Epoxy Flooring in Oak Park, IL

Epoxy flooring in Oak Park means working under, and beside, some of the most studied houses in the country. Wikipedia says the village holds the largest collection of Wright-designed homes in the world and about 2,400 historic sites, mostly Queen Anne, Prairie School and Craftsman. The coatings we install go on basement and garage concrete, so they leave the architecture alone while making the working parts of the house easier to live with.

Nearly every house here is old

The local historical society, quoted on Wikipedia, says almost all of Oak Park's housing was built between 1892 and 1950. ACS data summarized by Point2Homes agrees: 59.3% of units date from 1939 or earlier. Concrete from that period was mixed and finished differently than today. It can be soft on top, patched in layers, or poured without a vapor barrier underneath. We grind a test area, look at what comes up and only then suggest a system.

Basements without a vapor barrier

Without a barrier under the slab, ground moisture can move up into a basement floor. A coating that traps that moisture can blister. We measure the slab, and when readings call for it we use a breathable sealer or a primer designed for damp concrete. For some old basements a breathable option is the honest answer, and we will say so even if it is the smaller job.

Get a Free Estimate

Coach houses and detached garages

Many older lots have a garage set back from the house, sometimes with a workshop or storage loft. These buildings often go unheated, and their slabs can heave with frost. Before coating we check for cracks that open and close with the seasons. Moving cracks get a flexible filler, which keeps the coating from splitting on the same line next spring.

High ground on an old shoreline

Oak Park sits at about 620 feet, on the former shore of glacial Lake Chicago, with Ridgeland Avenue tracing that old beach line, per Wikipedia. A continental divide even runs through the village. Ground conditions vary from block to block, which is one more reason we test each floor instead of guessing from the street address.

Apartment buildings and condos

Oak Park also has a large share of multi-unit housing. About 13% of units are in buildings with 50 or more units and 12.3% in buildings with 20 to 49, per the same ACS summary. Shared basements, storage cages and laundry rooms in those buildings can be coated in sections with a simple, durable finish that a building manager can keep clean.