My husband and I recently moved into a new home. We are anxious to finish our basement, however do not necessarly have the money to finish it completely at this time. We would like to at least elimanate the dust and give it a more homey feel. I know you suggest a good masonry sealer which we plan on doing but what about the concrete block walls? Should they be sealed? Can I paint them? We have lots of children toys, weights and a expensive treadmill down there that is now getting very dusty and making it very undesirable for my husband and I and our children to go down there and use.
Answer:
Painting the concrete with no matter what kind of paint will certainly cut down on the dust and if you plan to finish it at some time in the future, it doesn't matter if the paint ends up peeling - it won't do that for a year or two anyway. The floor you may want to seal properly though because paint will ruin the surface for anything but sub-flooring and you might not want that.
