Slippery Floors

[Bart-Man]

I know we are limited in resources thus far, but let me be the first to spring a query on ya...

Our floors are smooth concrete (painted). Combine that with wet tracks from outdoors and some grease from the kitchen, and you'd think you were playing slip-and-slide in your backyard.

We put down some carpet at the entrances and post "slippery when wet" signage (as well as throwing down some kosher salt). Still, isn't there something we can do to just make this flooring more friction friendly?

-BG

[David]

The smooth concrete floors, either stained or natural, will always be a hazard. A restaurant and bar that I frequent regularly has this set up. They have fought it since they opened. The company that did the work, tried to talk them out of the smooth stained floor. They wanted it any how. It's been about a year since they opened. They have had at least two lawsuits brought against them for slips and falls.

I did a little research for the guy that owns the business and here's what I found out. You have two options. One, paint the floors with a paint that was developed for concrete and mix clean white sand in to the paint. The sand will mix with paint and adhere to the concrete. As the paint wears, you will need to repair it. OR, you can paint the floor and throw the sand on top the paint before it dries. The first method is the better of the two.

The second option. Is to use an acid that was developed just for this opportunity. The acid will eat away at the top (slippery) layer of the concrete. This will leave a slightly rough walking surface. This is the method that he used. After the acid etching and neturalization, we use a liquid concrete stain to give it color and then sealed it.

I hope that this helps Bart. Just check with a paint store and a concrete contractor. Explain to them what I said and they will be able to help you.

[Xarn]

a club just opened with tiled smooth floors here, on opening day I checked out their setup, it was a pretty high end setup but they left themselves open to lawsuits in many ways, its amazing that they even did this, since they have a significant history with numerous other bars/clubs in the area and adjacent city. I watched for more then 30 minutes as they added to their inventory new drinks and with it a nice large wet spot was produced due to the melting ice. Noone bothered to clean up the mess. The employees they hired seemed clueless. But everyone in your employment should be oriented to hazards for the club.

If you have a multilevel club, bottled drinks are poured into plastic cups as the people enter the higher levels.

[steffen]

Something else you might try for the slippery floors in a SMALL AREA... is...

Go to the local hardware store or SkateBoard shop, and get some "Grip Tape". It's the stuff that skaters line the tops of their skateboards with for extra traction, and would work on any surface.

Cheers!

[Bart-Man]

Indeed. Great for steps!