married, but let us talk about Drylok” conversation skills on my part). First question he asked was “you used oil-based, right?” I swiftly responded “of course,” too embarrassed to admit our first coat mistake. Lesson learned.